Offered: NVM Agricultural & Rural
'No company without NVM broker's advice'
Toon Kanters started in 1986 with a rented house and some savings. In the following years he built up a greenhouse horticulture and transport company, started an employment agency in Hungary, built and demolished greenhouses, bought and sold a number of houses and won a long-running lawsuit over one of his lots. He was assisted in all these steps by NVM Agrarisch & Landelijk broker Frans Merkens of Van den Berk & Kerkhof Makelaars and Valuers from Aarle-Rixtel.
NVM Agrarisch & Landelijk broker Frans Merkens recently bought the land from the neighbor for Toon Kanters. He lives in Someren-Eind, with a small greenhouse in his garden, the proceeds of which go to the local shop. His garden had to be converted to agricultural land. Right up the alley for Merkens: "Kanters is a regular customer for whom we have valued all kinds of things, both for financial and tax purposes. We have also taken care of the purchase and sale of land and companies. This often involved complex valuations."
On the line
In addition to Kanters, migrant workers rent a house from him. Not entirely coincidental; in the XNUMXs, Kanters was a pioneer in recruiting personnel from Hungary. He even set up a company there and in the meantime worked on his greenhouse horticulture and transport company in the Netherlands. "I was regularly on the phone with Merkens and his colleagues for appraisals, purchases and repurposing to organic schemes and environmental legislation. I can tell you stories," Kanters notes. In order to pick one joint experience, Kanters and Merkens outline how they proved right about a plot of land that Kanters bought in the XNUMXs for a greenhouse horticulture company.
That process started in October 1996, when Kanters took over his parents' plot in Someren-Heide and obtained a building permit for a new greenhouse. "But when 3 other entrepreneurs also jumped at this opportunity, the municipality woke up. They had intended that land differently in the new zoning plan and imposed on the other entrepreneurs that they had to build immediately or that the permit was otherwise revoked. 2 of them delivered them. I bought the land of the third in 1998. I had a total of 11 hectares there and I wanted to build a block of 6,7 hectares of greenhouses," says Kanters. "I had just slipped through the plans. Only the municipality then decided to change the destination to a recreational area. They made a reference date that all permits before November 1997 were seen as existing buildings, except mine. Something went wrong there, so I suddenly lost my building blocks during the design of the zoning plan."
Lawsuit
At that time, new appraisals were needed. Merkens: "The new location for greenhouse horticulture was cancelled, because the plot had to become an estate in the new destination. A lawsuit was filed. I had to demonstrate what the recoverable losses were for Kanters." The Council of State ultimately agreed with Kanters and negotiations with the municipality began. Kanters was to sell the land and was given permission to expand in the new Someren-Eind glasshouse horticultural area. Kanters Transport would also be there. "It took years of litigation," says Kanters. However, that did not prevent him from starting civil proceedings against the municipality after the agreement. "Because I have been inhibited in my company all these years. In the end, I was in the right and a deal was only concluded about the damage in 2019," said the entrepreneur.
Estate
The uncertainty and changing municipal councils made it difficult to assess this situation. "The Municipal Executive wants to go in a certain direction, but the council can suddenly decide otherwise. So you have to value based on a number of assumptions," Merkens explains. "Whether or not planning cooperation is provided makes a difference to the value. The destination of the estate did not yield the highest value. Compared to agricultural land, Kanters lost 65.000 euros per hectare. In the end, we supervised the sale in the middle of the The whole plot became an estate, with 3 housing plots and a large piece of nature."
The value of Kanters' various lands has a fiscal effect on the bookkeeping. It was therefore important that everything was valued in close consultation with the tax authorities. "Without that consultation between Merkens and the Tax Authorities, we would undoubtedly have received an additional assessment," Kanters thinks. "In that respect, as an entrepreneur, you simply cannot do without the assistance of a good broker. It gives peace of mind that there is a watertight report." Merkens agrees that an agricultural valuer is aware of the complexity of the rural area. "Writing down value is one thing, but the substantiation is another. Then you have to rely on your experience and knowledge as an agricultural valuer. Fortunately, we then have the large database of NVM to fall back on for references," says Merkens.
quieter
The matter was finally settled 2 years ago. "Not an old sore, the relationship between me and the municipality has never been better than it is now," says Kanters. He recently decided to slow down and sell the shares of his companies. Yet he still works with Merkens, most recently when he sold agricultural land to an entrepreneur with plans for a solar park. Due to objections, the sale is still not finalized and Merkens is keeping a finger on the pulse. Kanters: "The common thread is that you simply always need an expert to assist you in real estate matters."
About NVM
Do you also want to farm well with your agricultural and rural real estate? Then choose a NVM Agricultural and Rural real estate agent† Because an NVM broker has a lot of knowledge of the market, a large network in the countryside and is the specialist in purchase and sale, valuation, land and lease matters, expropriation and repurposing of agricultural and rural real estate. In addition, they are aware of the latest legislation and regulations.
