Purchase agreement and cooling-off period: what do you sign?

A verbal agreement is not yet a purchase

If you buy a home as a private individual, the purchase must be recorded in writing. A verbal agreement on the price, even sealed with a handshake, is not binding on the buyer. Only once you and the seller sign the purchase agreement is there a valid sale. This is laid down in Article 7:2 of the Dutch Civil Code (Burgerlijk Wetboek).

What is in the purchase agreement?

A standard model is usually used, drawn up by estate agents' organisations together with the Consumentenbond (Dutch consumers' association) and Vereniging Eigen Huis (Dutch homeowners' association). Read these parts carefully in particular:

• The purchase price and the movable items being taken over, such as curtains or a kitchen.
• The date of transfer of ownership at the notary and which notary will handle it.
• Conditions precedent (ontbindende voorwaarden) and their deadlines. See conditions precedent.
• The deposit (waarborgsom) or bank guarantee, usually 10% of the purchase price.
• Special provisions such as an age clause (ouderdomsclausule: lower standards for the structural condition of older homes), an asbestos clause or a non-owner-occupancy clause. See latent defects.
• Actual use: the home must be suitable for normal use as a dwelling, unless otherwise agreed.
• For an apartment: the contribution to the VvE (owners' association) and information about the reserve fund. See buying an apartment.

Three-day statutory cooling-off period

After signing, as a private buyer you have a bedenktijd (statutory three-day cooling-off period). During this time you can withdraw from the purchase without giving a reason and at no cost. The cooling-off period starts on the day after you receive a copy of the purchase agreement signed by both parties.

• If the last day falls on a weekend or public holiday, the cooling-off period runs until the end of the next working day.
• You must withdraw in writing. Make sure you can prove that your message was sent in time.
• The cooling-off period applies only to the buyer, not to the seller.
• If you have used the cooling-off period with the same seller for the same home within six months, you will not get a cooling-off period the second time.

Registration with the Kadaster

The notary can register the purchase agreement in the public registers of the Kadaster (Dutch Land Registry). This registration protects you against a number of risks between signing and transfer, such as a second sale or an attachment (seizure) of the property. The protection lasts six months. Many notaries do this as standard; ask about it.

From signing to keys

1. You sign the purchase agreement and the cooling-off period begins.
2. Within the deadline of your financing condition, you arrange your mortgage: application, valuation and offer.
3. You pay the deposit or have a bank guarantee issued.
4. The notary draws up the deed of transfer (akte van levering) and the mortgage deed (hypotheekakte) and sends you a statement of settlement.
5. Shortly before the transfer, you carry out a final inspection of the home.
6. At the notary's office you sign the deeds, the purchase price is paid and you receive the keys.
7. The notary registers the deed of transfer with the Kadaster: from that moment you are officially the owner.

Never sign under pressure. Ask for the draft purchase agreement in advance and have any special provisions explained by your buying agent (aankoopmakelaar) or the notary.