Objecting to property value could save tenants hundreds of euros per year: Woonbond

The official property values (WOZ) for social rental properties rose significantly this year, leading to higher rents for tenants. But tenants can save hundreds of euros per year if they successfully object to that WOZ value, the Woonbond told AD.

The WOZ value for owner-occupied homes rose by an average of 16 percent this year. The WOZ is based on home values on January 1, and home prices skyrocketed in the Netherlands in 2022.

The WOZ value for housing corporation properties increased by 18 percent. The higher increase is because smaller properties tend to increase in value faster, and many social housing properties are located in cities, which saw the highest home price increases in 2022.

The WOZ value determines the property tax. Tenants don’t pay property tax and, therefore, don’t pay much attention to the WOZ value of their rental. But these values are reflected in the rent - for social housing, the WOZ value is one of the indicators for the points system that determines the maximum rent for a property.

As an interested party, tenants can also object to the WOZ value, a Woonbond spokesperson told AD. “But that is not known to everyone. While you can benefit from a reduction in the WOZ value, especially if the corporation charges the maximum rent according to the points system.”

Successfully objecting to the WOZ value could save hundreds of euros for tenants paying the maximum allowed rent, the Woonbond calculated. If the WOZ value is lowered from 180,000 to 170,000 euros, a home with a monthly rent of 590 euros can suddenly cost 570 euros per month, for example.