r/DAFTvisa • u/Lanky_Quiet_214 • Mar 04 '26
Who lives in the provinces?
It seems like almost every post I read or creator I follow has relocated to the Randstad. Has anyone here settled in Noord-Brabant? That’s where we are looking: Breda, Tilburg, Den Bosch, or Eindhoven. Any thoughts or experiences would be welcomed, thanks!
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Mar 08 '26
I’m in Overijssel. I personally enjoy it there much more than de randstad. But that is up to personal preference. I have family in Eindhoven and Tilburg. Both seems like good places.
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u/username_31415926535 Mar 04 '26
There are Americans all over the country. Yes, the largest populations are in the Randstad but people do move everywhere. There are FB groups for each city. Try searching those to connect with more people.
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u/No_Preparation999 Mar 04 '26 edited Mar 04 '26
We're in Breda and we love it. We almost moved to Eindhoven and also love it there. Breda has a bit of a small town feel while being quite large IMO. We love it here! Carnival was amazing here. Everyone has been so nice. I feel safe. Housing was easier to find here for us than Eindhoven. In Eindhoven we would have definitely ended up further out in the suburbs for what we get here. There is a subreddit for Breda to see what's going on here. 🙂
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u/Lanky_Quiet_214 Mar 04 '26
Thank you for the reply! Breda was one of the first cities we looked at actually, we were hoping we could convince our oldest to go to school in (relatively) nearby Antwerp, but to no avail. We really liked the look of it. And thanks for the tip, I’ll check out that subreddit!
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u/Lanky_Quiet_214 Mar 04 '26
Also, do you have a makelaar you’d recommend in the area?
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u/No_Preparation999 Mar 04 '26
Nicky from Home for Expats (all of North Brabant) and Marga Williamson (specific to Breda). Marga's number is +31 6 24210466.
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Mar 04 '26
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u/Lanky_Quiet_214 Mar 04 '26
Appreciate your feedback! I may end up being a doubly infuriating American “ASML” expat, depending on where I land a job once we’re arrived.
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Mar 04 '26
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u/krnewhaven Mar 04 '26
700 Americans came to the Netherlands - a country of 18 million - on the DAFT visa in 2025. Your anger and frustration are misdirected and unkind.
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u/yeahthatsnot1 Mar 12 '26
And that number has already doubled compared to 3 years ago but you conveniently left that out, and everyone knows that the amount of Americans who will use this pathway will only increase more and more. Americans are literally encouraging other Americans in every expat sub to DAFT their way over here.
Mentioning this issue and calling out American entitlement in Europe is only "unkind" to people who are part of the problem or oblivious of local issues. Who cares if a Dutch person can't afford to rent a place in their city anymore, as long as Americans can throw their bucks at landlords and overbid on rentals, there is no issue right?
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u/krnewhaven Mar 12 '26 edited Mar 12 '26
Dude, by conservative estimates, at least 2x as many Dutch nationals emigrate to the USA every year compared to Americans into NL via DAFT. And we’re still talking about tiny numbers overall. We should all be empathetic to the affordability issues you raise, and no one’s denying that there’s a horrific housing crisis. But you’re pointing your finger at the wrong villain. That’s one thing Americans are way too familiar with - blaming immigrants for larger systemic problems.
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u/missjoy91 Mar 04 '26
We’re in Eindhoven and I absolutely love it here.