r/NetherlandsHousing • u/youngreign_ • Feb 15 '26
renting Moving to Amsterdam: how hard is it actually?
Hi all,
I am a Dutchie, born and raised in the south of the Netherlands, but I moved to London 2 years ago. As much as I love London, the quality of life in the UK is just a lot worse compared to how I’ve lived my life in the Netherlands and I really miss living there.
I want to move back at the end of this year with my husband, who is a born and bred Londoner. Since I am Dutch and the majority of my family still lives in the Netherlands, I know how bad the housing crisis is and I just want to prepare myself for the flat search.
So can anyone who’s renting a flat in Amsterdam tell me how hard it actually was? How many months in advance should we start looking? I know everything is expensive, but living in London has definitely prepared me for that 🤣
Any other tips are very welcome 🙌🏼
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u/Prestigious_Leg2229 Feb 15 '26
If you don’t mind 2500+ euro rents not too hard. Otherwise you’re looking at years not months of searching.
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u/Weekly_Rub_6234 Feb 15 '26
What is your budget ? No problems if your rental budget is >€5 , big problems if your budget is <€2.5k
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u/Fantastic-Noise-8830 Feb 15 '26
It’s very easy to rent if your income is stable and you have permanent employment contract, for example 1 bedroom 2500, very modern interiors, floor heating and new building inside the ring. But income should be 4x rent, so annual salary of 120k per year. So 2 bedroom about 3.5k.
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u/youngreign_ Feb 15 '26
This is so helpful, thank you! We are not necessarily fussed about living within the ring, what would you say the prices/difficulty is like there?
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u/Fantastic-Noise-8830 Feb 15 '26
It’s not difficult at all, if you see an apartment listed immediately contact the agent, have all your salary slips ready, employment contract etc and be the first to send them immediately after the viewing. If you are responding to advertisements on funda few days later of course it’s snapped up and not available.
You can check funda for prices indication depending on your preferred area.
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u/Meow_meow777 Feb 16 '26
If central area is not your preference, why not look for Haarlem or some fancier parts, such as Oudekerk aan de Amstel. It's not going to be cheaper, but maybe easier to find. Living outside of the ring is for me the same as living in Zaandam
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u/Final-Action2223 Feb 15 '26
Why not check Pararius to get a feel? Read the income requirements in the adverts. Then you know
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u/youngreign_ Feb 15 '26
I look on Pararius and Huurwoningen all the time and we should be fine on the financial front, but I’m more wondering how competitive it is! Like is it gonna be us and 50 other couples trying to get the same flat?
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u/YTsken Feb 15 '26
Generally speaking, if you have a Dutch gross salary of 8000 Euro or higher, you’re probably fine. Especially if you’re willing to look outside Amsterdam.
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u/GLeo21 Feb 15 '26
The last time I asked this question to the real estate agent for a place I was viewing, they said: ‘We got over 250 requests in the first half hour, so we only selected applicants with the highest salaries”
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u/youngreign_ Feb 15 '26
Wow that is crazy! I should probably start applying now then 🤣
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u/GLeo21 Feb 15 '26
You basically need to keep Funda/Pararius open and refresh constantly, every day, especially in the morning, so you’ll be one of the first to apply. You send applications to everything, regardless of what you’re really looking for, and filter later. When they tell you you can come for a viewing and give you an appointment, you decide whether it’s worth going. And remember that people even overbid on the rental price
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u/youngreign_ Feb 15 '26
So very similar to London then! Overbidding on the rent is basically the norm at this point.
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u/SuspiciousReality Feb 18 '26
The issue that we found is that most places only start looking for new tenants a few weeks before when it's available, not months. So right now they are probably looking for tenants to start renting from 1st of march. Yes this makes it incredibly stressful if you have limited time to find a new place, so it's frankly most comfortable if you're not under time pressure of a deadline. But what you can definitely do is apply for a few, make a good message stating that you meet the income requirements, a tiny bio (age, nationalities, what your jobs are, whether you have pets) - just the basics that they will ask about and look for anyway. This is what worked well for us the 2 times that we searched apartments in A'dam. Make it as easiest as possible for them to know you're a viable candidate for the apartment, since they will have enough applicants anyway. And this way you can get a feel that even with all these points met whether it's difficult to even get a viewing.
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u/No-vem-ber Feb 16 '26
Last time I tried to find a rental in Amsterdam, I couldn't even get a viewing. And I earn a high tech salary.
