Buying a house in the the city
Since Willem got his job at the Free University we lived close to his work outside Amsterdam in a flat in Amstelveen with next door a supermarket and in the neighborhood large parks. In the beginning we liked living there. It was also very cheap, 270 guilders, but in 10 years the price went up to 750 guilders. Having been very busy with building up our life and our research, it did not matter too much that we were farther away from the lively atmosphere of the big town. However, at some point we liked to have a livelier environment and also considered buying a house instead of renting a flat again. Not that we had any savings. Irmtraud remembered that at that time we had only 4000 guilders on the bank. That meant that we only could buy a house with a mortgage. An insurance company for academic people suggested that given my salary and the prospects of increase of it they could offer me a mortgage of maximally 250.000 guilders for a period of 30 years without repayment of the debt but paying interest and a life insurance. Preferring a fixed interest rate we had to pay monthly 1000 guilders which was not so much more than we had to pay for the rent of the flat. After 30 years the mortgage would have been paid off and we would be free of debts. With this information in mind we went looking for a nice house, we could afford to buy.
Our beloved house
After looking around for an affordable house Willem detected a house that he liked very much along a small canal, in the center of Amsterdam, a nice neighborhood with shops, restaurants and cafes. We both liked the house and the neighborhood but there were several complications. First of all, the basement and the first floor were rent by a painter and the law at that time was such that a new owner of a house could not claim immediately the space rent by another person. Only after 5 years one could try via a juridical procedure to obtain the rent part. Another way to protect the tenants was a point system developed to determine the rent given the quality and the size of the space hired. In this case the painter payed in agreement with this system only 100 guilders for half the size of the house.
After looking around for an affordable house Willem detected a house that he liked very much along a small canal, in the center of Amsterdam, a nice neighborhood with shops, restaurants and cafes. We both liked the house and the neighborhood but there were several complications. First of all, the basement and the first floor were rent by a painter and the law at that time was such that a new owner of a house could not claim immediately the space rent by another person. Only after 5 years one could try via a juridical procedure to obtain the rent part. Another way to protect the tenants was a point system developed to determine the rent given the quality and the size of the space hired. In this case the painter payed in agreement with this system only 100 guilders for half the size of the house.
The owner asked for the whole house 220.000 guilders which was within our budget leaving 30.000 for renovation. But it meant that we had to pay 1000 guilders a month for the whole house but could use during the first 5 years only half of it, while for the other half we would get only a contribution of 100 guilders a month. Besides that, it was not at all certain that we would be allowed to use the other part, when it would become free in 5 years for our own purposes. This point we checked at the housing office of the local government. They confirmed us that this was indeed the case: when the space would be free we could use it for ourselves.
Finally there was a last problem: the present owner wanted 30.000 guilders in cash and sell the house for the official prize of 190.000 guilders. Given that request it became too complicated for us. We asked the insurance company if we could get the asked mortgage which was 60.000 above the present official prize of the house. The assurance company was willing to provide it.
We asked a sports friend who was a real estate agent whether the prize of the house was reasonable and how we could arrange this payment. He said that the prize was reasonable and that he could arrange the payment in cash, if we could provide the money.
Finally there was a last problem: the present owner wanted 30.000 guilders in cash and sell the house for the official prize of 190.000 guilders. Given that request it became too complicated for us. We asked the insurance company if we could get the asked mortgage which was 60.000 above the present official prize of the house. The assurance company was willing to provide it.
We asked a sports friend who was a real estate agent whether the prize of the house was reasonable and how we could arrange this payment. He said that the prize was reasonable and that he could arrange the payment in cash, if we could provide the money.
Without knowledge of the notary all is possible
The two transactions, the purchase of the house and the realization of the mortgage would both take place at the same time in the office of a well-known notary in Amsterdam. At that occasion, of course only official amounts would be mentioned but the owner of the house would not accept the contract, if he would not have received the 30.000 guilder in cash before. Besides that we had the problem that we could not use the money of the mortgage before the contract was signed. The solution came from our real estate agent who asked the notary to have a half hour time before the official meeting to use his office for a meeting of the owner and us. My friend and colleague Marius de Pijper had told me that he was able to help us by providing us for a few days the 30.000 guilders. As a typical Dutchman he came on his bicycle with in his bag the 30.000 guilders to the office, to hand the money over to us.
The notary, of course did not know anything of what was happening in his office and so after this unofficial part followed the official part and we became owners of the house we wanted to have.
The two transactions, the purchase of the house and the realization of the mortgage would both take place at the same time in the office of a well-known notary in Amsterdam. At that occasion, of course only official amounts would be mentioned but the owner of the house would not accept the contract, if he would not have received the 30.000 guilder in cash before. Besides that we had the problem that we could not use the money of the mortgage before the contract was signed. The solution came from our real estate agent who asked the notary to have a half hour time before the official meeting to use his office for a meeting of the owner and us. My friend and colleague Marius de Pijper had told me that he was able to help us by providing us for a few days the 30.000 guilders. As a typical Dutchman he came on his bicycle with in his bag the 30.000 guilders to the office, to hand the money over to us.
The notary, of course did not know anything of what was happening in his office and so after this unofficial part followed the official part and we became owners of the house we wanted to have.
Renovation of the house
You may think that the house next door was much larger but that only holds true for the front side because one fourth of that building was reserved in the past for open space. But at some point in time the former owners of the house we bought, had extended it with that open space. Later the cadaster, controlling the building, confirmed this. So the first floor where the painter lived was at the back twice larger than in the front. At the higher floors there was space for a kitchen and stairs to the roof terrace.
First we had to renovate the two floors we wanted to live in. We installed at the second floor the kitchen and the Austrian “Bauernstube”. On the third floor we renovated the bathroom and the sleeping room which had a nice view over the canals. There also were stairs to the roof terrace.
You may think that the house next door was much larger but that only holds true for the front side because one fourth of that building was reserved in the past for open space. But at some point in time the former owners of the house we bought, had extended it with that open space. Later the cadaster, controlling the building, confirmed this. So the first floor where the painter lived was at the back twice larger than in the front. At the higher floors there was space for a kitchen and stairs to the roof terrace.
First we had to renovate the two floors we wanted to live in. We installed at the second floor the kitchen and the Austrian “Bauernstube”. On the third floor we renovated the bathroom and the sleeping room which had a nice view over the canals. There also were stairs to the roof terrace.
Creating the roof terrace
After these two floors were finished I spent time with my cricket friend Willem Smit, to build a little wooden house on the flat roof and we made a fence with flower boxes around the roof. At the famous flower market in Amsterdam we bought plants and flowers. During nice days we could sit there as if we were sitting in a garden because the trees in front of the house were high enough that you could think that you were sitting in a park.
After these two floors were finished I spent time with my cricket friend Willem Smit, to build a little wooden house on the flat roof and we made a fence with flower boxes around the roof. At the famous flower market in Amsterdam we bought plants and flowers. During nice days we could sit there as if we were sitting in a garden because the trees in front of the house were high enough that you could think that you were sitting in a park.
In this house in a very nice surrounding with a coffee bar at the other side of the canal and a small street with many different shops, restaurants and terraces we lived with pleasure for more than 15 years. We also enjoyed very much the possibilitiues that a historic town has to offer. The video below shows the attraction of living in the centre of Amsterdam.