Top 6 Reasons Why You Shouldn't Move to the Netherlands | Living in the Netherlands as an Expat

In this highly requested video, I'm sharing with you top 6 reasons why you shouldn't move to the Netherlands. Living in the Netherlands as an expat is often praised, but there are pros and cons of living in the Netherlands just as in any other country. I wanted to do my best to speak about some of the cons of living in the Netherlands that I've observed over the last 10+ years of living here. Like I mention, my intention is not to upset anyone, but to inform and hopefully entertain.

Are some of the things I'm talking about valid? Why/ Why not?
If you want to let me know your thoughts, let's have a discussion in the comments!

#MovingToTheNetherlands #MakingItInHolland #ExpatLifeNetherlands

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See you all in the next episode!

[MakingitinHolland]

Update: Thank you everyone for your comments on this video. I appreciate the generous input and respect the counter opinions. When making this video, of course I didn't anticipate that it would take off this much. In my channel, I cover topics around life, career & business in the Netherlands. One of my main goals is to keep as much of a balanced view as possible. I have other videos if you're interested in learning more and invite you to subscribe to the channel. Thank you!

[Greggsberdard]

I believe the retirement crisis will get even worse. Many struggle to save due to low wages, rising prices, and exorbitant rents. With homeownership becoming unattainable for middle-class Americans, they may not have a home to rely on for retirement either.

[melodioz]

Also I think the biggest luxury is to be able to bike in a bike friendly small city, not driving a Ferrari through tents where homeless families has to live.

[IgorLinkin]

To be honest, by being an ex-pat myself I believe the majority of the things you mentioned applies if you move anywhere in the world.

[LuisRomaUSA]

People forget to calculate their hourly rate. I used to work in the USA 70 hr weeks for 65K. Here I do my 40 hrs and go home. By an hourly rate I make more money. The Netherlands is a paradise for many reasons.

[JoTummers]

How you explain the taxes is not entirely true. The 49.5 % rate does not mean that half of your money goes to taxes. That percentage is taken of the highest portion of your salary (don't know exactly the amount) but it is definitely not half of your earned salary. Furthermore, the cost of living depends highly on where you live in the Netherlands. If you live in Amsterdam it's crazy high, compared to if you live in the south. Here in the south where I live, you can rent a really nice apartment for less than 600 euros a month. If you live in Amsterdam, all you get for that amount is a place like the size of a toilet room. :-)
You mention America: prices there are crazy high compared to the Netherlands. I heard some other expacts, that pay 5 dollar for a decent bread for example. Here you can get that for around half that amount. And let's talk about health care. In the US, you can drop dead if you don't have money. 30 % of the Americans don't have decent health insurance. Here, everybody has health insurance. I have one of the most expensive ones and a pay around 150 euro a month. I am wheelchair dependent. I got a wheelchair from the county. It costs 20, 000 euros. I did not pay a single dime for it! Showering wheelchair: free! So if you talk about the cost of living here, take more things into account than just a salary. That salary may be lower than for example in the US, but prices here are also lower (at least that's what I learned from other expats). Of course I know that most people don't need a wheelchair (fortunately!!) but I just want to say that you should paint a more complete picture, because although our salary is lower than for example in the US, we get a lot more things for free or for a much lower amount of money than in many other countries.

[palantir]

Money isn’t everything. Quality of live is the most important. We work to live, we don’t live to work.
We pay taxes but we get a lot of it in return. Excellent healthcare system that everyone can afford and you won’t loose it when you loose your job. When you get without a job you won’t be out of money.
I never experienced snow in summer.

[nicolakozera]

I just want to live a decent life and not have to worry whether or not I can afford rent and food. That's enough to make me happy :)

[deadpool]

Already confused by the first point lol. I don’t think anyone is thinking of moving to the Netherlands with the plan to become rich quick. Just to find a place where you can afford all the basic necessities and have a good standard of living if you’re working a full time job

[melissalaparra]

So essentially the Netherlands is the opposite of America. Where do I sign up???

[Dutchbelg]

The Netherlands is definitely not the country to come and do "The American Dream". We Dutchies in general are really and sincerely not interested in making millions of EUROs... Sure when it accidently happens we are not going to fight it ;-) But in stead we value to be happy, to be able to feed and house our close family in reasonable prosperity and HAVE FUN IN OUR TIME OFF! We value our life-work balance. We wont (in general) work our asses off to be the richest in the country!! And yes there are taxes (I pay in Belgium a 50 % on income..) but I also know there is good social security and there are good opportunities for education and work and to be HAPPY :-) And just belief me: Yes rain is not an uncommon phenomenon and even more there is wind most of the time because we live in a flat country.. But it is really not too bad. We have 28 degrees today deep in september... Yes I know there is some (or a bit more in lower social classes) prejudice against muslimic people and BIG stereotypes about Morroccan and Turkish and Surinam and... and...people so there is definitely a big hurdle to take if you belong to one of these ethnicities! But if you are serious and persistent to want to live in the Netherlands.. you can be happy here! IF YOU ARE THRIVING TO ADAPT.. We Dutchies are a bit hard to handle..
And another thing : Yes a builder and a starting architect might earn comparable money.. But if you did finish an academic degree and you are a bit smart you will increase your salary really significantly over the years. I started in 1991 after a bachelor degree medical microbiology with about 1200 Euro per month before taxes. I am now in the top 10% of the Flemish working class.. I am still not a millionaire nor will I ever be. In the USA I might be a millionaire ..or get a serious mishap like a chronic disease and end up in the gutter. :-P

[whitestone]

Your videos have helped me reach over $180, 000 in trading by age 23! Thanks Making the Holland. Keep the videos coming. 👍🏽

[gabrielbcosta]

"In the Netherlands, you only make 2200€/month"
Me: *Cries in Portuguese*

[gireshion]

Any of your reason doesn't matter if you're from poland XD

[michaeldamon]

So the Netherlands is where you go to live a nice normal life 🙂 I love it

[theresahall]

I'm 48 years old single mother living in Lyon. I'm hoping to retire at 50 if things keep going well for me. Bought my first house last month and I can't be more proud than I am right now. I'm so glad made great decisions about my finances that changed me forever.

[spuekyblue]

What I got from this video:

- Less greedy capitalists / more equal pay
- Better public transit / less cars
- Moody weather

Honestly, sounds great to me ^_^
Thanks so much for this <3

[westgibbs]

Bij beleggen koop je een vrije dag waarop je moet werken… Ik bid dat iedereen die dit leest slaagt

[peak]

Tbf as a Dutchman i feel like there is a big difference between Dutch people from the city and Dutch people from the countryside. I feel like we countrysiders are more friendly but also quite more direct.

[Oxyleya]

As a german living here I prefer it in many ways to my old home, but the healthcare unfortunately lacks in comparison. Most of the money seems to go to insurances, while there are many reports of overworked/underpaid hospital workers (even before Covid19).