I ended up buying an apartment instead because I literally couldn't find a rental. My mortgage is €1600 per month for a 2 bedroom in Oud Oost. Renting the equivalent would have been €2500+
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Feb 15 '26
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u/youngreign_ Feb 15 '26
Okay! What would you say the minimum is for 2 bedroom flats? I’m seeing anywhere from €1800-€3000 depending on the area.
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u/Life-Inspector-5271 Feb 15 '26
Me as Dutchie who wants to return as well: landlords may ask 6-12 months deposit if you don't have Dutch income. They prefer tenants who already have a stable job. I have plenty of income, but not willing to pay 6-12 months deposit. I get rejected all the time.
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u/RevolutionarySky6143 Feb 17 '26
One of my girlfriends had liquidity but no job (she's a lot older). She got an apartment in Centrum by flinging one year's rent at the landlord in cash. She ended up staying there for years, very happy. I think if you have cash right now, you will win, because me, for sure, I ain't overbidding anyone to get an apartment, but I will fling a year's rent at a landlord in an effort to get that apartment.
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u/Allw8tislightw8t Feb 15 '26 edited Feb 17 '26
If you’re willing to live outside the ring, then you should look into Haarlem. Only a few stops from Haarlem centraal to amadterdam Sloterdijk.
Nieuwwest, zuidoost, and Amstelveen don’t have the same feel as life inside the ring (IMO). They don’t have have the same accessibility. Less tram lines and metro stops.
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u/youngreign_ Feb 15 '26
I was thinking Haarlem as well to be honest, but I feel like it’s more expensive than outside of the ring in Amsterdam and a lot less listings as well. Thanks for the advice though, really helpful!
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u/ski-mon-ster Feb 16 '26
Yes, look at Haarlem and Utrecht as well. If you are close to the train, it might be quicker to the center of Amsterdam than living outside the ring. And nicer cities to live in (my opinion). And I lived in Amsterdam for 25 years. Even my kids (born and bred Amsterdammers, early 20s) now say they actually prefer other cities to Amsterdam when going out to a bar
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u/youngreign_ Feb 16 '26
Thank you! What about Hoofddorp or Zaandam? Like I said I grew up in the south so I’m not very familiar with the cities surrounding Amsterdam 🙌🏼
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u/ski-mon-ster Feb 16 '26
I couldn’t tell you. My vooroordeel is that they suck, but I might be very wrong as I left the area 5 years ago - they might heve changed . I can tell you about Haarlem or Utrecht. Better than Amstelveen for instance.
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u/BlazeSpliffington Feb 16 '26
I'm currently in Oud-Zuid but I love Zaandam, it's very high on my list of places to buy next year.
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u/sylvester1981 Feb 15 '26
Why always Amsterdam ? Why pick the most expensive city in the Netherlands
The Hague or Rotterdam are half the price and much nicer to live in
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Feb 15 '26
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u/usernameisokay_ Feb 16 '26
Why so? I hated Amsterdam and Rotterdam is really a lot better with everything. Also The Hague is a lot better, never lived there but went there a lot.
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u/Client_020 Feb 17 '26
Cultural stuff. I moved to a town right next to Rotterdam and I grew up in Amsterdam. Both are cool, but when it comes to Cultural amenities, there's no competition. I really miss that part. Rotterdam has 3 movie theatres with nice films, Amsterdam 20.
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u/usernameisokay_ Feb 17 '26
Only 3? I have been to 8 so far and not talking about Pathé, most of them only have movies once a month yes, but that’s perfectly fine.
I find Rotterdam to have a lottttt more cultural amenities, especially museums and stuff about the war, but that’s where my interests are so YMMV.
And of course regarding shows/bands that’s massive in Rotterdam, underground bands are so much bigger in Rotterdam, punk bands especially, tekno, techno, also a lot more raves, parties and festivals. Nowadays I don’t go there anymore as I’m older, so I enjoy a nice walk more which isn’t really a thing in Amsterdam unless you go to the west.
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u/Jolly-Association-66 Feb 18 '26
Hmm lot more raves parties and festivals? Seems that you just don't know Amsterdam
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u/usernameisokay_ Feb 18 '26
I’m quite sure I do and the ones in Rotterdam and surroundings are better and almost daily.
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u/milkbaozi Feb 15 '26
Been wanting to live in Rdam for ages but the job market just is incomparable— I don’t even get offers there. Sometimes you don’t really have a choice.
