Interview: This is what it’s all about

As an entrepreneur, it is important to think from the outset about how one’s own assets and business can be secured and maintained in the long term. A family foundation can be an interesting option here, as it not only offers asset protection and inheritance planning, but can also have potential tax advantages. By establishing a family foundation, for example, entrepreneurs can reduce their tax burden and thus achieve tax savings.

We talk in the interview about:

1. What is a family foundation, why and when do you “need” it
2. What are the 3 central advantages of a foundation
3. What about taxes? Corporation, donation, inheritance & Co.

We conduct the interview with Immobilien-Erfahrung.de (in conversation “IE”).

What is a family foundation?

FIV: Let’s start with an overview:

IE: To ensure that family assets are preserved in the long term, it is important to protect them from various risks such as inheritance disputes, creditors and the tax office. One possible option here is to set up a family foundation, which can provide the founder and his family with economic security over generations and protect the assets from being broken up. This is a legally independent foundation that manages real estate, company shares and other assets.

So in a nutshell:

• Protection of family assets over generations
• Avoidance of inheritance disputes and break-up of assets
• Possibility to manage assets such as real estate and company shares in the foundation
• Tax advantages due to the taxation of the foundation with corporate income tax
• Possibility to avoid the right to a compulsory portion of family members

Well-known family foundations in Germany

FIV: Strong, because we have many articles on the subject of first capital investment buy & Co. So that it does not become too abstract for our readers, what are the most well-known family foundations in Germany? Who do you know? Can you tell us 3 examples?

IE: Yes, of course, there is the Bertelsmann Foundation, for example, founded by Reinhard Mohn, is one of the largest foundations in Germany and is involved in the areas of education, society and culture.

There is also the Robert Bosch Stiftung, founded by Robert Bosch, promotes projects in the fields of health, science and technology, and international relations. Another flagship would be the Krupp Foundation, founded by the Krupp family, is involved in the areas of culture, education and science as well as in the promotion of social projects.

Then there is:

• Aldi Nord and Aldi Süd Stiftung Stiftungs GmbH
• Otto Group Foundation
• BMW Foundation of Herbert Quandt
• And many more!

When does a family foundation make sense?

IE: Roughly speaking, very roughly speaking:

It only really makes sense to set up a family foundation with a capitalization of around 1 million euros.

Protection of family assets and businesses

FIV: Now let’s get to the core of the interview, the why and wherefore! What does protecting assets mean, from whom and why should I protect my assets – once I am a millionaire?

IE: Even though the family foundation is not tax-exempt, several factors can make it worthwhile to establish:

Raising a family is often a long and arduous process of hard work and hardship. It is therefore understandable that entrepreneurs are concerned that their legacy will not be carried on in their spirit after their passing.

One way to alleviate these concerns is to establish a family foundation.

Divorce, inheritance, family dispute – examples

Establishing a family foundation ensures that the entrepreneur’s assets remain in the family and are not fragmented by divorce or inheritance.

A foundation can also help avoid the breakup of the company, as foundations do not issue shares that can be bought out. This provides effective asset protection, as the foundation retains control over the assets and manages them in accordance with the wishes of the entrepreneur and his family.

In addition, family foundations can also help preserve family peace by providing a clear structure for the management and distribution of assets.

However, the foundation can also play an important role in supporting charities and non-profit projects, which can be of great importance for entrepreneurs who want to engage in social responsibility, of course also in the point of self-PR.

Inheritance: taxes and protection

FIV: According to the Hans Böckler Foundation, the annual inheritance volume in Germany, including gifts, will amount to up to 400 billion euros in the period up to 2027 – per year. Inheritance is an important topic. Therefore the question, what can a family foundation do in terms of inheritance?

To illustrate this, here are the figures for the number of taxable inheritances and gifts in Germany from 2008 to 2021.

400 billion per year

180,000 inheritances per year

You can find more statistics at Statista

IE: By establishing a family foundation, family members can be provided with binding security during the founder’s lifetime. The clear structure of the foundation can help to defuse potential inheritance disputes in advance. This can be of great advantage, especially in the case of large estates or complex family structures.

Inheritance and mandatory shares

Another advantage of setting up a family foundation is that the founder can avoid the claim of children or parents to his inheritance (so-called claim to a compulsory portion) if he transfers the assets to the foundation ten years before his death. This can be particularly important if the founder intends to concentrate his assets on certain family members or if he wishes to support a charity, for example.

