How Much of Your Own Money Do You Need to Buy a House?

Anyone looking to buy a property in Belgium quickly runs into the same question: how much of your own money do you need to buy a house? As a rule, banks are not allowed to finance more than 90% of the purchase price of your primary residence, meaning you must put in at least 10% yourself. On top of that come notary fees, registration duties and bank charges, so that a personal contribution of around 20% is in practice often the safest rule of thumb. In this guide, we explain exactly how it works, with concrete amounts and examples.

1. Minimum personal contribution: what does the regulation say?

The National Bank of Belgium imposes limits on banks regarding the ratio between the loan amount and the purchase price - the so-called loan-to-value ratio.

• For a primary and sole residence, the standard is:
  • the bank finances a maximum of approximately 90% of the purchase price;
  • you must therefore provide at least 10% of your own funds for the purchase itself.
• Borrowing up to 100% of the price is still possible on an exceptional basis, but only for a limited share of applications - for example first-time buyers with a strong income - and usually subject to stricter conditions.

This 10% is a theoretical minimum threshold: it is the share of the purchase price that you simply cannot borrow in full from a conventional bank.

2. Why is 20% personal contribution the rule of thumb?

The question of how much of your own money you need to buy a house is not only about the purchase price, but also about all the additional costs. Think of:

• registration duties or VAT;
• notary fees and deed costs;
• bank processing and valuation fees;
• any architect or advisory fees.

Because banks generally do not (fully) finance these costs, many experts recommend aiming for at least 20% of your own funds:

• 10% to cover the share the bank may not or will not lend;
• another 10% (or more) to pay the acquisition costs.

In practice, the following benchmarks are commonly used:

Level of personal contribution	Indication	When is it realistic?
10%	absolute minimum	strong applications only, costs financed separately
20%	Aylin Mustafa Content & Customer Experience "Real estate expert focused on quality control and strategic partnerships." View all articles Request received! Ready to find the best agent? Join 10,000+ Belgians who already saved through our comparator. Continue