r/Rentbusters

https://rent-buster.nl/

My long-suffering programmer has outdone himself this time.

After a year's effort (my fault, I am slow to respond to his comments/requests for input), he has made the RentBuster Housing search engine

The engine (still in beta) is meant to alleviate a problem I have with posting ads: mainly that I am too busy during the day to catch all the really obviously overpriced rentals that get put up on pararius, funda and Kamernet.

The goal of this engine is to help people looking for a home to identify potentially bustable homes as soon as they appear on websites. It

How it works

As soon (or within about 15mins) as an ad gets posted, the scraper function of the engine downloads information from the ad and puts it into a simplified Huurprijscheck calculator. The key things it needs are the energy label, the WOZ value and the size of the property. Other important parameters are whether or not the building is split and has outdoor space.

When all this information is compiled together, the engine estimates the maximum reasonable rent price that the landlord can charge for the home and compares it to the asking rent price. If the asking rent price is much higher than the maximum allowed and the points score is < 187 pts, the ad gets flagged as potentially bustable.

If the property shows no promise (i.e, its 120sqm energy label A) then it is marked as free sector/Vrij sector.

As well as this flagging, there is a breakdown of calculation given, showing all the metrics used to determine the max rent. The Assessment remarks give an explaination about whether, for example, the WOZcap is triggered and what the WOZ is.

Similar entries are made for COROP and general remarks about splitting, build year etc.

https://preview.redd.it/t3eve0bz562h1.png?width=1049&format=png&auto=webp&s=ec8f3c4cd127d29d674f37914a27b67aa3b1e959

Disclaimer: Keep in mind that this calculator is still BETA and may give some weird results, particularly if the WOZ value is missing or the Engine gets the address of the property wrong. Always check the property yourself on the Huurprijscheck before signing a lease.

Use it how you wish.

As a final point to my critics, this website will always be free so I am not buttering users up to paid subscription service in the future.

If you find it useful, give credit to my programmer M. in the comments section

PS: I am working on fixing the missing Pararius ads.

TLDR: Landlord said before making a list of eligible candidates, they want to make sure they all have the "right documents" and enough income, and are asking for an ID card, employment contract, and payslips for this, before anything official happens. It feels very suspicious despite the viewing and everything appearing legit. Basically what do I do.

Went to a viewing for a room in a shared house(not student housing though, all working residents). It was a (seemingly at least) legit listing on Pararius, with registration possible.

So, I sent an email expressing my interest after the viewing. The next email the landlord immediately asked for my employment contract, copy of ID card, etc. I thought that was only needed after it was 100% sure you are getting the room.

I've send another email asking to clarify that, i.e they already made a selection of candidates and are establishing the contract with me. Currently awaiting that response but I'm currently much less hopeful.

I met (some) of the other residents, and it all looked legit. I just think it's odd to already be asked for my documents without even knowing if I'm still being considered for tenancy.

Hi everyone, I am a french student who will study at RSM next year. I have gladly found a place at Xior Rotterdam, but I may have a better option on the way with some friends. Xior's lease does not mention if we may or may not terminate the lease prior to the move in date, and what would be the financial consequences. I have to sign before May 18th or I loose the spot. Would anyone have that info or experience on this matter?

Veel mensen weten dit niet, dus deel ik het hier even.
Als je in de vrije sector huurt en je huurprijs ligt boven het wettelijk maximum volgens het WWS-puntenstelsel, kun je niet alleen je toekomstige huur laten verlagen. Je kunt ook tot 24 maanden terugvorderen wat je te veel hebt betaald.

Een paar dingen die belangrijk zijn:

De termijn van 6 maanden geldt alleen voor toekomstige huurverlaging vanaf het begin van het contract. Voor terugvordering van te veel betaalde huur heb je tot 24 maanden terug. Dit zit in artikel 7:249 BW.
Je hoeft de verhuurder niet eerst zelf aan te spreken. Veel mensen denken dat dat moet. De Huurcommissie behandelt het gewoon. Wel handig om de verhuurder eerst een brief te sturen, meestal lossen ze het dan al op zonder procedure.

Het puntensysteem gaat over de woning, niet over jouw inkomen of situatie. Punten worden bepaald door oppervlakte, energielabel, voorzieningen, WOZ-waarde en nog wat factoren. Als de puntentelling onder de €879,66 grens uitkomt (de liberalisatiegrens 2026), zit je in de gereguleerde sector, ongeacht wat er in je contract staat.