In addition, the establishment of a family foundation can also help to protect the assets from creditors. As long as the assets remain within the foundation, they cannot be seized by the founder’s creditors. This can be important for entrepreneurs who have a high personal liability risk or who operate in a particularly high-risk business field.

Tax advantages: Only 15% tax

FIV: Now to question that everyone is most interested in, what is it about “saving taxes” when you set up a family foundation?

IE: In Germany, the establishment of a family foundation can bring tax advantages. The foundation is subject to corporate income tax, which can lead to a lower tax burden compared to other types of companies such as a GmbH, which have to pay trade tax. In addition, donations to the foundation may be tax-deductible under certain conditions.

FIV: Can you explain that in more detail?

IE: Simply put:

You can legally lower your tax burden to 15% with a family trust.

FIV: With a family foundation you can legally reduce your tax burden in Germany to 15%, ok. How does that work and what does a “normal” GmbH pay?

IE: The establishment of a family foundation can indeed help to reduce the tax burden in Germany to 15%.

This is the corporate income tax levied on the income of the foundation.

In contrast, a “normal” GmbH must pay trade tax, which can vary depending on the municipality. In addition, there is corporate income tax, which is levied on the income of the GmbH and is usually higher than for a family foundation.

However, the 15% corporate income tax for family foundations only applies up to a certain exemption amount and depends on various factors such as the size of the assets and the structure of the foundation. But it pays off, especially over the years.

But we don’t want to go into too much detail!

Inheritance tax and gift tax

FIV: As far as I know, you also have advantages in terms of inheritance tax and gift tax, especially through the allowances, which are taxed more favorably and can thus be paid in year after year. Can you tell us something more about this?

IE: Unlike charitable foundations, the family foundation does not enjoy any automatic tax benefits – that’s just in advance. Nevertheless, it can offer great potential for tax optimization compared to other corporate forms.

Transfer of assets to the foundation

When assets are transferred to the foundation – in particular when they are established – gift or inheritance taxes are incurred. In the case of a “normal” private foundation, the unfavorable inheritance tax class 3 is generally applied. In the case of a family foundation, on the other hand, the relationship between the founder and the entitled family members (beneficiaries) is decisive. If only the spouse and the descendants (children, grandchildren) are beneficiaries, the favorable tax class 1 applies.

Here’s a tip on the side, we also have a handy gift tax calculator. Here you can calculate what typically has to be taxed.

However, in the case of family foundations, a fictitious inheritance is assumed every 30 years, on which inheritance taxes are incurred. Here, an allowance of 800,000 euros applies, the so-called double child allowance. Otherwise, the general regulations for inheritance and gift taxes apply. However, if there are favored business assets, the corresponding exemption discount can lead to significant tax savings.

If you would like to learn more about this, please visit our blog. I can recommend, among others, the articles Asset Protection and Vermögensschutz durch Familienstiftungen by our foundation expert.

FIV: Thank you for the insight into family foundations!

Summary: 10 Learnings on the Family Foundation

Let’s briefly summarize the most important facts for you.

	Learning foundation
1	A family foundation provides asset protection and estate planning for family assets and businesses.
2	A family foundation can protect assets from divorce, inheritance and break-up, thus avoiding inheritance disputes.
3	A family foundation provides a clear structure for managing and distributing assets and can preserve family peace.
4	By establishing a family foundation, family members can be provided with binding security during the founder’s lifetime.
5	A family foundation can circumvent the claim of children or parents to the inheritance (claim to a compulsory portion).
6	A family foundation can protect assets from creditors.
7	A family foundation can be used as an instrument of social responsibility.
8	A family foundation is subject to corporate income tax and can thus reduce the tax burden to 15%.
9	A family foundation offers great potential for tax optimization compared to other corporate forms.
10	In the case of a family foundation, the relationship between the founder and the beneficiary family members is decisive for the tax classes for gift or inheritance taxes.

Why finance?

Acquiring a property is an important decision, whether as a capital investment, a home of one’s own or as a private provision. With the different types of financing it is possible for everyone to make his first home or his first capital investment possible. Before you enter into a financing you should deal with some points before. You should check your equity, consider the incidental acquisition costs, calculate interest and repayment, housing allowance and reserves, and calculate your monthly burden.

