Vera and Casper live in a beautiful apartment for rent in Leiden on the water. Although they are having a great time, they still want to buy something. They are looking for something with more space and also suitable for the long term. Their wish list is clear: with a budget of 375,000 they hope to find a single-family home or apartment in Leiden with at least three bedrooms, a garden or terrace (on the roof) and a shed for storing bikes. Also preferably in certain neighborhoods of Leiden rather than outside. In principle, Casper still wants to move to a municipality near the city, but Vera does not want to think about it.
Real estate agent Alex van Keulen knows as soon as he hears the wishes it won’t be easy and tries to get more room to move around. “Suppose I find something that meets all of your needs, but is outside the designated area, then what then?” However, it seems that Vera does not want to compromise. “No, not really,” Alex said. Looks like Bob Sikens has a hard head. “To be honest, I don’t know if they can be found in a good home for this budget.”
The two’s hunch turns out to be correct, because after a few months Alex has to conclude that it won’t work. “It’s just hard. Casper wants to be out of town, if need be, Vera, a little in town. Aside from the fact that they’re not on the same page, the wish list is also simply too big for the budget. That’s what they’re looking for, especially Vera. It is simply not located in Leiden and not in the places they indicated.
So Alex decided to exchange a heartfelt word with the couple. “We’ve been working for you for a while. Prices are skyrocketing and what was possible 6 months ago is no longer possible now. And we have to do something because if we wait too long we can do nothing for you.” Alex asks if they can increase their budget, if necessary try it without hoarding and expanding the search area. After a few days of reflection, Vera and Casper decided to agree to the budget requirements, although they did not trust them. “It’s exhausting, because can we find anything at all?”
The budget has been increased to 4 tons, but living in a village outside of Leiden is still very far away. After Alex stares at the screen in hopes of finding a home, he decides he can’t last much longer. Martin sends after Monday. He concludes, “Research has proven impossible.” “Something drastic has to change. Either we reset it or we drop it and put it back in.” Bob also gave up: “It’s become a hopeless story.”
After a long hesitation and faces of necessary disappointment, Vera and Casper decided to put forth their desires at sea regarding the search area and housing requirements. The house may have two bedrooms instead of three bedrooms and the house does not have to be ready to move into. In addition, villages near Leiden have also become an option.
The decision turned out to be the right one, because Alex quickly found a beautiful house in the village of Heiligum. The house still needs some renovation, but the house cost 345,000, which means they only have 55,000 left to renovate. Vera and Casper have to swallow when they see the house, but when they see the end result, they are very happy with it. “I was sure it would be beautiful,” Vera said, “but if you saw it that way, it would be really different.”
Although Bob is happy with the end result every time at the end of the episodes, he himself will not participate in the program so quickly. He explains why in this video: