Indexation of income limits for housing associations, maximum rental price limits and rent allowance parameters as of 2026 | News item

News item | 25-11-2025 | 10:51

The income and rental limits for the 2026 housing allowance will also be announced. This information can be used to calculate the right to housing allowance and its amount. The rental allowance will be simplified as of 2026. A larger group of tenants is eligible for housing allowance due to the expiration of the maximum rental limits as a condition for housing allowance. Read here about the changes.

Housing assignment

Housing associations must adhere to a number of rules when allocating their social rental housing (DAEB housing), including the maximum income limit. These income limits are indexed annually. As of January 1, 2026, the following limits apply:

• €51,537 for single households;
• €56,910 for multi-person households.

Rental limit for SGEI housing allocation

€932.93

Appropriate allocation: income limits

According to the Housing Act and the BTIV, housing associations must allocate housing appropriately to 95% of low-income home seekers every year. In this way, they ensure that a tenant rents a rental property that matches his or her income.

For 2026, the following income limits apply for appropriate allocation:

Appropriately allocate: rental limits

Appropriate allocation also means that a home is allocated with a rent that is not higher than the capping limit for the rental allowance that applies to the household. This leads to the following rental limits for 2026:

Indexation rates

The indexation percentages i1 and i2 are known. These percentages are used to index income from previous years to the 2026 level. The percentages are:

• index T-1: 1.0376;
• index T-2: 1.0805.

Maximum rental price limits

The maximum rental price limits indicate the maximum rent that can be charged for a certain number of points. The limits of January 1, 2025 will be adjusted as of January 1, 2026 to the inflation from July 2024 to July 2025. This amounts to 3.65%. Amounts are rounded up to the nearest cent.

View in PDF and Excel:

Upper limit for social rent 2026

The upper limit for social housing is 143 points. After indexation as of January 1, 2026, the upper limit for social housing is €932.93.

Upper limit of mid-rent/liberalization limit 2026

Since July 1, 2024, the rental price in the mid-range segment has been legally regulated. The rules for this are in the Affordable Rent Act. The upper limit of the middle segment, also the liberalization limit for independent homes, is equal to the maximum rental price limit at 186 points. This means that the upper limit of the middle segment (liberalization limit) in 2026 is € 1,228.07 per month. Rental contracts that start on or after January 1, 2026 fall under regulated medium rent if they:

• have a rental price higher than € 932.93 and at least 144 WWS points;
• and have a maximum of 186 points and/or a rent that does not exceed € 1,228.07.

Historical limits of liberalization

The starting rent determines whether a rental contract has been liberalized; not the current rental price. The initial rental price is the rental price that applies on the commencement date of the rental contract. If the initial rent is higher than the liberalization limit applicable at the time, the contract falls under the free sector.

View the list of rental liberalization limits from 1989 to 2027 here.

Income limits for middle incomes

An income limit has also been set for middle-income households. The limit is laid down in Article 10 of the Housing Act. The following income limits apply as of January 1, 2026:

• €70,149 for single households;
• €93,531 for multi-person households.

Income-related rent increase

Landlords may propose a higher rent increase to tenants with a higher income in social housing (low segment). An increase of €50 per month applies to tenants with a higher middle income. For tenants with a high income, an increase of €100 per month applies. The income categories will be indexed as of January 1, 2026:

Income limit sales rules for housing associations

The income limit for the sale under conditions of a home by an authorized institution to a natural person is also indexed. The maximum income limit will be € 57,500 in 2026. According to Article 23 of the BTIV, no value sharing needs to be agreed for those who wish to purchase housing from a housing association with a discount of 10% to a maximum of 25% if the household income does not exceed this limit. The discount applies to the value free of rent and use.

Rent allowance parameters

For an overview of the parameters see the table below.

Final determination and Government Gazette

The rental price and income limits are still being officially determined and published in the Government Gazette. This will happen before the end of the year 2025.