Legal Advice for Commercial Property Use

Questioner

Dear reader, I have a commercial property in mind to buy. I want to stay there regularly. So I want to sleep there, shower and make food and of course run my business. I have a residential address and therefore also a business address. Is this allowed by law?

Lawyer

As long as you are registered at your residential address, i.e. your GBA address, the municipality will not bother you with this.

Lawyer

I advise you to be careful with your intention and to first study carefully what is/is not permitted according to the zoning plan applicable to the business premises in terms of use of the premises. What you describe (sleeping, eating, showering) is not commercial use but residential use. If you are going to make provisions for this in the premises (shower room, kitchen, sleeping area) that are not reasonably in accordance with the permitted use according to the zoning plan, then the municipality may (and sometimes must) take action against this.

Questioner

Thanks for the responses. Jan Paul, you write: 'If you are going to make provisions for this in the building (shower room, kitchen, sleeping area) that are not reasonably in accordance with the use permitted under the zoning plan, then the municipality may (and sometimes must) take action against this.' For example: for trainings and workshops I might need a kitchen. For overtime too. Because a friend of mine wants to rent a piece of space so he can do physiotherapy, I need a space with a shower. With long days of work, 16 hours a day is not unusual, but a bed is needed to take a rest (during night shifts in companies, people also sleep on site). And if I look at the question purely in black and white? I buy a property whose zoning plan is in accordance with what I am going to use it for, am I allowed to stay in the property while officially living somewhere else?

Lawyer

If the actual use corresponds to the use permitted by the zoning plan, no action can be taken against this on the basis of the zoning plan. However, you must register in the municipality where you actually reside, see: https://www.rijksoverheid.nl/onderwerpen/personal data/basisregistration-persons-brp

Questioner

Thanks for the answer. I also understand that this is something that is on the edge. Finding an affordable home with space for my business is very difficult after a divorce. The costs in relation to my current income are currently high (high alimony) and so I am looking for alternatives. An alternative would therefore be a commercial property. Thanks for the responses.