Own home or real estate as an investment

Buying your first own apartment or house is a purely emotional decision, whereas in the case of real estate as a capital investment, it is purely a matter of the economic aspect and therefore an emotionless decision must be made. In both cases, however, it is important to deal with a checklist and the ancillary purchase costs in order to avoid serious mistakes.

Buy first apartment

Buying your first own apartment is a great experience in life. To ensure that nothing goes wrong when buying your first apartment, it’s best to have a checklist at hand!

• Buy first apartment
• Buying an apartment: Checklist

Purchase price + ancillary purchase costs / credit rating (rule of thumb: how much is left over in the month?)

Buying an apartment or house always involves additional costs! To be able to cover these, you should think in advance about how high the maximum purchase price may be and how much money is available per month.

• Maximum purchase price
• Incidental purchase costs

Types of financing

If a property is purchased, the purchase price is usually paid off with the help of real estate financing. For this purpose, the buyer can choose from various types of real estate financing. From annuity loans, partition loans, full financing, construction financing to many other types of financing.

But what does financing actually mean? It is a measure for the procurement and repayment of capital. But some forms of financing require security in the event of default, which must then be recorded as a mortgage or land charge in the land register.

Annuity loan: Probably the best-known form of financing

An annuity loan is a typical form of real estate financing. The fixed installments must be paid regularly and consist of an interest and repayment portion. The special feature of the loan is that the amount of the installment remains the same throughout the entire term, but the ratio of interest and repayment changes nevertheless. With each payment, the loan debt decreases and the interest portion thus decreases, but the repayment portion increases.

Who is this type of financing suitable for? For security-conscious investors who want to count on fixed rates over the fixed interest period.

The most important in a nutshell:

• Fixed rates
• Composition of interest & repayment portion
• Steady rate
• Change of the interest & redemption ratio

Advantages and disadvantages of the annuity loan

Probably the greatest advantage of this typical form of financing is the constant installment, which allows a fixed monthly budget to be planned precisely. It is also often possible to make unscheduled repayments at certain times and thus repay the loan more quickly. One of the disadvantages, however, is a long fixed interest rate, which means that you are tied to monthly installments for a longer period of time. If your personal situation changes and you want to repay earlier, you will have to pay a high full repayment penalty for the early repayment. After expiration of the debit interest rate commitment, follow-up financing is usually required; the interest rates are based on the current market investment, which can be either positive or negative.

Advantages:

• High planning reliability
• Fast redemption
• Decreasing interest burden
• Accurate calculation of follow-up financing
• Residual debt fixed from the beginning

Disadvantages:

• No change of contract possible
• Agreement of unscheduled repayments for flexibility
• Credit institutions do not always accept unscheduled repayments
• Borrower must assume full repayment penalty

Reverse mortgage: mortgaging the owner-occupied home

There are different forms of financing to finance the dream of owning a house or apartment. The reverse mortgage is one type of many financing options. It is a loan that is paid out by an insurance company, bank or private individual. The basic idea behind it is that property owners borrow against their home and in return receive a loan with a fixed term from a bank, insurance company or private individual. The loan amount is then transferred as a monthly annuity or a one-off payment. A real win-win situation: owners can stay in their home and even supplement their pension at the same time.

Who is the reverse mortgage suitable for? This form of financing is particularly worthwhile for older people who are already retired and no longer want to leave their home, but still want to supplement their pension.

• Disbursement of a loan by insurance company, bank or private person
• Mortgaging of the home
• In return receipt of a loan with a fixed term
• Paid out as a monthly pension or a one-time payment

Advantages and disadvantages reverse mortgage

Do you have little or no equity capital available for buying a house? Then the reverse mortgage is exactly the right form of financing for you. It is especially suitable for retirees who have paid off their property with savings and income all their lives. A special advantage is that owners can live in the property until the end of their life and receive money for their property during that time. The pension can thus be supplemented. Thus a high planning security is created, since the height of the annuity, interest rate and running time are specified in advance. Clear disadvantages of this form of financing are fees and the interest rate of the loan. There may also be closing fees if the average age is exceeded and the inheritance is significantly reduced.

