Most online tools and many agents still base their first impression on a handful of comparables: same city, roughly similar size, similar construction period. That approach ignores a lot of what actually drives value in Dutch apartments.
In practice, the market prices in dozens of small details: layout, natural light, surrounding noise, safety, amenities, staircases, elevators, energy performance, VvE health and more. Once you look closely, the idea of “simple comps” starts to look very crude.
PriceDecoder uses a structured set of parameters to move beyond that. This article walks through 25 of the key factors and explains how they influence value in a systematic way.
1. Physical & Interior Characteristics
These are the features within the apartment itself — what you see and experience as soon as you walk through the door.
1.1 Size-adjusted price per m²
The starting point is a baseline €/m² based on the average for all apartments in the area, corrected for size. Small apartments carry a premium per m², large ones typically a discount. The model does not treat 45 m² and 100 m² as equally priced per square meter.
1.2 Layout efficiency
Two apartments can have the same size but very different usability. Long corridors, awkward angles or badly proportioned rooms all reduce effective living space. A compact, well-arranged 60 m² can feel more valuable than a clumsy 70 m².
1.3 Natural light
Orientation (north/south), window size, floor level and surrounding buildings all influence how much daylight you actually get. Bright apartments are more pleasant to live in and command a clear premium.
1.4 View quality
Looking at a quiet, attractive street, a canal, a courtyard with trees or an open skyline is not the same as staring at a blank wall or a busy intersection. View affects both quality of life and resale appeal.
1.5 Balcony or garden
Outdoor space is heavily valued in Dutch cities, especially post-COVID. A usable balcony with enough depth to sit with two people is very different from a symbolic French balcony. Ground floor gardens can be a significant plus or minus depending on privacy and light.
1.6 Storage (inside and outside)
Built-in cupboards, separate storage rooms and ground-level bicycle storage all add up. Lack of storage pushes clutter into the living space and reduces perceived size.
1.7 Parking or private parking rights
In some areas, having your own parking spot or garage can make a big difference, particularly where on-street parking is scarce or permit queues are long.
1.8 Ceiling height
Higher ceilings create a feeling of space and air. Low ceilings can make even decent-sized apartments feel cramped. Ceiling height affects perceived value beyond raw floor area.
1.9 Condition and renovation level
A modern, neutral kitchen and bathroom, good flooring and fresh paint are valued much more than outdated fittings. Buyers mentally subtract renovation costs from what they are willing to pay.
1.10 Energy performance
The energy label and underlying insulation, glazing and heating/cooling systems influence running costs, comfort and increasingly mortgage possibilities. Apartments that are far below the norm in energy performance can suffer noticeable discounts.
2. Location & Mobility
Location is not just a city name or a postcode. It is how the apartment connects you to the rest of your life.
2.1 Proximity to city centre
Being within cycling or short public transport distance of the centre is important for many buyers. The exact premium depends on the city and neighbourhood hierarchy, but distance to the core is always a factor.
2.2 Public transport access
Walking distance to tram, metro, bus or train lines matters — particularly in cities where people rely less on cars. An apartment five minutes from a frequent line is not equivalent to one fifteen minutes away with infrequent service.
2.3 Walkability and bike access to essentials
How easily can you reach a supermarket, basic shops, a GP, a pharmacy, schools or parks? Areas that require a car for every basic task usually trade at a discount relative to more walkable or bike-friendly locations.
2.4 Street traffic intensity
A quiet residential street, a cul-de-sac or a courtyard is valued differently than a busy through-road with constant car and bus noise. Traffic levels also affect air quality, safety feelings and balcony usability.
2.5 Accessibility (stairs, elevator, floor)
Fourth floor without elevator is a very different proposition than a first floor or a building with lift access. For some buyers this is a deal-breaker; at minimum it affects the price they are willing to pay.
3. Neighbourhood Quality & Social Environment
Neighbourhood characteristics shape both day-to-day experience and long-term perception. They are hard to capture with simple comps, but they materially affect value.
3.1 Crime level
Objective crime statistics and incident levels influence how people think about an area. Higher crime rates often translate into lower willingness to pay, even if the apartment itself is fine.
