Profile 01 · The first-time buyer

Buy-to-let, with both eyes open.

Buying your first investment property in Belgium is a long list of small decisions, most of which you only learn about once you have made the wrong one. VivaMyRent's buyer track is the assistant that walks you through the budget, the property, the documents, and the law, before you sign.

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Buyer track ships in v2. Waitlist open now so you are first in line.

“I thought the notary fees were 3 percent. I learned at the table they were closer to 13. I almost walked out of the act.”
Composite from landlord discovery interviews, autumn 2025.

The real budget. Not just the price on the listing.

The price you see is rarely the price you pay. In Belgium, on a second-hand property, you add roughly twelve to fourteen percent in notary and registration fees before the bank even talks to you. We add it up with you, in your region, with your numbers.

Down payment the bank will expect (typically 10–20%)
Notary and registration fees, region-specific, 12–14% on existing property
Bank dossier costs and outstanding-balance insurance
Annual property tax (précompte immobilier), often forgotten
Renovation budget, if the property needs work

What you can actually borrow.

Belgian banks expect your total debt service to stay below roughly 35% of your net household income. Different banks, different scoring. The assistant compares three bank offers against your income, and tells you which one leaves the most room.

Net income and existing obligations, your real numbers
Three bank simulations, with the rate and the maximum mortgage
Stress test against a rate rise of 1 or 2 points
Debt-to-income guidance, what your bank manager will actually look at

The kind of property that fits your life.

Apartment or house. New build or second-hand. Two bedrooms or three. The assistant turns your preferences into a saved profile, then watches public Belgian listings, surfaces matches, and ranks them on the criteria you actually said matter.

Type and layout, apartment, house, ground-with-garden, top-floor
Condition expectations, ready to live in, or willing to renovate
Non-negotiables, outdoor space, lift, basement, parking
Soft preferences, light, quiet, neighbourhood feel

Listings stay anonymous. The assistant cross-references public Belgian listings (Immoweb, Logic-Immo, Zimmo); we never scrape behind logins or violate publishers' terms. You see the property, and you click through to the original ad.

Take photos. Ask the assistant before you ask the bank.

At a viewing, you have your phone and forty minutes. Send the photos to the assistant. It flags the obvious red lights (electrical box, damp staining, dated heating, frame condition) and tells you which checks to keep doing while you are still inside.

Roof and gutters, visible from the street and the windows
Frames and glazing, single, double, or triple, age
Electrical conformity, conform certificate present? Year of last revision?
Heating, type, age, last service date, fuel tank
Damp and insulation, patches, smell, dew on cold walls
Separate meters, in shared buildings

First read, not a survey. The assistant is a first opinion, not a certified inspector. If anything looks meaningful, the next step is a building engineer before your offer becomes binding.

The documents the seller must hand over.

Belgian sellers owe you a fixed list of documents before the act. If one is missing, the assistant flags it. If one says something concerning, it tells you what.

PEB (energy performance certificate)
Electrical conformity report
Acte de base and last 3 years of co-ownership minutes (if applicable)
Cadastral certificate (extrait cadastral)
Asbestos and fuel-tank information
Urban-planning information, permits, infractions, listed status

The monthly bills you only see on month two.

The mortgage payment is one line. The reserve fund, the syndic fee, the building provisions, and the maintenance reserve are the other four. We tally them with the numbers from the syndic's most recent report.

Reserve fund contributions (fonds de réserve)
Syndic fee, per quote per quarter
Monthly provisions: heating, water, lift, cleaning, common electricity
Yearly reconciliation, the catch-up bill that surprises new owners

Location, scored on what matters in Belgium.

We score the neighborhood against the things that actually move resale value and tenant demand. Schools and transport in walking distance. Average rent per m². Permits filed recently. Whether the street was quiet on a Tuesday night.

Transport: nearest tram, train, STIB / De Lijn / TEC stop and frequency
Schools: closest crèche, primary, secondary, by network
Local services: supermarket, pharmacy, post office, GP
Rental rate for similar m² in the same statistical sector
Soundscape, if you've visited at different times

From the offer to the keys.

Six steps from “I want this one” to “the notary handed me the keys.” Each step has its traps. The assistant gets you to the next one without losing your deposit.

The offer letter, with a suspensive condition on financing
Acceptance and timeline set by the seller
Final bank dossier, with all the documents the bank will demand
Compromis, the binding promise of sale
The notary's act, usually three months after the compromis
The keys, and the start of being a landlord

Pre-launch · Buyer track

First in line when the buyer track opens.

The buyer track ships in v2 of VivaMyRent. Drop your email and the region you are looking in, and we will write to you in your language as soon as it opens.

Join the waitlist