Advantages:

• Lifetime right of residence
• Pension is improved
• No interest or redemption payment
• Heirs can redeem real estate

Disadvantages:

• High fee costs
• Low payout amounts
• Elimination of inheritance
• Maintenance of the property

Here you will see the verification of the equity and monthly income, in order to then be able to set up a type of financing:

Repayment loan: Decreasing installment burden during the term

An amortizing loan is a particular form of financing characterized by a decreasing installment burden over the term of the loan. The interest portion decreases from installment to installment, so that it constantly decreases and becomes more and more similar to the repayment amount. Wondering if the amortizing loan is right for you?

If you want to pay off your loan quickly and efficiently, then this form of financing is suitable for you. However, you should have a regular and solid income so that the high installments can be paid at the beginning.

• Decreasing rate burden over the term
• Constant reduction
• Fast & efficient redemption
• Regular, solid income should be available

Advantages and disadvantages of the amortizing loan

The amortizing loan brings with it advantages and disadvantages that should definitely be weighed up against each other before concluding a financing deal. A significant advantage is that the borrower pays off a fixed amount per month, thus reducing the residual debt. However, the fact that the residual debt remains relatively high at the beginning and only decreases sharply at the end of the term is a clear disadvantage.

Advantages:

• Faster reduction of residual debt & interest amounts
• Free capital can be used
• Landlord may use proceeds from rent for increased repayment of principal
• Low total cost of credit

Disadvantage:

• Residual debt high at the beginning
• Additional costs for early reduction of residual debt
• Loan form rarely accessible to private individuals
• Longer term in most cases

Building savings contract: Combination of loan & savings

Very simple! This is a combination of real estate loan and usual savings. First, it is determined how much should be saved per month, which then results in the building savings amount. The contract is divided into several phases. In the first phase, the saver pays in a fixed amount each month. He then receives interest on this amount.

The second phase begins when a certain amount has been saved, for example 35 percent of the total amount. Then comes the allocation. You receive the right to a building loan at a lower interest rate for the remaining amount. The building savings contract is suitable for people who want to finance their dream of owning their own property as cheaply as possible. However, this financing option is not intended for short-term financing goals.

• Combi of loan and savings
• Different phases
• Monthly fixed amount with interest
• Allocation starts from a saved amount
• Right to soft loan
• Long term financing

Advantages and disadvantages of a building savings contract

A building savings contract has advantages and disadvantages. You can read more about this type of financing here.

Advantages:

• High security
• Capital guarantee
• Profit through government subsidies
• Intended use flexible

Disadvantages:

• Interest on credit balances lower in the initial phase
• High processing fees
• Monthly charge higher than other financing

Full financing: With little capital to own a home

There is little or no capital available for a real estate purchase? There is no opportunity to save money or you have just started to do so? This is exactly when full financing comes into play. The credit institution then takes over the missing equity capital and finances if necessary also the building additional costs. But then you have to keep in mind that the interest rates are higher.

• Little to no capital available
• Credit institution assumes equity
• Financing of ancillary construction costs
• High interest

Advantages and disadvantages of full financing

A property can be financed also quite simply without own capital funds, that can bring advantages, but also disadvantages with itself. First of all, short waiting periods are guaranteed, because you do not have to save until a certain point in time, the dream of owning your own home can be fulfilled directly. In addition, it is always good to finance as early as possible, so that one is free of costs before retirement age. Another advantage is that possible savings can be used for repairs or new furniture. But what are the disadvantages? There is a risk that the repayment can cause problems due to possible changes. This can be, for example, unforeseen unemployment or even incorrect calculation. Another point is high interest rates.

• No long waiting time
• Earlier repayment of the loan
• Equity subject to change

Disadvantages:

• Higher interest rates
• Longer redemption period
• Unforeseen life changes

A number of staff review the current market rate and adjust it to current loans:

Variable loans: Flexibility through variable interest rates

This is a type of financing that is particularly suitable for short-term real estate financing. The good thing about this form of financing is that you do not have to pay fixed debit interest, because the interest rate is always adjusted to the current market interest rates. The interest rates are always based on the Euribor money market rate. But what do you mean by Euribor interest rate? Very simple. It is a key interest rate of the European Central Bank. The interest rates are adjusted every three to six months to the interest rates of the variable loan.

