The NHG limit in 2026 is € 470,000. If your home costs no more than that, you can take out a mortgage with the Dutch National Mortgage Guarantee (Nationale Hypotheekgarantie), and if you also finance energy-saving measures, the limit moves up to € 498,200. You pay a one-off fee of 0.4 percent of the mortgage amount. In return you usually get a lower interest rate and a safety net if you can no longer pay your mortgage later on.
What is NHG?
NHG is a guarantee on your mortgage. If circumstances mean you can no longer pay and the home has to be sold at a loss, NHG stands surety towards the lender, under certain conditions. According to NHG, more than 40 percent of homeowners in the Netherlands have a mortgage with NHG.
How high is the NHG limit in 2026?
The limit was € 450,000 in 2025 and is € 470,000 in 2026. NHG sets it again every year. Since 2023 it has followed a fixed formula: the average purchase price over the past 27 months, plus 5 percent, rounded to an amount divisible by € 5,000. When house prices rise, the limit goes up with them.
More than the purchase price counts towards the limit. The cost of a renovation you include in the mortgage counts too. If you want to make the home more energy efficient, the total may go higher, up to € 498,200, provided you spend the extra amount entirely on energy-saving measures. How much you can borrow for that is explained on our page about renovating and making your home sustainable.
What does NHG cost?
You pay a one-off guarantee fee (borgtochtprovisie) of 0.4 percent of the mortgage amount. The percentage stayed the same in 2026. The fee is tax deductible, so the net cost is lower than what you pay at the notary.
What does NHG give you?
You notice the first benefit in your monthly costs. Because the lender takes less risk, lenders usually charge a lower interest rate with NHG. How much lower differs per lender and per fixed-rate period. On our mortgage rates page you can compare rates with and without NHG.
The second benefit only shows when things go wrong. If your income drops, for example through unemployment, your lender or adviser looks with you for a way to keep the mortgage affordable. NHG can bring in a job coach or a budget coach, and the mortgage can be adjusted if the drop in income is permanent.
If that does not work and you have to sell the home at a loss, NHG can waive the remaining debt. That only happens if you got into trouble through no fault of your own, for example through divorce, disability, loss of income or the death of your partner. You also need to have done everything you could to limit the debt: paying for as long as possible, keeping the home in good condition and aiming for the highest possible sale price. Contact your lender before you sell. If you are separating, also read our page on mortgages and divorce.
Which conditions apply?
You must live in the home yourself as your main residence. In principle the mortgage cannot be higher than the market value of the home, or 106 percent of it if you finance energy-saving measures. NHG guarantees for a maximum of 30 years, and the guaranteed amount goes down every month, calculated as if you repay on an annuity basis. The normal lending rules also apply: NHG does not let you borrow more than your income allows. How those rules work is explained in How much can I borrow for a mortgage in 2026?
An example from Almere
Say you are buying your first home, an apartment in Almere Haven for € 340,000, with a mortgage of the same amount. The price is below the limit, so NHG is possible. The guarantee fee is 0.4 percent of € 340,000, which is € 1,360, and you can deduct that amount in your tax return for the year of purchase.
If you are also looking at a semi-detached house in Almere Poort for € 525,000, that one is above the limit. Even with energy-saving measures you stay above € 498,200, so you cannot get NHG for that home in 2026. Both examples are indicative. The rate you get and how much you can borrow depend on your own situation and on the lender.
Is NHG always a good idea?
If your home falls below the limit, many buyers choose NHG, because a lower rate can earn back the one-off fee over the years. If you borrow little compared with the value of the home, the difference in rate is sometimes small and the sum can work out differently. We are happy to work that out with you. If you are buying for the first time, also see our page for first-time buyers.
Would you like to know whether NHG makes sense in your situation? Book a free introductory meeting with one of our advisers at the Schoutstraat in Almere.