Servicekosten kun je apart aanvechten. Veel huurders kijken alleen naar de kale huurprijs en vergeten dat servicekosten ook gereguleerd zijn. Geen winstoogmerk, alleen werkelijke kosten.

De Wet betaalbare huur (juli 2024) heeft de grenzen flink opgeschoven. Sinds 1 juli 2024 vallen veel meer woningen onder regulering, tot 186 punten in plaats van 143. Als je een paar jaar geleden hebt gekeken of je huur klopte: check het opnieuw, mogelijk is de situatie veranderd.
Procedure bij de Huurcommissie kost €25 en duurt 3-6 maanden. Als de Huurcommissie je gelijk geeft, krijg je dat bedrag terug van de verhuurder.

Als je twijfelt of je huur klopt, ik heb hier een gratis tool voor gemaakt: woningwaarheid.nl. Geen account nodig, je krijgt direct een puntentelling en een conceptbrief als de huur te hoog is. Feedback altijd welkom.

I have a procedure at the Huurcommissie.

I want to warn people here that there seems to be a case of a very biased Inspector in my case with signals he may have been in cahoots with my landlord.

I obviously reported this to Huurcommissie.

When this happens to you I want to make clear the best approach is:

1. To file a complaint within the procedure about perceived bias in the Inspection. With a formal complaint you can then later go to Nationale Ombudsman if they do nothing with the complaint.

2. Make sure there is lots of factual evidence in your file that proofs the bias.

3. Describe very factual and without emotion what made you think it was biased. Any showing of emotion they will use to frame you as "emotional renter".

4. Hope for the best.

Be aware that it happens. The renting industry is a shady industry I'm afraid🥲

Edit: because of possible "cahoots" situation my landlord seems to get tipped by the Inspector about every move or vibe change at the Huurcommissie. As such I've been intimidated a lot by my landlord and other renters in the building who disagree with me. Please take care everyone keep your back straight we will get through this. Let's hope the law saves us.🙏

I'm having an issue with my rental agency in Amsterdam. I am currently on a permanent rental contract (vrije sector) with two other housemates. One of my housemates moved out and we have requested a name change for a new tenant from the rental agency. The request was submitted on April 23nd. After calling and emailing them for weeks, they emailed us on Tuesday night to say they had a new policy and will refuse all name changes with the exception of a partner moving in (evidence required) or removing someone from the tenancy. When I checked the link in their email to their new policy it was only posted online on the 9th May, 15 days after we submitted an application proposing a new tenant. The email also stated that what we should do is terminate our contract and then the three of us go through the screening process again.

I'm trying to find some legal advice that will allow us to stay in our house and make the rental company accept the name change however our options are looking limited now. !Woon said that the landlord is allowed to refuse any new name proposal as it's a change in the contract, they did also say that since the housing permit requires 3 or 4 people to be registered and there are currently 2 registered, this could be used as leverage in negotiations with the rental company. My local buurtteam said I should just allow the new tenant to move in and register with a sub let agreement / consent agreement. Juridisch Loket are closed so I will go along to their walk in hours on Monday.

So far the options we are considering:

Option 1: terminate the contract, go through the screening process again. The total income of the house is probably below the 4x requirements and we would also risk an increase in rent and termination of the contract after one year.

Option 2: Allow the new tenant to move in, create a contract between the three housemates so the new tenant can still register. This risks us losing the house if the agency finds out since subletting is not allowed. We also don't know if the agency can see who / how many people are registered.

Option 3: We end the contract and move out, in which case we would like to know how long they can give us to move out.

Has anyone been through this situation and succeed in getting a name change or has any advice that'll stop me being homeless 😅

Hello, i opened a rent tribunal case agaisnt my landlord for the year 2023 after asking her multiple times for original bills and her refusing. I have been observing the documents provided online to see what is happening and i saw the gaz and electrical bill and it claimed i consumed 1276 m3 in 6.5 months.

For reference i live in an apartment that is split into two units, i occupy one of them and we share the electrical, gaz and water meters. Each apartment is a bit less than 30 square meters.

I was not allowed access to gaz at all during this period and most likely my housemate wasnt allowed access. But assuming she had access to gaz heating is this number reasonable?

I am losing my mind, because that means i will have to pay an extra 500-1000 even without access to gaz heating

Use AI. Like I've recently combined Gemini and ChatGPT for a housing law court thing. I do have a paralegal background which helps.

But from my experience AI helped me a lot to write letters and find legal perspectives on my evidence I wouldn't have thought of myself.

