How much residual value does a garden home have after years of use?
The residual value depends on four things: can the home be relocated, what condition is it in, is it a standard size, and is there someone who will buy it back. If that last one is missing, the market for individual used homes is small and little value remains. We buy back our own homes and put that in writing in advance.
A garden home (mantelzorgwoning) holds its value if four conditions are met: it can be relocated, it is in good condition, it is a standard size, and there is someone who will buy it back. If that last one is missing, things get difficult, because the market for individual used garden homes is small.
We deliberately do not give a percentage here. Any figure you find online about "so much per cent after so many years" is an average across homes that cannot be compared with each other. What can be said is which factors determine the outcome, and what you can do about them.
Why this works differently from a house
With an ordinary house you buy the land and the building. The land usually rises in value and absorbs the wear and tear on the building. With a garden home you buy only the building; the land is already yours and does not change owner.
That makes its value develop more like that of an expensive machine than like that of property: it starts with depreciation, and what remains depends on its condition and on whether someone can use it. That is not bad news, but it is a different starting point from what people are used to.
The four factors
| Factor | What it does | What you can influence |
|---|---|---|
| Relocatability | Determines whether the home can stand anywhere else at all | Choose a home that was designed to be relocatable |
| Condition and maintenance | Roof, joints and installations determine the repair costs for the buyer | Maintain it every year, especially the connections |
| Standard size | A common size fits more plots and therefore more buyers | A standard model rather than a custom design |
| Buy-back agreement | Determines whether there is a buyer in any case | Put it in writing in advance, do not negotiate afterwards |
In practice, the bottom row carries the most weight. A home with a buy-back agreement has a known buyer; without that agreement you depend on whether there happens to be someone with a care need, a suitable plot and the money.
What lowers the value most
- Custom design. A home designed precisely for one plot rarely fits anywhere else. What made the purchase unique makes the sale difficult; the trade-off is explained in having one built to measure.
- No documentation. Without drawings, structural data and the completion documents for the installations, nobody buys with confidence.
- Overdue maintenance on the joints. With relocatable homes, leaks almost always start at the connections between roof, facade and floor, and that is exactly what a buyer has inspected.
- Outdated insulation. A home that does not meet the current requirements costs the next occupant money every winter, and they factor that into their offer.
- Altered. Walls moved, the bathroom converted, a conservatory added: it seems to add value and makes the home less relocatable.
Buy-back or selling it yourself
You can sell it yourself, and then you end up in a small market. There is little on the usual classified ad sites, and that is not because no homes become available but because almost all of them go back to the company that installed them.
That is our route too. We buy back our own homes when the care ends, refurbish them and offer them again through our second-hand range. For you that means a known buyer at a moment when you usually have other things on your mind, and no viewings in a garden where you have only just lost someone.
If you do sell to a third party, bear in mind that dismantling, transport and a new foundation are at the buyer's expense. They deduct those costs from their offer, and they are not small. Whether the home can legally be sold separately also depends on whether it has remained movable property; that is explained in what happens when the care stops.
What you can do to keep its value
- Check the roof and the joints every year, or have that done. This is the cheapest maintenance job with the biggest effect.
- Have the installations inspected periodically and keep the reports.
- Keep the file together: drawings, specifications, guarantee certificates and the correspondence with the municipality.
- Do not renovate. If you want to change something, make it reversible and leave the structure alone.
- Report damage straight away instead of letting it get worse.
What a buyer really assesses
It helps to know what the next owner looks at, because that is exactly where your residual value comes from. A buyer of a used home asks six questions, and you can already influence each of them today.
- What year is it from, and what insulation values did it have at completion.
- Has it been moved before, and if so: what was done to the joints and the roof afterwards.
- Do the installations work and can that be shown with an inspection report.
- Does the size fit an average plot, or is it a home that can only stand on a large site.
- Are the transport dimensions normal, or are an exemption and a large crane needed.
- Is there documentation, or does the buyer have to take it on trust.
Five of those six questions are not about the home itself but about what you can show about it. A folder with drawings, inspection reports and maintenance receipts is worth more when you sell than a new kitchen.
On paper or in practice
Two figures get mixed up. The residual value in the accounts is the result of depreciation and says nothing about what someone is willing to pay. The WOZ value (the official property valuation set by the municipality) is a valuation for tax purposes and is not a selling price either. The practical residual value is what a buyer will give for it today, and that is the figure that is of use to you.
For inheritance tax, however, the WOZ value can be decisive; when that applies is explained in inheritance tax and garden homes.
What you put in writing in advance
You arrange the residual value at the start, not at the end. With every quote, ask for these four points in writing.
- Does the supplier buy the home back, and under what conditions.
- Who pays for dismantling and transport in the event of a buy-back.
- Within what period after the end of the care the agreement applies.
- What happens to the foundation and who restores the garden.
What happens if there is no residual value
The scenario you want to avoid: a building that cannot be relocated, for which there is no buyer, and which has to go under the terms of the permit. Then the residual value is not zero but negative, because demolition and removal cost money.
That rarely happens to a prefab home and regularly to a converted outbuilding or a renovated chalet. If you are considering such a route, it is wise to include that final bill in the comparison and not only look at the purchase price; the trade-off is explained in can you use a chalet as a garden home.
Or rent the home
There is a route where the question of residual value does not arise at all: renting. You pay per month, you give notice when the care stops, and the home is removed. With us that starts at around €1,100 per month, with installation and foundation charged separately.
That is especially worthwhile if you do not know how long the care will last. If you know it will be years and you can afford it, buying is usually cheaper, certainly with a buy-back agreement. What the purchase costs is explained in what a garden home costs.
Sources
- [Act] Burgerlijk Wetboek Boek 3, art. 3:3, movable and immovable property, consulted 20 August 2026
- [Act] Burgerlijk Wetboek Boek 5, art. 5:20 (accession) and title 8 (right of superficies), consulted 20 August 2026
- [Act] Wet waardering onroerende zaken, art. 17, determining the value, consulted 20 August 2026