3.2 Perceived safety
Perception is separate from raw statistics. Poor lighting, loitering, heavy nuisance or known “problem corners” can make people feel unsafe and hence less willing to pay a high price, even if hard numbers are moderate.
3.3 Nuisance level
Noise from bars, traffic, tourists, events or neighbours makes an area feel more or less livable. Even if crime is low, high nuisance can drag value down.
3.4 Cleanliness
Litter, graffiti, neglected public space and poorly maintained surroundings give a strong signal about how the area is treated. Clean streets generally support higher values.
3.5 Income profile
The mix of incomes in a neighbourhood tends to correlate with amenities, school quality and perceived long-term stability. It is not about elitism, but about realistic expectations of what the area will feel like over time.
3.6 Expat appeal
Some areas are particularly attractive to international residents: English is widely used, services are adapted, and the social mix is more international. This can influence demand and therefore pricing.
3.7 Amenities and lifestyle options
Cafés, restaurants, gyms, cultural venues, waterfronts, markets and parks all contribute to why people want to live somewhere. A bare residential area with no life around it is priced differently from a vibrant, well-served neighbourhood.
4. Building & Structural Factors
An apartment is always part of a larger building and a collective structure. Ignoring that is a good way to overpay.
4.1 VvE (owners’ association) health
A well-run VvE with a realistic reserve fund, clear multi-year maintenance plan (MJOP) and stable service charges is a major plus. Weak VvE finances or chaotic governance are red flags that should lower realistic value.
4.2 Building condition
Roofs, façades, balconies, stairwells, pipes, insulation and common areas all matter. Large upcoming works often mean future one-time contributions and disturbance.
4.3 Previous rental wear and maintenance level
Long-term intensive rental (especially short-term rentals) can leave more wear-and-tear on the building and apartment than owner-occupation. Well-maintained, carefully used buildings keep their value better.
5. How These 25 Parameters Work Together
In practice these parameters do not simply add up in a linear way. Some reinforce each other, others compensate. A small but beautifully renovated, well-located apartment can outprice a much larger but poorly located and noisy one.
PriceDecoder therefore follows a simple but disciplined sequence:
- Start from the average €/m² for all apartments in the area.
- Apply a size premium or discount to get a size-adjusted €/m².
- Multiply by the living area for a neutral baseline.
- Apply structured adjustments for physical, location, neighbourhood and building factors.
- Compare the adjusted value with the asking price.
The result is not magic; it is a transparent way to quantify what informed buyers already feel, but often do not articulate clearly.
6. Why This Matters for Buyers
For buyers, thinking in terms of parameters instead of raw listing prices has several practical advantages:
- It helps you avoid overpaying for apartments that look nice online but hide structural negatives.
- It gives you concrete arguments when negotiating or deciding on a bidding strategy.
- It forces you to ask better questions during viewings and when reading documents.
- It makes it easier to compare very different apartments in a consistent way.
Instead of asking only “what did similar apartments sell for?”, you start asking: “Which parameters explain why this one should be worth more or less?”
7. How PriceDecoder Applies the 25-Parameter Framework
Manually walking through 25 parameters for every apartment is possible, but slow. PriceDecoder is built to make this systematic without turning it into a black box.
- It starts from a size-adjusted baseline €/m² derived from the average market level.
- It allows you to enter key characteristics across physical, location, neighbourhood and building dimensions.
- It applies structured adjustments for each parameter.
- It presents the result as a transparent breakdown, showing how much each category adds or subtracts.
The aim is not to replace human judgment but to support it with a clear, consistent framework.
Conclusion
Simple comps can be a useful starting point, but they ignore many of the real drivers of apartment value in the Netherlands. By considering physical characteristics, location and mobility, neighbourhood quality and building factors — across roughly 25 parameters — you get much closer to an honest view of what a home is actually worth.
PriceDecoder is built around this idea: start from the average market level, correct for size, then apply transparent, explainable adjustments. Comps are no longer the whole story; they become just one piece of a much richer picture.
If you want to see these 25 parameters applied to a real listing, you can run the details through the model and inspect the factor-by-factor adjustments.