Guide · 8 minSelling your house yourself, from photos to notary
The complete route in seven steps — what you do yourself, what you have done for you, and where the pitfalls are.
1 · Set your asking price with real figures
Don't look at what your neighbour is asking — look at what comparable homes actually sold for. Sale prices of sold homes can be requested per address from the Kadaster (Dutch land registry) for a few euros. Take three to five genuinely comparable sales from the past year and work back to a price per square metre. An asking price that's too high actually costs you money: the first two weeks are your shop window, and after that attention drops off fast. The full calculation method is in the guide on setting your own asking price.
2 · Get your house photo-ready
Decluttering is free and pays off more than a new kitchen. Photograph during the day with the curtains open, stand in the corner of the room for width, and show every space once. The first photo decides whether someone clicks through — that's almost always the front of the house or the living room in good light.
3 · Write an honest description
You know this house better than any estate agent. Write what a buyer wants to know: what's been renovated (with the year), the monthly costs, what the neighbourhood is like at eight in the morning. Mention the downsides too — a seller who discloses a defect wins trust and avoids trouble at the transfer. Your duty of disclosure as a seller is real; concealing things comes back to bite you via the notary or the courts.
4 · List your property
On Panvia you pay € 895 for 24 weeks, excl. VAT. Your listing is online within a day. Buyers who message you or make an offer have a buyer subscription — so whoever writes, is serious. Make sure your paperwork is ready by then: these are the documents you need, and here are all the costs at a glance.
5 · You do the viewings yourself — and that's an advantage
Nobody answers questions about this house better than you. Schedule viewings back to back (it saves evenings and creates momentum), walk a fixed route, and leave people alone in a room for a moment — that's when they start picturing themselves living there.
6 · Negotiate without the theatrics
Decide your bottom line and your ideal completion date in advance, and you'll negotiate calmly. Respond to every offer within a day, even a low one. A financing condition is normal — four to six weeks. An offer without conditions is worth more than a slightly higher offer with them.
7 · The notary completes the deal
Once you agree, a civil-law notary draws up the purchase agreement and the deed of transfer. The buyer usually chooses the notary, but it can be done differently. After signing, the buyer has a statutory three-day cooling-off period. Panvia points the way — the deed itself is the notary's job, as it should be.
What Panvia doesn't do: Panvia doesn't do valuations, doesn't negotiate and doesn't broker. This guide is information, not advice — if you're unsure about your own situation, an hour with a building surveyor or notary is worth twice its money.