Buying property in Belgium
Understand what you will really pay — before you sign.
Registration duties that change from one region to the next, a notary's fee set by law, a property tax based on a “cadastral income” nobody explains: GuideImmo puts figures on all of it, with the official scales and the official sources. Free, independent, no sales pitch.
The tools
Borrowing capacity
How much can I borrow without overstretching?
Estimate your borrowing capacity from your income and existing commitments, alone or as a couple.
2 min · Free
Mortgage loan simulator
What will my monthly repayment be, and what does the loan cost in total?
Monthly repayment, term, rate and total cost of credit — enter three, the tool works out the fourth.
2 min · Free
Notary fees
How much does the notary really cost?
The complete breakdown of your deed of sale and your loan deed, line by line: registration duties, notary's fee, VAT, mortgage registration.
3 min · Free
Property tax (précompte immobilier)
How much will I pay every year?
Your actual property tax, municipality by municipality, reductions included — Wallonia, Brussels, Flanders.
2 min · Free
Check a company
Is this contractor or seller reliable?
Crossroads Bank for Enterprises, Belgian Official Gazette, social security, annual accounts: the full record in one search.
1 min · Free
Three things expats get wrong
“The notary fees are 3 %.” The notary's fee itself is small and identical everywhere in Belgium; what makes the bill is the regional registration duty — 12.5 % in Brussels and Wallonia (3 % on a sole, owner-occupied home in Wallonia), 2 % in Flanders for the same case — plus 21 % VAT if you buy a new build.
“Property tax is negligible.” The précompte immobilier is calculated on a notional rent fixed in 1975 (the cadastral income), indexed and multiplied by regional, provincial and municipal rates. It varies two- to three-fold between municipalities.
“A 105 % mortgage covers everything.” Banks lend against the value of the property, and loan-to-value above 90 % is now the exception. The costs you cannot borrow are the ones to budget first.
The calculators, the glossary of Belgian property terms and the directory of official sources are available in English, and so is every tool. A few guides in English cover the essentials for buying or owning property in Belgium. For deeper dives on specific topics, our French blog goes further.