But for whom is this form of financing actually suitable? Clearly for buyers with a willingness to take risks. Likewise for buyers and builders for whom financial security is guaranteed.

• Short-term real estate financing
• No fixed debit interest
• Adjustment to current market interest rate
• Interest is adjusted to the loan every 3 – 6 months

Advantages and disadvantages variable loan

Are you interested in a variable loan? Then you should definitely weigh up the pros and cons beforehand. It is clear that this is a high-risk loan. An unexpected rise in interest rates not only leads to higher costs, but also increases the loan rate. However, the loan also comes with its advantages. If the interest rate level remains the same over time or even decreases, then you save on the real estate loan. In addition, the loan can be terminated with a notice period of 3 months. Alternatively, borrowers also have a right to make unscheduled repayments of up to 100% at any interest rate adjustment.

Advantages:

• At Euribor waste useful, interest rates more favorable
• High security
• Cancelable at any time

Disadvantage:

• Development of interest rates uncertain
• Interest rate fluctuation makes monthly costs unpredictable

Construction financing with a life insurance

Normally, a construction loan is combined with a capital policy. This means that the buyer pays interest only at regular intervals. The repayment of the loan follows with the disbursement of the loan.

Advantages and disadvantages construction financing

As with any financing, there are advantages and disadvantages to financing construction with life insurance. One significant advantage is that a home savings contract with life insurance is more favorable than an annuity loan and the loan is also secured in the event of death. One disadvantage is that the return is very low.

Advantages:

• More favorable than a normal annuity loan
• Credit protection in the event of death

Disadvantages:

• Low return

Connection and interim financing

These types of financing are referred to as financing that is usually only invested for a short period of time. Here you can learn more about the respective interim financing:

Follow-up financing: renegotiation of the loan

This form of financing is a renegotiation of an existing loan. If the previous construction or real estate financing has expired after the fixed-interest period, one must deal with the follow-up financing from this point at the latest. Many buyers take out a loan to fulfill their dream of owning their own property. The fixed interest period for a house financing goes between five and fifteen years. A multiplicity of borrowers do not create it however in this time span the loan back to pay. This is precisely when borrowers can agree on a new arrangement for repaying the remaining debt.

Interim financing: bridging bottlenecks

Interim financing is financing that only runs for a short period of time. This form of financing can be used to bridge financial bottlenecks for a certain period of time. The owners of a property can provide immediate financial resources and then use them as equity.

Refinancing: restructuring of the loan

What is actually meant by refinancing? It means an adjustment or restructuring of a loan. Whether you have a personal or business loan, you should definitely have that loan reviewed every few years to make sure you have the most favorable loan. For example, you may have taken out many small loans that can be combined into one.

Real Estate Advisor XXL – All questions answered

The world of real estate is complex and multifaceted. If you want to keep an overview and avoid making mistakes, you should prepare well and clarify as many open questions as possible in good time. No matter whether you want to build, buy and rent out a property or live in it yourself, or even use a property as an investment to generate passive income: The preparation is the A&O. Here you will find articles, as well as book and video tips with successful and helpful books and videos on the subject of real estate – including tips and tricks from professionals and experts.

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Some people find it easier to work and learn with books and texts, others benefit more from films and explanatory videos. Here we have compiled an overview for you, with many relevant aspects around the topic of real estate. You will find articles with lists for the individual aspects, in which you can find helpful and informative information on the respective topic – from buying an apartment to renting and more.

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Buying Real Estate: Checklists, investment and pro tips

With our book list, you can’t go wrong with your next real estate purchase. Our book tips cover all topics from the right inspection to the closing and possible resale. What do you have to pay attention to? How do you finance your purchase in the best possible way? How do you evaluate a property? And how do you conclude the contract? Answers to these and many other questions can be found here. You prefer video tips instead of book recommendations?

• Book Tips: Buy property

Real estate agent: costs, guide, strategy and more

Earning money with real estate is a lifelong dream for many. Marketing and selling luxurious homes in the most beautiful cities in the world. That’s the image that comes to mind when we think of real estate agents. We want to show you the way to get there and give you a jump start. We offer you a list of the best book recommendations with tips and tricks from the experts: everything from training books, job aids with forms and guidebooks with instructions on how to get started in the real estate industry.

