Studentenvakbond ASVA has come up with a solution for this: by making formal objections en masse against the rejection, we force the municipalities to engage in a discussion about excluding students from this allowance, even though many students desperately need the extra support. Handling an objection, then an appeal, and potentially a court procedure all take a lot of time, especially when dealing with large numbers. That’s why it’s extremely important for as many students as possible to help pressure the municipalities. And of course, you’re helping yourself as well!

The application form is available on the website of the Municipality. Submit an application to the Municipality of Amsterdam for the energy costs compensation and file an objection before December 31, 2022. First, check the ASVA website for the step-by-step plan so you know exactly what you can do. ASVA can even assist you with the entire application.

Important! As a student, you are initially not eligible for the compensation. Therefore, only indicate in the comments at the end that you are a student, not earlier.

Het bericht Compensation for energy costs: Apply for it quickly at the municipality verscheen eerst op Duwoners.

Het bericht Students’ response to Amsterdams Approach to Housing (AAV) verscheen eerst op Duwoners.

Read the full advice here: Advice on adjusting service subscription. 

Het bericht Advise concerning adjusting DUWO’s service subscription verscheen eerst op Duwoners.

Once the settlements are received by us, we will make them available in your personal Duwoners environment. You can find an explanation of this environment here. By logging in, you will have access to these documents. This way, each individual tenant can review their service cost settlement. If you have any questions about the environment that are not answered by the explanation on our website, please contact us.

Het bericht Delayed settlement of service costs verscheen eerst op Duwoners.

DUWO asked for our advice regarding the installation of package walls and including the costs in the service fees.

You can read our advice here. Curious about all the advice we have written so far? View them here.

Het bericht Advice regarding package walls verscheen eerst op Duwoners.

You can sign up by sending an email to info@duwoners.nl.

Here are the documents for the ALV:

1. Agenda Interim General Members’ Meeting 06-03-2024

2. Current board

3. Candidacy for 2024

4. Policy Plan 2024

5. Concept Minutes General Members’ Meeting Duwoners 07-06-2023

Het bericht General Meeting of Members (ALV) 2024 verscheen eerst op Duwoners.

An example of a procedure you can take is the annual settlement of the service costs. DUWO is legally obliged to send the annual settlement of service costs before 1 July. If they fail to do so, request the service charge statement in writing. Have you still not received them after 3 weeks? Then you can start proceedings before the Rent Tribunal. 

Have you received the statement and do not agree with the costs? Ask DUWO to adjust the costs. If they do not agree, you can start proceedings before the Rent Tribunal. 

You can read the specific conditions here. Pay close attention to the deadlines you have to observe as a tenant to be eligible for proceedings. 

How do proceedings at the Rent Tribunal work?

Please note that a procedure before the Rent Tribunal can only be initiated in Dutch. Please do ask a friend(ly neighbour) to help out! 

The proceedings start by filling in a form submitted to the Rent Tribunal. Normally, starting proceedings costs €25. If you receive rent allowance, you can apply for an exemption. 

Please note: DUWO will receive a copy of the form from the Rent Tribunal, as it is obliged to report that proceedings have been started.

If the case is clear, you will receive a written ruling.

If the case is less clear, further investigation may be carried out by the Huur Tribunal. This is followed by a hearing. You can attend this online or on location, and it takes about 15 minutes. You will receive the ruling within 6 weeks.

What happens if you are proven right or wrong? 

The Rent Tribunal can issue a binding decision or an opinion. In most cases involving temporary contracts/social housing tenancies, a binding decision is given. 

If you win the case, DUWO is obliged to comply with the Rent Tribunal’s ruling. If you paid €25 to start the procedure, you will get that money back. 

If you lose the case, you can issue an appeal with the Rent Tribunal, and eventually you can still go to the subdistrict court. If you paid €25 to start the procedure, you will not get the money back. 

Support for the proceedings

For further guidance regarding the proceedings, we also refer you to Stichting !WOON. Amsterdam has been the only major city in the Netherlands with extensive tenant support for 30 years. !WOON is also active in Haarlem and Amstelveen. In each city district, !WOON has a branch. There are experts who, among other things, carry out home inspections to identify defects and help tenants send letters of complaint to the landlord. They also provide support when going to the Rent Tribunal. See English information and support for tenants | !WOON (wooninfo.nl)

In addition, Duwoners is always happy to think along with you about the feasibility of a procedure, and the right approach. 

Any questions? Send an email to info@duwoners.nl 

Het bericht What does the Rent Tribunal do? verscheen eerst op Duwoners.

At this meeting we will present the Annual Report from 2023 and the budget for 2024. The ALV is the perfect opportunity to voice your opinions and ideas, so please join us! After the meeting, we will have a social gathering at the location.

On the agenda for the General Meeting of Members (ALV):

• Introduction
• Minutes of the previous meeting (ALV)
• Annual report 2023
• Financial report 2023 and response from the financial committee
• Budget for 2024
• Appointment of the financial committee
• Question round
• Closing the meeting

You can register by sending an email to info@duwoners.nl. We will then timely inform participants of the exact location.

Het bericht General Meeting of Members (ALV) 2024 verscheen eerst op Duwoners.

Duwoners has previously emphasized the importance of a transparent numerical justification to make an informed decision regarding rent increases. This year, as well as last year, this essential information is missing from DUWO’s proposal, which prevents us from substantively agreeing to the proposed rent increase.

Given the current inflation rate of 3.2%, we are disappointed that DUWO has opted for a significantly higher increase without clear justification. This goes against the Consultation Act, which emphasizes that rent increases should result from negotiations between tenants and landlords, with an equal exchange of information.

We also advise against the implementation of Income-dependent Rent Increase (IAH) by DUWO. This policy appears to disregard both the National and Amsterdam performance agreements, which are intended to promote housing mobility and support investments in quality and sustainability. The application by IAH by DUWO does not meet these criteria, and there has been no accountability for the spending of these revenues.

As a result of this evaluation, we can only agree to a rent increase of up to 3.2%, in line with current inflation figures. We urge DUWO to reconsider the proposed rent increase and adopt a more balanced approach that takes into account the interests of all tenants.

• Read here: the Consultation Request from DUWO
• Read here the full advice that we have written

Het bericht Duwoners advises against proposed rent increase by DUWO verscheen eerst op Duwoners.

• Here you can read the Draft Minutes of the General Meeting of Members (ALV) 06-03-2024
• Here you can read the Policy Plan 2024

Het bericht Report of the General Meeting of Members (ALV) verscheen eerst op Duwoners.