I want to sell as an expat. How does it work?

18 September 2026 · 8 min read

A move that often comes sooner than expected

The Eindhoven region attracts a steady stream of international talent through Brainport, the High Tech Campus and the university. Many internationals buy a home after a few years in Eindhoven, Helmond, Nuenen, Geldrop or Mierlo. And many of them are eventually offered an assignment in another country, sometimes with only a few months of notice.

That is when the question comes up: what do I do with my house? Selling gives you clarity and frees up your capital. But you are selling in a country whose system you may not fully know, possibly in a language that is not your own, and sometimes from another time zone. That is entirely doable, provided it is organised properly in advance.

What is different compared with a Dutch seller

The core process is the same: valuation, presentation, viewings, bidding, purchase agreement, notary. Four points need extra attention when you are an international seller.

• Language. All official documents, including the purchase agreement and the notarial deed, are in Dutch. These documents have legal consequences, so you need to know exactly what you are signing.
• Distance. If you have already left, you cannot simply drop by for a viewing or a signature.
• Timing. Your relocation date is usually fixed, while a sale moves at its own pace.
• The tax side. Your mortgage, your eigenwoningreserve and your final tax return all need to be settled properly, even once you live elsewhere.

Step by step

1. The valuation. We visit the property, look at it carefully and give you a realistic value plus a selling strategy. Free of charge and without obligation. If you are already abroad, we can do this by video call, provided someone can let us into the property.

2. The documents. You will need the title deed, the WOZ assessment, the energy label and, for an apartment, the documents of the owners association. We tell you exactly what is needed and request whatever we can request ourselves.

3. Presentation and listing. Professional photography, floor plans and a strong description. Your home goes on Funda and on our own channels. We make sure international buyers can understand your listing too.

4. Viewings. We handle these. You do not need to be present, and you do not even need to be in the country. We manage the keys and update you after every viewing.

5. Bidding and negotiation. We keep a bidding log, so the process is transparent for everyone involved. We discuss every offer with you and advise on price and conditions, including the transfer date, which for you is often just as important as the amount.

6. The purchase agreement. This is in Dutch. We go through it with you and explain every clause in English, German or French, so you know precisely what you are signing. Note the statutory three-day cooling-off period for the buyer and the dissolving conditions.

7. The notary and the transfer. If you cannot attend the transfer, the notary arranges a power of attorney. If you are already abroad, this can often be done through a local notary or consulate, sometimes with an apostille. Start this early: it is the single most common cause of delay.

Selling from abroad: what to arrange

Selling once you have already left is more common than you might think. A few things make the difference between smooth and stressful:

• Keys and access. We hold the keys and carry out viewings independently.
• A power of attorney. Arrange this well before the transfer date. Legalisation abroad takes time.
• A postal address or representative in the Netherlands. Useful for documents that cannot be handled digitally.
• A Dutch bank account. Keep it open until after the transfer and the final settlement of utilities and municipal charges.
• Keeping the home presentable. An empty property looks smaller and colder. We advise on what is worth leaving in place.

Sell or rent out?

Some internationals consider keeping the property and renting it out. That can look attractive, but there are consequences. For tax purposes your home moves from box 1 to box 3, which means you lose the mortgage interest deduction. Your mortgage provider has to give permission for letting. And tenant protection in the Netherlands is substantial, so a tenanted property usually sells for less later on than a vacant one.

We are happy to work through both scenarios with you, so your decision rests on figures rather than instinct.

The tax side

On completion your mortgage is repaid. If money is left over, an eigenwoningreserve arises, which matters if you buy another Dutch home within three years. If there is a residual debt, arrangements can be made for it. And in the year you leave you file a return covering a split tax year.

We are not tax advisers and will not pretend to be. What we do is flag the points you need to have checked, in good time, and refer you to an adviser experienced in international situations where that helps. That way nothing catches you out afterwards.

The language we work in

We speak fluent English, German and French, plus reasonable Spanish. Polish-speaking clients can write to us in Polish via WhatsApp and receive a reply in Polish; conversations are held in German, English or French. Many Polish residents in this region speak German, so in practice we always find a way.

We are reachable from 08:30 to 21:00, which helps if you are in another time zone.

How long does it take?

Allow roughly two to four weeks of preparation, then a selling period that nationally averages around four weeks, and after that six to eight weeks until the transfer at the notary. So often three to four months in total. If you have a fixed departure date, tell us at the first conversation and we will build the planning around it.

Conclusion

Selling as an expat is very manageable, including from abroad, provided you start in time and have someone who oversees the whole process and communicates with you in your language. We do that work ourselves from start to finish, with one fixed point of contact.

Would you like to know what your home is worth and how your sale would fit your planning? Get in touch. The first conversation is free and commits you to nothing.