• Book Tips: Real Estate Agent

Buying & renting property: Do’s and don’ts of the experts

For beginners, the real estate world is still an area where you can’t see the forest for the trees. We want to make it easier for you to get started in the industry with the best recommendations and tips from the pros. Our book tips guide you through the comprehensive world of real estate and leave no topic out. Here, we focus primarily on home buying, property rentals, and all legal and contractual issues. Sorted by the most and best reviews, we have compiled a list of the best guides on the subject of real estate.

• Book Tips: Buy & Rent Property

Building Property: Guidebook, financing, contract traps and more

To build or to buy a house? This question is on the minds of many prospective buyers. Here we show you the advantages and disadvantages of both options and offer interesting tips on financing. Both options have their advantages. A new build has the great advantage that you can determine the layout of the rooms according to your wishes. In an already existing property you don’t have to deal with the complicated construction phases and you can live in your own home much faster. Here you will find books that will help you to finance your dream home and show you what you should pay attention to.

• Book Tips: Build property

Tip! Taxes XXL – Taxes at a glance + explanation

Taxes are often a vexing topic, especially in Germany. Wage tax, value added tax, real estate transfer tax and much more: it is not easy to keep track of everything. But if you’re not interested in employing a tax consultant, who can be quite expensive, you need to get to grips with the subject of taxes. We want to help you with that! Here you will find an overview of guides as well as book and video tips on the subject of taxes. Whether we introduce you to individual types of German taxes or you watch a video on the subject of tax returns, all your questions about German taxes will be answered here.

• Book and Video Tips: Taxes XXL

Buying and selling

Does real estate make sense as an investment? What do I do after the inheritance, sell or rent? And does a condo make sense as an investment? Your guide for the first real estate purchase or sale:

Buying and selling in detail

At some point, the time comes. If you don’t work in the real estate business yourself and find yourself in a situation that has to do with real estate, then sooner or later you will ask yourself: Wouldn’t it make more sense to hire an agent? On the one hand there is usually the cost argument and on the other hand everything should be done without complications, problems and stress. We have the right solution for you. We have conducted an interview with an expert in the field of real estate.

• When is the right time?
• Costs & Procedure
• Buying, selling and capital investment
• Commission, how is that calculated?
• Competencies and tasks of a good broker
• Development of the rent index
• Buying real estate: these three points are important
• …
• The interview about buying and selling real estate

Does real estate make sense as an investment?

Real estate as an investment? Many people at some point in their lives come to the point where they wonder if it might make sense to invest in a property. As a layman, it is sometimes quite difficult to find your way around the topics on real estate. We have conducted an interview with an expert for you to answer any unanswered questions. Our expert answers questions like:

• Does real estate make sense as an investment?
• Investing money in Frankfurt & the Rhine-Main area, is Brexit driving up property prices?
• 3 tips for investing in real estate
• New building in a good location?
• Read now in the article: Investment makes sense?

Renting or selling?

Many are looking forward to it the whole time they are at school. Everyone wants to take the big step and finally move out. But when the time comes, there are a lot of things you have to figure out to make everything work out the way you imagined. The most important thing you need in this situation is support. Support from parents, support from friends and also support from professionals. It’s especially handy when you don’t have to worry about almost anything yourself.

• Hire a real estate agent – This speaks for it
• Tasks of a real estate agent – from the valuation to the handover of the property
• The costs – brokerage fees, commission & buyer principle
• Sale – Different regulations in the federal states
• Letting – The buyer principle
• …
• Read more about renting or buying here?

Condominium as an investment: sensible?

Many people come in the course of your life on the idea to invest in a condominium. Especially as a layman there are always questions. We have conducted an interview for you with an expert in this field. Here you will learn everything about the topic of condominium as an investment, among others:

• Condominium as an investment
• Reviews for real estate portals
• Cities with the highest rents for apartments in Germany
• The planning of a broker
• Development of sales prices
• Tasks of a broker
• Costs around real estate
• Real estate as an investment: Investing for the long term
• …
• Here you will find all the facts: Condominium as an investment

Buy a condominium

As soon as you move into your first apartment, for most people it’s rent, rent, rent. Every month you go to work many hours to spend the largest part ultimately for the next rent due at the beginning of the month. It’s no wonder that many young people are considering buying a condominium as soon as possible.