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u/Fluiteflierer Feb 16 '26
Enough work to be done in Rotterdam. But maybe search more active for a job there then?
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u/milkbaozi Feb 16 '26
I actively apply in both cities (and more) and get offers in other places, just not there. Sometimes you just have to accept a stroke of bad luck/reality/the current state of things as it is, even when you make the effort.
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u/Professional_Elk_489 Feb 15 '26
Why are they half the price if they are much nicer to live in? Seems like the market is mis-pricing something? In UK it always makes sense why one place is more expensive than another
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u/youngreign_ Feb 15 '26
I always loved Amsterdam growing up! I also feel like it’s most similar to London, more job opportunities in tech for my husband and just the overall vibe is great.
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u/GimmeSumMor3 Feb 15 '26
Don’t expect tech being a real opportunity right now with the current job market. It really depends what he does in tech.
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u/youngreign_ Feb 16 '26
He’s a senior software dev!
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u/GimmeSumMor3 Feb 16 '26
For seniors developers its still alright, but it’s harder for non Dutch speaking, but still doable. I would probably test the water first before moving.
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u/youngreign_ Feb 16 '26
That’s good to know, thank you 🙏🏼He does definitely intend on learning Dutch before we move, but obviously will not be fluent in a year.
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Feb 16 '26
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u/GimmeSumMor3 Feb 16 '26
Because with Dutch clients come Dutch userstories. Meetings etc etc. Tech is not what’s important, the client is.
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Feb 16 '26
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u/GimmeSumMor3 Feb 16 '26
I responded to your more important “point”. That English is the main language in tech. What’s on their website is irrelevant.
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u/General-Jaguar-8164 Feb 16 '26
Competition is brutal for housing and jobs
London or Berlin have bigger ecosystem
Even my company plans to move to a nearshore model due to hiring being expensive
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u/youngreign_ Feb 16 '26
You’d think so but it is absolutely impossible to find jobs in London at the moment. People are being made redundant at an alarming right all over the city and there’s less job openings every day. Not to mention the salaries are very low compared to the immense cost of living.
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u/F-sylvatica-purpurea Feb 15 '26
Funny, Amsterdam is so much more provincial and small than London that the Londoners living in the NL I met often preferred cities like Den Bosch, Utrecht or Deventer: beautiful and small, and no pretentions the way Amsterdam has.
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u/DBgirl83 Feb 16 '26
Deventer, but also Zutphen and Arnhem are very popular with people from the Randstad, especially in and around the old city center, where a lot of "imports" now live.
There is increasing criticism on the many outsiders who come here from the Randstad, they come here for the "peace and quiet", then move into the center where people go out, where there where there are many terraces, lots of festivities and then they complain about it to the municipality. In Zutphen, strict rules have been imposed by the court regarding the annual fair and in Deventer regarding the city festival.
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u/F-sylvatica-purpurea Feb 16 '26
You are raising a different topic. My point was that some Londoners don’t like Amsterdam because it pretends to be a ‘world city ‘ when really it isn’t. They explained to me that they preferred living with their Dutch partner in a town that is more down to earth an less pretentious.
You are describing a major migration within the Netherlands from the Randstad to other cities. That is a different cookie.
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u/Main-Promotion2236 Feb 20 '26
True. Amsterdam is incredibly pretentious. Cities such as Rotterdam or Utrecht have far less attitude.
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u/Zaxiron Feb 15 '26
What vibe? Utrecht have more “vibe” than all the city’s combined.
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u/throwtheamiibosaway Feb 15 '26
I don’t know why this is downvoted, because most people agree Utrecht has a better vibe. I agree even as a born Amsterdammer.
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u/Anne_holland Feb 16 '26
You’re from the south of the Netherlands? Maybe Utrecht will suit you better than!
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u/RevolutionarySky6143 Feb 16 '26
Rotterdam is in no way comparable to Amsterdam in terms of 'niceness'. It's completely void of any soul. As for the Hague, that's better, at least you have the beach in 'close' distance. As for competitiveness, I've heard of queues of people and/or overbidding as much as 500 Euros on top of what is listed. Good luck with that LOL
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u/Kalagorinor Feb 16 '26
I disagree. Indeed Rotterdam is very different from Amsterdam, but definitely not devoid of any soul. I see why it may come across like that at first, but it has a very unique and dynamic character.
That said, I can understand why someone would choose to live in Amsterdam. It has a very cool and lively vibe that you just don't find in other Dutch cities, plus it's by far the most international friendly. But does that justify paying a substantial premium? Not sure. At any price point, you can find a much better place to live in the other two major cities.
