Can my landlord increase my rent, and by how much?

Can my landlord increase my rent, and by how much?

Short answer: Yes, in principle your landlord can raise the rent once per year, but how much and how it must be done depends on the sector your home falls in (social, middle-income, or free sector). For2026 the statutory ceilings are 4.1% (social, from 1 July), 6.1% (middenhuur, from 1 January) and 4.4% (free sector, from 1 January). In social and middenhuur homes, the landlord must follow a formal proposal procedure; in the free sector the rent usually rises under an indexation clause in your contract, capped by the statutory maximum.

###1. Which sector are you in?

The sector is fixed by the initial (kale) rent in your contract, compared with the liberalisatiegrens that applied when the contract started.

A contract in the middle or high segment concluded before 1 July 2024 is still treated as free-sector for rent-increase purposes, because the cap in BW art. 7:247 does not apply to it.

2. The two ways a landlord can raise the rent

Under BW 7 art. 248 lid 1, the rent can be increased only:

1. On the basis of a rent-increase clause ("huurverhogingsbeding") written into the lease itself. While such a clause is in force, the formal proposal procedure of BW 7 art. 252/253 is excluded.
2. Through a written proposal that follows the procedure in BW 7 art. 252, 252a, 252c and 253, which lets the tenant bring the dispute to the Huurcommissie.

In addition, BW 7 art. 251 lid 1 provides that the rent cannot be increased more than once in any 12-month period (with limited exceptions for improvement works).

3. Social housing (regulated sector)

• Effective date of the yearly increase: 1 July (not 1 January).
• Statutory maximum for 2026: 4.1%, fixed by Art. 10 lid 2 Uitvoeringswet huurprijzen woonruimte as implemented in the Uitvoeringsregeling huurprijzen woonruimte 2026 (Staatscourant 2025, 43660; Rijksoverheid 15-12-2025). It applies to households earning up to the lage-inkomensgrens.
• Lower rents: if the current bare rent is below € 350/month, the increase is capped at € 25 (Art. 10 lid 2 Uhw; Uitvoeringsregeling huurprijzen woonruimte 2026).
• Income-dependent extra increase (BW 7 art. 252a): if the household income exceeds the lower threshold, the landlord may add up to € 50 (middeninkomens) or € 100 (higher inkomen) on top of the basic4.1%.
• Procedure: a written proposal must be sent at least two months before 1 July (BW 7 art. 252 lid 1). If the tenant objects in writing, the landlord — or the tenant — can ask the Huurcommissie to test the reasonableness of the proposal under BW 7 art. 253.
• No increase allowed while there is an unresolved structural defect for which the tenant has gone to the Huurcommissie (BW 7 art. 248 lid 4 / 257).

4. Middle-income housing (gereguleerde middenhuur)

This is the new regulated segment introduced by the Wet betaalbare huur (in force 1 July 2024) and covered by BW 7 art. 247b together with Art. 10 lid 4 Uhw.

• Effective date: 1 January (not 1 July).
• Statutory maximum for 2026: 6.1% = CAO-loonontwikkeling 5.1% + 1% (Rijksoverheid 15-12-2025; Aedes Huurbeleid 2026; Huurcommissie beleidsboek hoofdstuk 5).
• The rent can never be raised above the maximum redelijke huurprijs based on the WWS points of the home (Huurcommissie beleidsboek hoofdstuk 5.2).
• The proposal procedure of art. 252/253 also applies here.

5. Free-sector housing (geliberaliseerd)

• Effective date: 1 January (the date in the contract is usually followed).
• Statutory maximum for 2026: 4.4% = the lower of inflation (3.4%) or CAO-loonontwikkeling (5.1%), + 1% (Art. 10 lid 3 Uhw; Rijksoverheid 15-12-2025; Woonbond; Huurcommissie beleidsboek 5.1.1). This cap is temporary, under the Wet Nijboer extension, and runs until 1 May 2029.
• What the contract says is leading. Most free-sector contracts contain a huurverhogingsbeding (often CPI-linked). If that clause produces a higher number than 4.4%, the statutory maximum prevails and the part above4.4% is void (BW 7 art. 248 lid 3; Woonbond).
• If the contract has no rent-increase clause at all, the landlord cannot just raise the rent unilaterally. A new clause has to be agreed first; otherwise the landlord must offer a new contract, which the tenant can test for reasonableness before a court (Recht & Raad; Woonbond).
• The income-dependent increase of art. 252a does not apply in the free sector (BW 7 art. 247).

6. Other rent changes that are not annual indexation

Outside the yearly indexation, the rent can in some situations be adjusted in between, but only through specific routes:

• Improvements to the home by the landlord (e.g. insulation, new kitchen, accessibility adjustments): the rent can be raised by a sum reasonably related to those costs. For regulated contracts see BW 7 art. 255/255a (each party can ask the Huurcommissie within three months); for free-sector contracts the agreed clause is leading.
• Renovation under BW 7 art. 220 may lead to a different rent, but only after a written proposal that the tenant can challenge.
• Defects (gebreken): the tenant can request a rent reduction to the Huurcommissie under BW 7 art. 257.

7. What can you do if you disagree?

1. React in writing to the landlord's proposal within the period stated in the proposal (BW 7 art. 253 lid 1).
2. Go to the Huurcommissie (www.huurcommissie.nl) — for social and middenhuur always; for free sector only on specific points such as the initial rent in the first six months (BW 7 art. 249).
3. Check the maths: is the proposed percentage within the legal maximum for your sector and year? Does the contract allow the increase? Has the two-month notice been met?
4. For free-sector tenants, the landlord is not allowed to make up for a missing or invalid clause by simply ending the contract and offering a new one at a much higher rent — case law requires the new rent to be reasonable.

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Sources used

• Burgerlijk Wetboek Boek 7, artt. 237, 247, 247a, 247b, 248, 249, 251, 252, 252a, 252b, 252c, 253, 255, 255a, 257 — wetten.overheid.nl
• Uitvoeringswet huurprijzen woonruimte, art. 10 (referenced via BW 7 art. 248 and Huurcommissie beleidsboek)
• Uitvoeringsregeling huurprijzen woonruimte 2026, Staatscourant 2025, 43660 (overheid.nl)
• Rijksoverheid / Volkshuisvesting Nederland, Maximale huurverhoging 2026 in sociale sector 4,1%, middenhuur 6,1% en vrije sector 4,4% (15-12-2025)
• Volkshuisvesting Nederland, Maximale huurprijsgrenzen (1 januari 2026)
• Aedes, Huurbeleid in 2025 / 2026
• Huurcommissie, beleidsboek Huurverhoging – Huurverhogingsbeding (midden en vrije sector), hoofdstuk 5
• Woonbond, Huurverhoging vrije sector en Huurprijs en puntentelling 2026-2027

This is general information, not legal advice. For a binding opinion on your specific situation, consult a lawyer or the Huurcommissie.