Two house numbers hang next to the front door of Dré Mathijssen. Number two for the Belgian address (Baarle-Hertog) and number 19 for the Dutch address (Baarle-Nassau). One house, two addresses, two countries. That means that tax has to be paid twice. And now that Dré is forced to sell the house, he runs into problems. Banks are difficult and you need a notary for the transfer in both countries.
This is the story of 62-year-old Dré Mathijssen who lives in a world famous house. A sad story is hidden behind his front door.
Tax
Dré breakfast every morning in Flanders, his girlfriend Miep in the Netherlands. They just shower in Belgium. And they do gardening in the Dutch sunshine. The Belgian-Dutch border runs right through the birthplace of Dré.
In itself nothing unique in Baarle-Nassau, but because the border runs straight through the front door, it is a different story. The house is partly Flemish and partly Dutch. And so it has two house numbers, tax has to be paid twice and the sale of the house is not arranged 1.2.3.
“The border runs through the front door, so through the living room to the center of the window in the kitchen,” indicates Dré as he walks through his house. “I am usually on the Belgian side, that’s the nicest side.” Dré is also a real Belgian. “My mother made sure she gave birth to Flemish territory in this house. She wanted Belgian children.”
More than 62 years ago Dré was born in the border house. He never left there, but now that his mother died last year, Dré is forced to sell the house. “I can’t get it up,” he says with a lot of emotion. “There are four heirs and I just can’t afford it.” And the 62-year-old border dweller hurts a lot of pain and sorrow.
Sales are difficult
“Belgian-Dutch is now a problem. The sale of the Belgian part of the house and the land must be arranged through a Belgian notary and the Dutch part through a Dutch notary,” says Dré. And the transfer tax must therefore also be taken in two countries. “But you can only borrow in one country, for just the part in that country. The other part must therefore be paid out of your own pocket.”
Dré and his girlfriend Miep hope that the 400 -year -old house goes back to the original state before 1900. “Hopefully someone wants to make it an inn. It used to be the Inn de Zwaan. It would be nice if it would be something like that again.”
According to Dré it has a lot of potential. “Hundreds of people come to the door every day to look at the special border.” There are even people who ring the bell to see if the border actually runs through the house, but Dré does not let anyone in.
Different brokers now look at how the house can best go for sale. Dré does not yet know what the price will be. He is now looking for a social rental home in Belgium, but that is also not easy to arrange.
Tap
The border house goes viral on Tiktok. Worldwide 4.5 million people have watched a video about the special house and that global community does not understand it. Dré answers the most common questions:
- If you commit a crime in the Dutch part and you cross the border in your house, can you still be arrested? Those laws have changed for a long time, they just grab you.
- Which address do you give? If I order in the Netherlands, then the Dutch address and vice versa. That’s an advantage.
- Do you need a passport if you cross the border in the house? No, of course not.
- In which country do you shower? Uhmm … that’s just Belgium.
- Do you have to pay taxes twice? We have to pay the ground costs and the house separately in both countries.