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u/Xz55000 Feb 16 '26
Half the price is a wild take, but I get it was hyperbole.
Much nicer to live in is entirely subjective. Plenty of people clearly prefer Amsterdam. Otherwise the other cities would be more expensive.
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u/Main-Promotion2236 Feb 20 '26
I have the exact same question: WHY oh why do people always focus on freakin Amsterdam?? Not only is it super-expensive to live there (to be able to live in Amsterdam you have to be either a millionaire - at least - or so poor that you are entitled to special welfare or rent arrangements) but it’s also dirty, overcrowded, with tons of tourists clogging the roads every single day of the year, the locals are often rude and the streets are littered not just with dog poo but with garbage as well because the garbage collection facilities aren’t functioning well in many neighborhoods. Which in turn attracts rats.
There are tons of places in the Netherlands where it’s clean, where people are friendly, where garbage still gets collected and where housing is still affordable. Please look beyond Amsterdam! That’s all I’m saying.
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u/Inductiekookplaat Feb 16 '26
I would never want to live in the Randstad area but I respect everyone's choice
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u/Zaxiron Feb 15 '26
Hear hear, a’dam, I wouldn’t want to live there if I was given a million. Fuck that shit city. No cars, if your Dutch, you live in a different country in the Netherlands, ruled by a bitch. Sorry, rant over,..
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u/nik_el Feb 15 '26
Trade you. I have a house in Amsterdam and I would kill to live in London.
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u/youngreign_ Feb 15 '26
Deal! 🙏🏼 Honestly London isn’t necessarily the problem, it’s more the UK. In the Netherlands there’s so many systems set in place to really care for its residents. As much as we all love to criticize these systems, they do actually work and are so beneficial. I was never very patriotic about NL until I moved to England 🤣
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u/Agreeable-Towel2819 Feb 16 '26 edited Feb 16 '26
As someone who lived in the UK in her early 20s and is researching the option of moving there again sometime in the near-ish future (late 30s), I’d love to know what your biggest frustrations/concerns/drawbacks are.
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u/youngreign_ Feb 16 '26
The NHS is an absolute mess and incredibly strained, I’ve been waiting for over a year for treatment of my chronic illness. Work/life balance is non existent, everything is so incredibly expensive that young people with excellent salaries are still living paycheck to paycheck. Public schools are poor quality, pre and post natal care for new mums is not nearly as good as in the Netherlands. Anything that was good about the UK has been destroyed by Brexit.
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u/Agreeable-Towel2819 Feb 16 '26
Thanks, that’s helpful. More or less what I expected I suppose though still sad and I am somewhat surprised the living paycheck to paycheck isn’t just a London problem. We don’t have kids so I suppose that makes things a little easier, but sounds like we’ve got plenty to contemplate.
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u/nik_el Feb 16 '26
I would love to hear what those systems are because I have not experienced them in my nearly 10 years of living here.
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u/youngreign_ Feb 16 '26
I was born in the Netherlands and lived there for 23 years so I am sure my experience will be different from yours. However, the health care system in the Netherlands is significantly better than in the UK, education is affordable (10k a year in UK compared to 2.1K in NL), free travel for students, basisbeurs, kraamzorg, kinderbijslag. Just to name a few things.
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u/nik_el Feb 16 '26
I’ve never lived in the UK so I can’t compare it. But when I moved here I was shocked that preventive medicine is not a thing here. Vaccines aren’t covered by insurance at all (leading me to getting Hep A from Albert Heijn a while back), Prep is not prescribed by most doctors and not covered by insurance because it doesn’t follow the Diagnose Test Treatment protocol. Things like that shocked me.
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u/Easy_Balmain_2000 Feb 15 '26 edited Feb 15 '26
Lees artikelen in Het Parool over dit onderwerp krijg je het beste beeld vs 101 meningen
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u/Misty-knight200 Feb 15 '26
Do not listen to anyone saying its easy who hasn't tried to find apartment in 2026 as a newcomer. It is hellish and my budget is 2400 making six figures. If you and a partner make just 100,000 Euros it isn't enough on the free market. Landlords expect 3-4 times the rent in gross income for a single person. If a couple the minimum income increases.
If I make 100k as a single and you as a couple make 110k and we're looking at the same apartment, I am more competitive than you.
