Short answer: the asking price (vraagprijs) is an invitation to negotiate, not an offer you can accept. So the seller doesn't have to accept a bid at or above the asking price, nor choose the highest bid. Until the purchase agreement (koopakte) has been signed by both of you, nobody is bound: not you, and according to the Dutch Supreme Court not a private seller either. A "yes" on the phone can still be withdrawn if a higher bid comes in. What is fixed are the agent's rules. Since 1 February 2026, agents who are NVM members must follow a set bidding protocol, with an online bidding system and a bidding log (biedlogboek) you can look at afterwards.
The asking price is not an offer
According to the Supreme Court (Hoge Raad), an advertisement with a price is "in principle" an invitation to start negotiating, in which not only the price and further terms but also the person of the buyer can matter (HR 10 April 1981). Bidding the asking price therefore doesn't mean you've bought the home. The seller may refuse, make a counter-offer or go ahead with someone else.
That is also why a seller doesn't always choose the highest bid. A slightly lower bid without a financing condition, or with a transfer date that suits them better, can be more attractive.
A verbal agreement binds nobody
Under Dutch law, a private buyer's purchase of a home must be made in writing (article 7:2 of the Civil Code). As long as there is no signed purchase agreement, you as the buyer are not bound.
It works the other way too. In 2011 the Supreme Court ruled that a private seller may also rely on the absence of a written agreement. The seller can't be forced to sign, and damages are only possible in "very special circumstances". Receiving a higher bid in the meantime is "in principle" not such a circumstance: the written form exists precisely to give both sides that room (HR 9 December 2011).
The NVM protocol puts it plainly: an email confirming the agreement, or a draft purchase agreement sent to you, does not count as a signed agreement. Until you have both signed, the seller can go back on their "yes".
Once you have signed, you have three days to change your mind. How that period runs is in Buying an apartment in the Netherlands: the process step by step.
The NVM's four sales methods
Since 1 February 2026, all NVM agents must follow the Protocol Transparant Bieden Woonruimte (transparent bidding protocol) when selling a home that private buyers can bid on. It doesn't apply to off-market sales, sales between acquaintances or notarial auctions. The agent agrees one of four methods with the seller, and it is stated on the bidding form:
- Registration with a bidding period (inschrijving met biedtermijn): you bid before a closing date. The seller and the agent see the bids straight away, you don't.
- Closed registration with a bidding period (gesloten inschrijving): even the seller and the agent only see the bids after the closing date.
- Open auction with a bidding period (open veiling): everyone sees all bids.
- Bidding without a bidding period (bieden zonder biedtermijn): the classic one-to-one negotiation. You get a rejection, a counter-offer or an acceptance.
With the first two methods the agent may tell you nothing about other people's bids, and may not inform bidders unequally about a "desired bid". After the closing date the seller decides "whether and to whom" to award the home, and all bidders hear the outcome in writing. If nobody gets it, you are told why.
A seller should respect their own bidding period, but may cancel the procedure before the closing date and switch to another method. All bidders must then be told in writing that this is happening, and why.
Under offer: can you still bid?
"Under offer" (onder bod) means the seller is negotiating with someone or has accepted a bid, but there is no signed purchase agreement yet. You can still bid. The protocol says what happens to a late bid: the agent registers it and tells the seller. The seller can then:
- hold a new round with all bidders, with a new closing date;
- hold a new round with only the earlier winner and the new bidder;
- withdraw the award and continue with the new bidder;
- reject the new bid.
For one-to-one negotiations, the protocol calls the last three the most fitting. Whatever the choice, the other bidders must be told in writing.
For you as the winner this means: until the purchase agreement is signed, someone else can still overtake you. Ask the agent how soon the agreement will be ready, and sign as soon as you can, after reading it.
What to put in your offer
According to the protocol, an offer contains at least:
- the amount;
- how long your offer is valid, or the date it expires;
- your conditions: financing, a building survey, the sale of your current home, or others.
Add your preferred transfer date as well: the seller states their preference on the bidding form, and a date that fits it makes your offer stronger. You can withdraw an offer until agreement is reached. Decide before you bid which conditions you really need: they will become conditions in the purchase agreement, with hard deadlines.
The bidding log
Since 1 January 2023, agents who are members of NVM and Vastgoed Nederland work with a digital bidding log. It records every bid automatically and unalterably, with at least the asking price, the sale price, the sales method and the date the home was awarded.
Once the sale is final, after the cooling-off period and the conditions, all bidders get a message. You can then view the log for one month, with the other bidders' names removed. If you withdrew your bid early, you don't get access.
If you don't receive the log, ask the selling agent. If that doesn't help, the government points to the Geschillencommissie Makelaardij, the disputes committee for estate agents.
For an apartment: ask for the VvE documents before you bid
With an apartment you buy into an owners' association (VvE), with its maintenance plan, savings and any loans. An extra levy or a reserve fund that's too low can make your offer too high after all. So ask the agent for the deed of division, the minutes, the maintenance plan (MJOP) and the accounts before you bid. What a VvE is and what you'll find in its documents is in What is a VvE?
Got the documents? Check the VvE before you buy: the free scan shows where the risks are within a minute. And once your offer is accepted, you can have the purchase agreement checked before your cooling-off period ends.
Frequently asked questions
Does the seller have to accept the highest bid?
No. The asking price is an invitation to negotiate, and the seller decides whether and to whom to sell. Terms such as financing certainty and the transfer date count too.
I offered the asking price. Have I bought the home?
No. An offer at the asking price is still an offer. Only when the seller accepts and you have both signed the purchase agreement is the sale fixed.
Can the seller still go with someone else after a verbal agreement?
Yes, as long as you haven't both signed the purchase agreement. According to the Supreme Court a private seller may rely on the absence of a written agreement, also when they received a higher bid. Damages are only possible in very special circumstances.
May the agent tell me what others have bid?
Not in a registration procedure: the protocol forbids sharing other people's bids and informing bidders unequally about a desired bid. Only in an open auction are all bids visible. Afterwards you can view the bidding log.
Can I withdraw my offer?
Yes, until agreement is reached. And even after that, as a private buyer you are only bound once you sign the purchase agreement, followed by three days to change your mind.
Sources
- NVM: Protocol Transparant Bieden Woonruimte (mandatory for NVM agents since 1 February 2026; consulted 27 October 2026)
- NVM: Biedlogboek
- Volkshuisvesting Nederland: Biedlogboek
- Dutch Civil Code Book 7, article 2 (written purchase and cooling-off period)
- Supreme Court 10 April 1981, ECLI:NL:HR:1981:AG4177 (an advertised price is an invitation to negotiate)
- Supreme Court 9 December 2011, ECLI:NL:HR:2011:BU7412 (a private seller is also only bound by a written purchase)