Discharging Your Mortgage (Royeren Hypotheek)

The key points in brief

Have you fully repaid the mortgage on your home? Then you have the option of having the mortgage discharged or removed from the mortgage register at the Kadaster (Dutch Land Registry).

Introduction

Please note! You have the option to do this, but you are not always required to. The obligation only applies when you want to remortgage with a different provider or when you sell your home. Discharging the mortgage at the Kadaster makes it possible to take out a new mortgage on the property and benefit from tax advantages such as mortgage interest deduction.

1. Voluntarily discharging your mortgage at the Kadaster

Once you have repaid your mortgage to your provider, you may be charged administration fees. These are costs the provider charges to remove the mortgage from their own records. There is a good chance the provider will then ask you to have the mortgage discharged from the Kadaster records as well. You are not formally required to do this.

Are you planning to take out a new mortgage with the same mortgage provider in the future, or do you want to keep that option open? In that case it may be worth holding off on discharging the mortgage at the Kadaster. This way you avoid having to pay notary fees for a new registration when you want to have the new mortgage formalised. You can simply continue to use your existing Kadaster registration, which will not cause any problems in the meantime.

2. Selling your home

Are you selling your home? In that case you must discharge the mortgage at the Kadaster regardless, through a notary. This is because the property must be delivered free of encumbrances so the new owner can take out a new mortgage on it. The notary will verify that you have indeed repaid the mortgage. If that is the case, the notary instructs the Kadaster to discharge the mortgage.

3. Your own choice and notary costs

Discharging a mortgage is not free. The costs depend on the notary's rates and typically range from around €100 to €400. This makes it worth comparing notaries in advance. Did you have a mortgage with interest deduction? Then you can deduct the notary costs for the discharge from your taxes.

If you have already repaid your mortgage and plan to sell the property later, it is a good idea to have the mortgage discharged beforehand. That way you can choose which notary handles it. If you wait until the sale, you are tied to the notary the buyer selects, which could mean higher costs for you.

Frequently asked questions

What does it mean to discharge a mortgage?

It means removing your mortgage from the mortgage register at the Kadaster.

When am I required to discharge my mortgage?

When you sell your home or remortgage, you must discharge the mortgage so that the property is free of encumbrances and a new mortgage can be taken out on it.

When is it better not to discharge my mortgage?

If you want to keep the option of taking out a new loan with the same provider, it can be useful to wait before discharging the mortgage. This avoids having to pay notary fees again for a new Kadaster registration.

How much do notary fees for discharging a mortgage cost?

The costs depend on the notary, so it is worth comparing them. The costs are tax deductible.