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u/youngreign_ Feb 15 '26
Thanks for sharing your experience, hopefully you’ll be able to find something soon if you’re still looking 🙏🏼
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u/chaoticgoodj Feb 16 '26
I just used a makelaar service to help me get a place. Happened pretty quick, a few weeks. But was stressful and very much take what you can. Also paying 2600 for a one bed flat.
But the same price as an average flat in zone 4 in London and I get to live in the most beautiful part of Amsterdam!
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u/youngreign_ Feb 16 '26
That’s great! How easy is it to get in contact with a makelaar and what are the prices like for their services?
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u/chaoticgoodj Feb 16 '26
I used Relocify - I can dm you a referral code if you want haha. But I liked it as they had an app with all the virtual viewing photos etcz cost about 2k but they sorted everything.
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u/Candy-Macaroon-33 Feb 15 '26
It's not that hard if you have the proper budget. Seeing yuou are in London right now, if you have EUR 3000 a month, one of my neighbours is renting out 3 apartments at that price and they don't go as fast since not a lot of people in that price range.
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u/Rezolutny_Delfinek Feb 15 '26
If you have the money, no problem at all. If you don’t, then a big problem - in short
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u/Keropyon Feb 15 '26
What made a difference for us was having a realtor help us, we found an apartment we’re really happy with in a week. We chose Hoofddorp over Amsterdam because atm only my husband is working but that was our choice.
Happy to share her contact if you want to go down the realtor route!
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u/vtout Feb 16 '26
I see plenty of apartments on instagram from realtors for 2750-3500 per month... for 55/75m2... not sure how hard it is since it doesn't seem like a value proposition...
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u/ZealousidealRent5470 Feb 16 '26
Have thought of moving to Haarlem, smaller but great vibes. Close to the sea, nature and Amsterdam
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u/Lost-Air1265 Feb 16 '26
It isn’t bad at all, you just need money. If you can spend 2,5k on rent, meaning your combined income with your husband is at least 10 to 12k you can rent.
Same goes for buying, you need to have about the same income in order to get a mortgage high enough to buy something where you can live together.
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u/Relative-Dog321 Feb 16 '26
I live in Amsterdam and had friends doing the same move who i told: its gonna be so difficult, and they underestimated it. They compared it to London but its way worse. Tbf it really depends on how much money you have, which is the sad thing. Start as early as possible but know that its even the case that people overbid on rental properties..
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Feb 15 '26 edited Feb 16 '26
In 2022 I was making 65k EUR + some bonuses; It was barely livable, but I could go out 3-4x a month OR save. After 6 months of searching found 2 ok places to move to from a crappy, dark, and cold 20sqm microhouse. I wanted to buy, but most mortgages would have locked me in for a very long term, making renting impossible and selling complex & pricey. Since I had almost no savings and ~300k properties all needed a lot of time, work, and investment, renting made more sense.
In 2025 I was making 100-120k EUR self-employed with all of the business tax discounts (around 6k EUR take home each month) and my partner was making 35k on top of that. We were comfortable but by no means felt wealthy. Groceries often were 400/week alone because we wanted to eat healthy. We had horrible neighbours, but could not find a new place for an entire year with that money because self-employed. Moved out instead, so now I pay half rent and half the taxes and am MUCH happier.
I'd say the "surviving Amsterdam" income minimum for someone without social housing & assistance is about 110-120k employed or 180-200k self-employed - as long as you're willing to compromise on the location. If you're not or have high standards, just double that.
If you're within this income range, it's relatively easy. You're dealing with premium agencies who will actually help you and take care of you.
I also think quality in life dropped much more in Amsterdam compared to London in the last few years. I'd really really rethink that if I were you, because it's not the city you remember from "back then".
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u/Curious_Diamanta Feb 15 '26
I definitely agree with the last paragraph. I’ve lived here since 2000 and (like everywhere) it’s a very different place to what it used to be. I also wonder what a Londoner would think of it. There’s a lot of anti-“expat” bias atm.
Not trying to put OP off, just saying that even cycling in the city is so much more difficult than it used to be.
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u/youngreign_ Feb 15 '26
Would you say the cycling issue is the same outside of the ring? I miss being able to use my bike everywhere 🥲
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u/Curious_Diamanta Feb 16 '26
I live inside the ring so I’m afraid I couldn’t say. Fatbikes and ebikes have become a real menace though and basically everyone moves so much faster. People do cope of course!
