Complaining about an estate agent: where do you report what?

A photo on Funda is wrong, your bid is recorded incorrectly in the bidding log, or you get no explanation for a change in the sale. Put that to the agent's office in writing first. Give the address of the property, what happened and what response you are asking for. That makes clear whether you want an error corrected, want an explanation, or have a complaint about their conduct.

Where you can go after that depends on your complaint and on which body the agent belongs to. A report to Funda is about the listing. A complaints desk looks at a complaint about the professional. A claim for compensation calls for a different assessment again.

The consumer programme Radar covered AI property photos in its broadcast of 31 August 2026 and confusion around bidding in its research of 23 February 2026.

Be clear about what you want resolved

Keep your first message to what you can point at. The photo in which a door has disappeared, for instance, the missing condition against your bid, or the email that gave a different closing time. Send the relevant documents with it.

Write down what you are asking for too: a corrected listing, the missing measurement report or an explanation of how something was recorded. Writing only that you found the process unfair does not yet tell the office which question it has to answer.

You could start, for example: "For the property at [address] I received a confirmation of my bid with a financing condition on [date]. I do not see that condition in the bidding log. Could you explain how my bid was recorded and correct the record if necessary?"

Keep your message and the reply. After a phone call, note who you spoke to and what was said. If the sale is going ahead in the meantime, ask separately what a new round of bidding or a new end date means for your offer.

Report an incorrect listing to Funda as well

Click "Meld een fout", report an error, at the bottom of the property page. State which information or photo you think is wrong, and why. Save what you saw beforehand, so you can find the same listing again when you report it.

Funda assesses whether the listing meets its rules. The platform can ask the agent to amend a listing and take it offline if necessary. That is an assessment of the property presentation. It will not give you a ruling on any right to money.

With an NVM agent, you can also report incorrect property information through the NVM. The NVM keeps a report about a property separate from a complaint about the agent's conduct. What is and is not allowed with edited images is in AI photos on Funda.

Check which organisation the agent belongs to

For the Klachtenloket Vastgoedprofessionals, the complaints desk for property professionals, the agent has to belong to an organisation that takes part in that desk. The NVM and Vastgoed Nederland are among them. Check membership through the organisation, or ask the desk whether this agent falls under the scheme.

For the procedure at this desk, you first have to have reported the complaint to the agent and given them a month to resolve it. The desk then offers information, advice and, where appropriate, mediation, free of charge. If no solution is reached, it explains what you can do next.

The conditions for a next step can differ. So check with the desk which documents and deadlines apply to your complaint. If the agent is not a member, ask what complaints scheme or other membership they do have. If you want a legal claim assessed, put your documents to your legal expenses insurer or a lawyer.

Conduct and a money claim follow different routes

The Tuchtcommissie Vastgoedprofessionals, the disciplinary committee for property professionals, assesses the conduct of members. You go through the complaints desk procedure first. A dispute about the service provided by your own agent can, under conditions, go to the Geschillencommissie Makelaardij, the disputes committee for estate agency.

That distinction matters when you are complaining about someone else's selling agent. The Geschillencommissie Makelaardij does not handle complaints about the other party's agent. So let the desk assess which route fits your complaint.

A disciplinary ruling does not get you compensation. In a published case about a careless bidding process, the disciplinary committee upheld the conduct complaint but could not decide on the compensation claimed.

If you want to recover costs you have incurred or other losses, discuss with a lawyer who to pursue and what you have to substantiate. Give them your messages, the sales information and the documents about those costs. Claiming an amount takes more than establishing that the agent acted carelessly.

What to do now

• Describe what happened, with the address, the date and the relevant documents.
• Ask the agent's office for the specific explanation or correction you need.
• Report incorrect listing information to Funda as well.
• Check which body the agent belongs to if you want to take your complaint further.