Deposits that never come back, service charges that do not add up, and illegal sublets: Welcome to Amsterdam, renter’s hell.
Tenant advisory organisation !WOON released a “State of the Renter” report on March 10, documenting the biggest housing grievances of renters in the Amsterdam region last year.
After reviewing over 80,000 interactions with tenants, experts at !WOON learned that international renters are being taken advantage of far more often than locals.
It seems some landlords view “expat” as a synonym for “someone who doesn’t know the rules.”
They had 203 instances in Amsterdam where a security deposit was either not returned at all or only partially returned.
Your deposit? Some landlords would rather keep it
The report finds that a growing number of private landlords either return deposits partially or not at all.
Also, the number of extreme deposits is on the rise: In 2025, a tenant apparently paid a deposit of a whopping €8,600.
!WOON notes that international renters are more likely to get the short end of the stick.
While the organisation supports the Wet goed verhuurderschap (Good Landlord Act), they argue it has a major flaw. Since there are no fines for withholding deposits, landlords have little reason to return them.
Overcharged on service costs
Throughout 2025, service charge miscalculations were another big theme.
The tenant advisory organisation flagged incorrect costs across several large residential complexes, naming specific owners including Change=, HiCondo, Rockfield (The Cohesion), and XIOR.
With !WOON’s help, renters recovered a portion of overpaid costs, though the organisation criticised the lengthy and time-consuming process.
Although legal proceedings are ongoing, Change= has since sold its two Amsterdam complexes.
The “short stay” workaround
Since July 2024, temporary rental contracts (shorter than two years) have been banned for most Dutch renters. The bill was meant to combat tenant insecurity and rising rent prices.
@whereiswanda The sad reality of being a student #amsterdam #hospiteeravond #hospi #woningmarkt #woningnood #housingcrisis #students #studenten ♬ origineel geluid – Cosmo
Yet in 2025, !WOON found dozens of contracts that had no valid legal basis.
The report found that landlords often make up “short stay” arrangements to sidestep the rules entirely.
Ripped-off renters is a story as old as time, but !WOON calls on Minister O’Sullivan to be more vigilant and for rental listings to be more transparent.
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