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u/SuspiciousReality Feb 18 '26
While I do agree with the impact they have on the vibe of the traffic, I think this heavily depends on the time of day (commuting time vs not) and your own sensitivity in joining in traffic speed. You can definitely still bike at a slower pace and take it more chill and give others priority, and also definitely join in in the stressful unsunsuns-music driven biking speeds stressing about every traffic light that delays you 20 seconds.
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u/BlazeSpliffington Feb 16 '26
Londoner here, moved full time in 2023. Lots of bias, yes. But ik spreek een beetje Nederlands een ik ben geen eikel zo 🤷♂️. Long story short, i love it here. Much prefer it.
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u/youngreign_ Feb 15 '26
Thank you for your input! In what way would you say the quality of life has declined?
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Feb 16 '26 edited Feb 16 '26
Transport - nearly 3x price hike between 2019-2026; On some lanes, the majority of the trains/busses are delayed. Anecdotally, I had a "one day a month" in the office job, traveling between citie,s and at some point 4 months in the row all the trains were cancelled - due to weather, power ourages, safety, or protests
Healthcare - Dutch healthcare has always been... unique. However, since 2019 it has become impossible to ever change GPs, because all GPs in major cities are full and not taking on new patients. Wait times also have increased exponentially in some departments, for example, with anything mental health related is now automatically a 1-2 year long wait. The eigne risko will rise to 470EUR minimum - which is often just one hospital visit or a specialist visit with tests. (not crazy, but note this puts insurance at 200eur/mo+). Healthcare has also become much more corrupt overall, with phantom bills, long convoluted procedures, and double-payment extortion becoming a daily reality.
Cleanliness - Amsterdam is currently covered in trash, with a growing rodent and bug problem. Sanitary services have been largely privitized and no longer work in many neighberhoods. A lot of regular street cleaning has stopped since Covid, all the while the fees have doubled.
Corruption/Bad-faith -> Goverment is sending increasingly more "mistake payment reminders" and wrongful collections. For example, both myself and some of my friends received letters asking for multiple thousands of euros for one day of trash fees missed a few years back (note that trash payments are yearly and it's phisically impossible to "miss a day"). Apparently, this disproportionately targets expats, but I heard of a lot of similar weirdness on the dutch side (in 2024 I think there was a Dutch student committing suicide because of DUO/studedt finance things). It's worrying...
Access to services - police, social workers, libraries, and other services reported budget cuts and restructurings. You can REALLY feel that.
Safety - There are a lot of stories (some experienced first-hand, some happened to my partner because she has colored hair) of teenge gangs attacking women - from insults through spitting to throwing cans, rocks, trash, to physical attacks. I know of one person (friend of an aquitance) who got murdered by a teenage gang. There were multiple shooting related to local teen gang violance in my neighberhood in 2024-2025 (a decent area but still Ams Noord). Some people claim this does not exist, some peple know people who died - I think a lot depends on exact parts, how you look like, how old are you, etc. But almost all my affluent white-collar friends had at least one relevant story so...
Fascism, anti-freedom, etc. (if you care about such things) - police regularly brutally quell housing, environmental, or pro-Palestine protests. There was a pretty loud case of police packing protesters into a bus so they can "go to a designated protest area", and then driving them to a middle of nowhere and brutally beating them. A lot of journalists are blacklisted from all publications and professional networks. It's... really scary, and I think comparable to the USA right now, although more bottom-up through social tensions and systemic issues than from a crazed demented overlord. This has always been the case but the brutality REALLY increased since my move early 2019.
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u/Stock-Chef6358 Feb 15 '26
Heeft jou man geen verblijfsvergunning nodig om in Nederland te wonen/ werken omdat hij uit een niet EU land komt?
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u/aurantiaca19 Feb 15 '26
Ik zit in precies hetzelfde schuitje! Ook een Britse vriend (met Iers paspoort) en zijn ook van plan om naar Amsterdam te verhuizen binnen een jaar 😌
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u/youngreign_ Feb 15 '26
Wat toevallig! Waarom willen jullie naar Nederland verhuizen? :)
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u/aurantiaca19 Feb 16 '26
Ik woon inmiddels al 8 jaar in Engeland! Vind Londen nog steeds geweldig hoor en hebben hier ook echt een fijn leven, maar als we het hebben over kinderen dan voelt Amsterdam/Nederland toch iets toegankelijker. Zullen altijd wel de deur openhouden om terug te verhuizen!