You do however need to manage the ai apps as they tend to make mistakes like mixing in/up dates and misinterpretating what you said but you can guide that easily I found. You just need patience.

Also make files in your AI apps to archive your prompts. It will make the AI more organic throughout the process.

Also for non native Dutch speakers you can write what you want to say in English and tell AI to make a Dutch legal letter of it suited for the Huurcommissie based on Dutch law and the Gebrekenboek of the Huurcommissie.

I found it much easier to ad-hoc respond to new developments in my legal case.

Edit: To anyone who reads this post by finding it through the search function of Reddit or otherwise please be prepared this subreddit is not solely visited by renters and rentbusters, the other party is also watching and responding on this subreddit. Do not take every comment in this post seriously, do not let trolls throw dirt in your eyes. File that complaint, straighten your back, fight for your right for a fair trial under the law. We live in a state with rule of law and agencies against corruption, please use them! Good luck everyone :)

Body: I’m currently in a legal battle with my landlord in Amsterdam and want to see if anyone has been in a similar spot and what kind of departure premium (buyout) you managed to get.

The Situation:

• Permanent Contract for a room: I rent 1 of 2 bedrooms in the landlord's apartment. I’ve lived here since May 2024. My contract was extended once, making it permanent under Dutch law.
• Rent Reduction Win: I won a Huurcommissie case in Jan 2026. My "all-in" rent of €950 was split and penalized down to €522.5/month for rent and €237.5/month for service costs, given the apartment is furnished and the landlord never provided a separate fee within the rent for the furniture.
• Utility Overpayments: I’ve been paying a fixed €200 monthly deposit for utilities. A Huurcommissie research report recently found my actual usage was only €35/month for 2024. I will start proceedings for 2025 utilities fee starting this summer.
• The Debt: Between the retroactive rent reduction and utility overpayments, my landlord objectively owes me over €12,000 in cash refunds. My Huurcommissie case allows me to claim reduce rent only from October 2025 onwards.
• The Eviction: She served me a notice via bailiff for "Urgent Personal Use" because she wants to move back in for a job. However, she already tried to evict me once in summer 2025 right after I asked for my WOZ points (obvious retaliation) where she claimed she already had other tenants lined up, wanted to restructure the rental agreement of the apartment, and wanted to keep the easy going communication (so nothing related to personal use).

The Legal Stand-off: My lawyer and I are ignoring her 6-week "deadline" to agree to move. We are summoning her to court in May to enforce the rent reduction. She has summoned me for September to appeal it. She needs to move in this summer, but with a permanent contract and a pending court case, she can’t legally force me out for 6-12 months.

The Goal: I’m willing to leave, but only if she pays me back everything she owes me (the €12k+) PLUS, if possible, a relocation premium for the housing crisis.

Questions for the community:

1. Have you ever successfully negotiated a buyout that included both back-rent and a moving bonus?
2. Given the €12k debt + the "Urgent Use" claim, is asking for a €18-19k total settlement realistic for a single room in Amsterdam?
3. Any tips for the negotiation phase to keep the pressure on?
4. Realistically, what are my chances of winning the rent reduction case in court?

I recently moved into an apartment in the Netherlands. Its rented out in the free market (194 points even though I already found 2 that where wrongly attributed).

We moved in and there where bunch of things like oven completely dirty to be unusable, broken doorknobs, moldy spots and every wall was dirty like scratch marks, cracks, bad paint job and stuff like that.

Here are few examples:

https://preview.redd.it/vrsgopmf2c0h1.png?width=382&format=png&auto=webp&s=c3dfe1bf5245a9b68bc04c4a7f7b49b708583cf5

https://preview.redd.it/h4gftpmf2c0h1.png?width=488&format=png&auto=webp&s=8c4fc1e9f0bf3339f5a25df2a66d4a6c81de53f3

https://preview.redd.it/iwwo1rmf2c0h1.png?width=872&format=png&auto=webp&s=f4b4d68d7a32df80dbafd140a782043c81cdebb8

https://preview.redd.it/2mhilpmf2c0h1.png?width=680&format=png&auto=webp&s=edb6ea6c17634571bb0a3fda2a385f0c5b741299

He said he will send someone over to check on our complaints but regarding the walls he said its normal wear and tear (which I disagree) and not his business. Regarding the mold we keep an eye on it ventilate probably and try to clean them as good as possible.

Is there anything I can do against this? How is this normally handled in the Netherlands?