Housing in the Netherlands
One of the most important things to get right when you move to the Netherlands is choosing a location to live which is in commutable distance to your place of work and which also meets your personal lifestyle needs such as access to local amenities and entertainment. Get it right and you will have a strong foundation from which you and your family can go about their working and personal lives. Get it wrong and you may find yourself in the uncomfortable position of having to move again.
One good way of handling the uncertainty about where to live is to arrange some temporary accommodation for 1 to 3 months in Netherlands so you can have a base from which to then hunt around for your ideal long term property. This is a very popular option and you may find that your employer may be willing to fund temporary accommodation as part of the relocation package.
Alternately, you can find your permanent accommodation before you actually arrive in the Netherlands by working with a housing agency from your home country or an real estate agent in the Netherlands. While you could do a lot of this research on the internet, if you are just a few hours flight away, it may be worth making a planning trip to the Netherlands to make final arrangements for the flat. Once again your employer may fund these trips.
No matter which option you choose it is recommended that you use a housing agency in the Netherlands to help you with your relocation and they will also be able to recommend companies who can transport your belongings. They will be able to give you advice on whether to rent or buy, where to live, rental agreements schools etc... and will be a great source of advice.
To help you with your relocation, we have prepared a list of housing agents in the Netherlands and real estate agents in the Netherlands specialized in relocating and housing expatriates in the Netherlands and you can find the housing agents here.
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