Notary not always honest about land registry costs

When you buy a house, you pay the notary so-called land registry fees. The notary ensures that you are registered as the owner of the property in the Land Registry. If you believe you have paid too much land registry fees to the notary, you can reclaim these costs. A building inspection by Homekeur can also include an assessment of the cadastral boundaries.

Discount on the standard rate

Because notaries frequently interact with the land registry, they often receive a discount on the standard rate for cadastral research. The notary is obligated to deduct this discount from the fee charged to the buyer of a home. The Chamber of Notaries has noted that this rule has often been deviated from in the past.

Does the notary receive a discount from the Land Registry?

The Land Registry uses an automated system, KIK. The discount notaries receive is directly related to this.

The notary receives a discount if the purchase and mortgage deeds are submitted digitally to the land registry via KIK
80% of notaries use this system
40% of all deeds are supplied digitally in this way

The notary can save on costs at the Land Registry

If a notary uses the KIK (Central Information System), they can save on Land Registry fees. For example, cancellations of old mortgage deeds can be submitted in a bundle. The notary then pays the current fee of €74 once, while this fee used to be charged to all homebuyers. For registering a mortgage and purchase deed, the notary pays €102 instead of the higher fee of €168. This means a homebuyer can easily overpay by more than €100 in notary fees.

Standard letter from the Homeowners' Association

The Dutch Homeowners' Association (VEH), the organization that represents the interests of homeowners, is raising the alarm about this issue. VEH believes that notaries have been charging excessive fees on a fairly large scale in recent years. Therefore, a standard letter has now been created that homeowners can use to inquire with their notary whether this was the case when they purchased their home. If so, they can reclaim the excess land registry fees.

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