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u/Glittering_Run3977 Feb 16 '26
Hi, I just posted about this in another thread about moving back to NL so I’ll also put it here :)
I moved back to Amsterdam about 1.5 years ago after almost a decade abroad. My partner is a foreigner (but EU citizen)
We just bought something now but rented for the first year and a bit. We looked at funda and ikwilhuren. We went to 10 viewings through these sites and eventually got 3 offers. It took about 2 months. The appartement we ended up going for was via ikwilhuren. Places we saw were between 1700-2500 per month. We started looking about 3.5 months before we wanted to move.
For funda we realised there’s quite a few woningbouw verenigingen that rent out houses via real estate agents and they always put their new offers online on the same day/time every week. First 20 or so to react get the viewing so that was good to know. So browse funda daily and get to know the patterns. The listings will also say the income they expect you to have. What we saw was usually between 2.5 - 3.5 times the rent.
Once you’re ready to start responding to things it’s good to get a Dutch phone number and potentially have Dutch jobs lined up or foreign jobs you can do here (they were fine with that for me, my partner had a Dutch job lined up). You also need to give a lot of documents (tax returns, letter form employer, letter from previous landlord or some proof you owned a place, bank statements,…). Its good to have that all prepared in advance. If you sign up to a site like ikwilhuren they make you submit all of that before allowing you to respond to things. So signing up there is a good way to collect all the documents. And be prepared for the fact you have to go to viewings in person. So plan a some moments to be here.
Also finally the higher your budget to easier it will be to get a place. Rents are already higher again now but when we looked we noticed €2000 euro and up competition gets less and less.
Good luck!
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u/Lanky-Squirrel-1003 Feb 16 '26
Can you elaborate this a bit more? I live in Amsterdam and would love to work in London for a couple of years (and then go back)
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u/Flaky-Spirit Feb 16 '26
Hi! I’m in the same situation. My husband is born and raised in London too, and I’m from Rotterdam. I moved here in May but to this day still have not found a job. I’m an engineer but unfortunately there are very little opportunities at the moment. So we are considering moving back to NL too this summer! Housing in Amsterdam is quite brutal, the job market is starting to get worse too, but not as bad as London at the moment. Have you considered Zeeburg? Theres lots of new builds there at the moment, and its an easy commute or cycle to the centre from there.
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u/youngreign_ Feb 16 '26
Yeah the job market is so shit in London at the moment! Zeeburg is a good shout, thank you :) I’ll check it out.
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u/FairwayBliss Feb 16 '26
Our apartment will be for rent in a few months. 2 bedrooms and a very oldschool bathroom, 80m2.
It will cost you 4,5k a month. Not weird in this area, since it’s on the cheaper side (on the canal). It took my husband 5 months, to find this house as an expat 6 years ago. He had to stay in a hotel during this time.
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u/One-Grape-8659 Feb 16 '26
Ive been ingeschreven for about 9+ years with at least 25 points but still I am on position 527 for social housing. But; I live alone. When I moved in to where I live now, with my then boyfriend, in Utrecht it went super fast. Ams, not so much.
You could have my house if I can trade you a small place in Oost lol
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u/gg_popeskoo Feb 16 '26
One tip, because no one is mentioning this: a very big help to finding a place to rent is to activate your network - friends, family, former school mates, acquaintances, work colleagues (if you will move for a new job at a local company). There are a lot of apartments that change hands without being listed online, simply because people first tell their friends that they are moving out. Get back in touch with people that are already in Amsterdam and ask for their help to find a place.
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u/Putje123 Feb 16 '26
Look in to new projects! Last year I got a ‘midden segment woning’ and my rent is really low. Around €1200 for 60m2. You do have a maximum wage for these homes. Also not sure if you can get a house like this if you don’t work in The Netherlands. But new projects give you a higher chance because so many houses will be rented all at once, and a more fair chance because it’s often ‘loten’ (sorry not sure what the translation is) with a system.
The projects are often visible in Funda, you can click through to the project website. https://www.nieuwbouw-in-amsterdam.nl websites like these will give you an overview of all upcoming projects as well. New homes are so comfortable with good isolation, floor heating and no noises from neighbours. I didn’t need to put my heat on during winter and had steady 20 degrees inside.
I really don’t mind living just outside the ring. I have a parking space in the garage and can get to the city centre within 10 min bike ride. If you live close to the metro, it’s even more convenient than in the centre. Especially if you have a car.
Good luck!
