Market value · WOZ · rebuild value
Calculating the value of your home
For a mortgage the market value counts, for tax the WOZ value and for your insurance the rebuild value. Anyone who confuses the three is insured for too little when there is a claim.
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The calculator and the quote form below are in Dutch. Prefer to do this in English? Email info@finassverzekert.nl or call 072 - 509 24 56 and we will take it from there.
- We compare the offerings of several insurers
- An adviser checks whether the cover suits your situation
- We arrange the switch, including cancellation
A premium indication, not personal advice. Prefer to talk it through? Call 072 - 509 24 56.
In brief
There are three values that have nothing to do with each other. The market value is what a buyer pays, including the land and the location. The lender uses that to determine how much you can borrow. The WOZ value (the Dutch property valuation) is a model-based assessment by the local authority as at a fixed reference date, intended for taxation. The rebuild value is what it costs to build the same house again on the same spot, without the land. Only the last of these belongs on the buildings policy.
The confusion costs money at the moment things go wrong. If you insure on market value in an expensive region, you pay too much premium for years without getting more: Article 7:960 of the Dutch Civil Code provides that the payment may not put you in a clearly better position than the one you were in. If you insure on WOZ value while building costs have risen sharply, there is underinsurance and every claim is reduced proportionately, even a small leak.
For the finance itself we refer you on; see calculate your maximum mortgage and mortgage. What we do is make the sums insured correct. See also what happens if you are underinsured and buildings insurance.
This page deals with one situation. The full overview is on Mortgages: we refer you on.
Please note: borrowing money costs money. Finass Advies B.V. holds a licence for non-life insurance and does not act as an intermediary for credit or mortgages. This page is informative. For an application we refer you to a provider with a licence for consumer credit or mortgage credit. Every licensed provider consults the BKR (the Dutch credit register) for credit of € 250 or more with a term of longer than one month.
Insurance never stands alone
A mortgage, loan or investment often touches your insurance too. We look at the bigger picture and point you to the right specialist whenever something falls outside insurance itself.
Financial
Overview
AdviceHow to arrive at a usable figure
Four ways in which the value established still turns out not to fit.
The rebuild value calculator and its limits
Many insurers work with a questionnaire about volume, construction type, roof covering and level of finish. If you fill it in fully and correctly, there is often a guarantee against underinsurance for a limited period. That guarantee lapses as soon as you refurbish without reporting it, and it does not work for unusual buildings. Keep the completed calculation, because that is your evidence in an argument.
Listed buildings and unusual construction
With a national monument, a thatched roof or a building with handmade details, the rebuild value is not a calculation but a valuation. Repairs often have to be carried out in the original materials and according to regulations, which takes the cost far above a standard calculation. A a valuation report from an expert gives the certainty here that an online calculator cannot offer.
What is not included in the rebuild value
Foundations, outbuildings, a swimming pool, solar panels, boundary fencing and paving do not count automatically. In many policies those are separate sections or subject to sub-limits. The clearance costs and the additional cost of building to current requirements are also capped. Go through those items expressly; they only come to light after a total loss, and then topping up is no longer possible.
A rise in value is not an insured event
A fall in the value of your home, a residual debt after a sale, foundation repairs after subsidence and deferred maintenance are none of them insurable losses. Insurers cover sudden and unforeseen events. A home that becomes worth less is an economic risk you carry yourself; only physical damage to the building is insurable.
What does your premium depend on?
- Volume in cubic metres: the most important variable in the rebuild value
- Construction type and roof covering: brick with tiles differs from timber or thatch
- Level of finish: a luxury finish raises the rebuilding cost
- Year of construction and listed status: rules on repairs help determine the cost
- Outbuildings and outdoor features: garage, shed, swimming pool and paving count separately
- Excess chosen: a higher excess lowers the premium
Insurers weigh these details differently. That is where your saving is.
What is arranged
| Situation | At Finass Verzekert | With the provider |
|---|---|---|
| You get a first indication of value without a valuer visiting | Yes | Provided that |
| You see which lenders accept a model-based valuation | Yes | No |
| The WOZ decision is accepted as support for the increase | No | Provided that |
| A validated valuation report is drawn up and signed | No | No |
| The outcome is converted into your maximum borrowing capacity | No | Yes |
| The sum insured on your buildings insurance is set alongside that value | Yes | No |
A lender works with the valued market value, not with the WOZ value or an online estimate.
Frequently asked questions
This is what people ask us most.
May I use the WOZ value for my buildings insurance?
Better not. The WOZ value is a model-based valuation as at a reference date that lags behind, and it includes the value of the land. When rebuilding, the land does not have to be bought again, but the building costs are current. In areas with expensive land, WOZ leads to substantial over-insurance; where building costs have risen, to underinsurance. Use a rebuild value calculator or a valuation.
What exactly happens with underinsurance?
The insurer applies a proportionate reduction: the payment is reduced in the same proportion as the sum insured bears to the actual rebuild value. That applies not only to a total loss but to every claim. It is almost always discovered only after a claim, when the loss adjuster measures up the home. It can only be prevented in advance.
How often do I have to have the value established again?
At every substantial change to the home, and otherwise periodically, because building costs shift. Many policies have indexation that moves the sum insured each year, but that does not absorb an extension or a more luxurious finish. A guarantee period against underinsurance also expires; have the details filled in again then.
Do my home contents count towards the value of the home?
No. The building is the structure with everything fixed to it, such as the kitchen, the sanitary ware and a fixed floor. The contents are everything you take with you when you move. Each has its own sum insured and its own method of valuation. For contents, replacement value as new applies, unless the item has fallen in value to below a certain proportion of that replacement value.