How to find a rental in The Hague: a practical guide

The Hague has The Hague University of Applied Sciences (THUAS), Leiden University's The Hague campus, the Royal Academy of Art and Inholland. Expats and young professionals search the same listings, so you're rarely the only one replying. Nationally, the Kences 2026 monitor still counts a shortage of more than 20,200 student rooms.

Since July 2024, the Wet betaalbare huur sorts homes into bands using a points system (WWS). In The Hague this matters more than usual, because the lower two bands need a housing permit:

• Social rent: up to 143 points, with a maximum of €932.93 a month in 2026.
• Mid-rent: 144 to 186 points, with a maximum of €1,228.07 a month in 2026.
• Free sector: 187 points or more.

For current asking rents, check the live Renthaven listing data on this page.

No single site shows every home. Free-sector rooms, studios and apartments appear on platforms such as Pararius, Kamernet, Direct Wonen and Kamer.nl. Many makelaars also publish homes on their own websites, and not every agency listing reaches the big portals.

• Rental platforms: save a search with alerts on each one you use.
• Makelaars' websites: agencies in The Hague post new homes on their own sites.
• ROOM.nl: DUWO student housing, including buildings near Den Haag Holland Spoor and at Leemansplein next to THUAS.
• Woonnet Haaglanden: social rentals from housing corporations in the region.

Student housing. DUWO has student buildings in The Hague and advertises through ROOM.nl. One ROOM.nl registration covers DUWO and other providers; check room.nl for the current fee. THUAS also points students to Xior. In 2024 figures, the average registration time for student housing in The Hague was 3.8 years.

Social housing. Woonnet Haaglanden lists social rentals in the region. You have to renew your registration every year, so set a reminder in your calendar now.

Areas renters often mention include Centrum, Zeeheldenkwartier, Statenkwartier and Archipel. Laakhaven is known for its student buildings.

Don't fix on one name. Draw a search area around where you study or work and include a few neighbouring districts. A slightly wider area gives you more listings to reply to each week.

In The Hague you need a housing permit for a self-contained home with up to 186 points or a rent up to €1,228.07. At the time of writing (November 2026), the municipality lists these income limits:

You also need at least 12 m² per person. The municipality decides within eight weeks. A room doesn't need a permit, and housing corporations usually arrange the permit for you.

• Permanent contracts are the norm since 1 July 2024. Temporary contracts (max two years) are only allowed in listed exceptions, such as students renting for study in another municipality.
• Deposit: at most two months' basic rent since 1 July 2023.
• Point score: since 1 January 2025, the landlord must tell you the home's points at the start of the tenancy.
• Huurcommissie: in the free sector you can have your starting rent checked within the first six months.

• Don't pay a deposit or fees before you've checked the home and the landlord.
• Check the address on Street View and run a reverse image search on the photos.
• Red flags: rent far below market, contact only online, a foreign bank account.
• If you can't view the home before paying, assume it's fake. Never pay by MoneyGram or Western Union.

Most landlords ask for a gross monthly income of at least three times the rent, and agents often ask for three to four times. That's a market convention, not a law. Keep your ID, income proof and an employer or university statement ready to send.

Register at your address in the BRP within five days of arriving. Proof of address is usually your rental contract or consent from the main occupant. Staying under four months? You can register as a non-resident and still get a BSN.

Keep your saved searches on the platforms running and add Renthaven to cover the rest. Renthaven watches rental sites and makelaars' own websites, matches new homes to your search profile and alerts you, so you can reply early. You always reply on the original listing.

1. 1Day 1: register at ROOM.nl if you're a student, and at Woonnet Haaglanden.
2. 2Day 1: save searches with alerts on the platforms you use.
3. 3Day 2: create a Renthaven search profile. Draw the exact streets you'd live in and set your real maximum rent.
4. 4Day 2: if your budget is under €1,228.07, check the permit income limits first.
5. 5Day 3: save your documents as PDFs and write a short reply template.
6. 6Rest of the week: reply as soon as an alert arrives and book viewings.

The free plan gives you one search profile with email alerts, delivered with a one-hour delay. Premium adds instant push notifications and email the moment a match appears, unlimited search profiles and reply templates that fill in the address. Premium starts from €15 a month, you can cancel anytime and there's a 14-day money-back guarantee.