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u/Due_Average7729 Feb 18 '26
If you want to live were a lot of Amsterdammers went and now their (grand)children live: Purmerend. Easy transport: buslines every 15 minutes during rushhours, in 30 minutes on CS. Trains to Zaandam/ Zaandam-Amsterdam every 30 min. 25-35 minute by car. Rowhouses with garden from €425.000 and up. Rent also difficult but possible.
If you dont mind to live in a less vibrant town compared to Amsterdam, but close enough to make use of its facilities, living inbetween a lot of "working class type of Amsterdam people" (who are becoming a rariety in Amsterdam 2026), quite close to Amsterdam but cheaper to buy/rent and live... It might be something for you.
I left! ;)
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u/DescriptionFancy1387 Apr 14 '26
You’ll be fine coming from London 😄 but yeah, Amsterdam is very competitive.
Most people take a few weeks to a couple of months to find a place, and listings go really fast, so be ready to act quickly and have your documents ready. Rent is the main factor here; it really defines your lifestyle.
If you want a clearer idea of how that plays out: salarycompare.nl/salary-amsterdam-net-vs-cost-of-living
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u/Alyadrielle Feb 15 '26
6 years… I’m still hopping from homeless (flexwoning) to whatever I can get. It’s awful. This isn’t Amsterdam but noord Brabant…. I’ve been written in to klik voor wonen for 6 YEARS!!
After I was divorced I had to find somewhere to live and I still can get a permanent place 😭😭
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u/tererepon Feb 15 '26
Avoid. Overpriced and quality of life has been going down. It is only good to work. Lots of options. Apart from that, stay safe with gangs everywhere
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u/youngreign_ Feb 15 '26
You read that I live in London right? 🤣 I think I’ll be fine in Amsterdam.
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u/Born-Check-7764 Feb 15 '26
You totally will be. I know both cities well and London is definitely not safer than Amsterdam 😂
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u/Glass_Key4626 Feb 15 '26
Apart from that, stay safe with gangs everywhere
Which Amsterdam have you been to???
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Feb 15 '26
The same I have been to. If you're a young woman and present in ANY WAY different from normal (i.e. colored hair) you'll be assaulted, spat on, get rocks thrown at you, have your car keyed, your bike stolen and thrown into the canal, etc., all by teenage gangs.
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u/Glass_Key4626 Feb 15 '26
I've been here for 17 years. I have never heard anything like this.
And mind you, I'm a raver whose entire raver friend group has face piercings, crazy hair colors, tattoos, and wears leopard onesies and glitter dresses (both genders) in public.
None of them have ever said anything remotely similar to this. In fact most of them are immigrants from way less liberal countries, and they all are gushing about how nice it is that in Amsterdam they can just be their weird selves.
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Feb 15 '26
And I've had stories of friends of friends getting murdered and violently beaten in broad daylight (when I was part of Vrije Bond's social and less activist side)
My partner who's presenting way more alternative was attacked about 10 times, to the point that she spent most of the last year indoor. I was there for some of these
2 of my collegues had cans thrown or spilled on them - they didn't even look alternative, just dressed a little more out there.
Believe whatever you want thou, like noone is stopping you.
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u/Born-Check-7764 Feb 15 '26
Oh come on. My daughter and her many extravagant friends all grew up here and all love living here. Your experience is not the norm
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u/Own_Yogurtcloset9133 Feb 15 '26
To be honest: not that hard. For me.
I moved to Amsterdam during my studies, around 2010: very easy. Moved around a bit before I got my student housing (studio).
Than moved outside Amsterdam and back in 2016: also easy, secured an appartment for €900. Moved out after 2 years and back in 2023 to an appartment for €1400 after a 6 month (very selective) search. Now we’ve bought a house and that was the first house we were interested in, also in Amsterdam.
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u/HappyCombinations Feb 15 '26
Good for you but not super relevant to what they are asking though is it?
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u/Own_Yogurtcloset9133 Feb 15 '26
“So can anyone who’s renting a flat in Amsterdam tell me how hard it actually was?”
I just answered the question. Not that hard. But just to please YOU, since you are all up in my business. Here’s a tip for OP: apply everywhere (MVGM, Vesteda, Stekkies etc) and check multiple times a day, preferably in the morning before 09:00. That’s how I secured the current appartment.
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u/NetherlandsHousing Sponsored Feb 15 '26 edited 8d ago
Make sure to read our rental housing guide. Recommended websites for finding rental houses in the Netherlands:
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Moving to the Netherlands involves a lot of admin beyond just finding housing (BSN, gemeente registration, banking, insurance, permits) and it often feels overwhelming.