We enlighten about:

• Benefits such as money in everyday life & protection in old age to freedom of choice
• Disadvantages such as administrative burden and the neighbors
• Private or broker?
• Costs for the purchase and financing of the condominium
• Type of apartment: the differences
• New building or old building?
• …
• Read now at Buying an apartment: Costs and procedure

Buy a house

The dream of owning your own home, living independently within your own four walls, being able to design everything yourself and furnish it according to your individual wishes. But with this wishful thinking it is far from being done, because there is much more to buying a house. There is a long way to the goal of being able to lean back, relax and enjoy life in your own garden. To make this as easy as possible, here are the best tips & tricks on what you should pay attention to when buying a house and what pitfalls you can avoid.

We’ve got all the essentials for your first home purchase:

• Requirements – the way to your dream property
• Financial planning – financing options and requirements
• Search – brokers, patience and ads
• Legal basics – purchase contract, land register entry & Co.
• Notarisation of a purchase contract – the notary helps with land register entry and more
• Transfer of ownership – from seller to buyer
• Building money & costs – what you have to pay when buying a property
• Building money – 6 tips for successful financing
• Follow-up loan – debt rescheduling and long-term planning
• Incidental costs – hidden costs when buying real estate
• Advantages & disadvantages – the purchase of real estate
• …
• The great guide to buying a house

Exclusive objects: Luxury brokers

If you are looking for an exclusive property, you don’t need a normal estate agent but a luxury estate agent with specific knowledge and a good network. Many of these properties will also never appear in the usual real estate portals.

Real estate is a relatively safe business, because “lived” is always, in all parts of this world. However, real estate does not necessarily have to be rented to other people, it can also be excellent as a parked investment. In metropolises such as Berlin, London, Dubai or New York, land is often bought without being built on, purely speculatively. The increase in the price per square meter is so extreme that the vacancy alone yields a large return, through pure capital expenditure.

Tip! Recommendation (external) – Lukinski: The Luxury Brokers

Taxes and tax saving

You as a home owner can save taxes with your property. First of all, there are many benefits that you get. Thereby you save taxes and not insignificantly. First of all, a “yes, but” – benefits are only available for property owners who do not use the property privately. If you use the property privately, all the benefits of buying a property will cease to apply. No major tax advantages for private use.

But there are a few tricks: like the land transfer tax. The rate of land transfer tax depends on the state. But it is due for everyone, when buying a property, for the land and for the construction on it.

Tip for new buildings: First buy the land, then place the building order later!

With this handy tip for new builds, you’ll only pay land transfer tax on your property.

• Read more here: Buy and save taxes

Sell house

Selling a house is a complex matter and involves many different steps. From the creation of an attractive advertisement to the valuation of the property and the subsequent legal steps, such as the purchase contract and the appointments with the notary. During all these steps, various points must be taken into account in order to emerge profitably from the real estate sale.

• Determining the value of real estate, this is how appraisers proceed
• Presentation, the right way to showcase your property
• Notary, legal person to supervise the purchase contract
• Purchase contract, the most important points must be regulated
• Common mistakes, avoid stumbling blocks
• …
• Everything about selling a house

Building: Prefabricated house, solid house or log house?

After the first few years of working life, many people think about whether it is time to start a family. Often, the creation of a family is associated with the plan to move to a larger apartment or even a house.

If the decision stands then once and you plan to build a house, then you face many questions that need to be answered. Especially in the field of real estate there are many different terms with which you can not start anything. To help you a step further, we explain in this article the different construction methods. The article is about:

• Advantages and disadvantages of prefabricated, solid and log houses
• Video about the production of the construction types
• Fast and cheap or stable and stable in value?
• …
• This and more in the article Prefabricated house, solid house or log house?

Massive house

Wooden house

Regions: Berlin, Hamburg, Cologne, Munich & Düsseldorf

Many people play with the idea of buying a property in one of the popular cities. These cities include Berlin, Hamburg, Cologne, Düsseldorf and Munich. But to find the right property is not so easy and as a layman it is often difficult to assess whether it is worth investing in an apartment or a house as an investment. We have conducted an interview with an expert for you.

• Read more about the regions: To buy property or not?

Mallorca: Real estate purchase and safe investment

Due to the current market situation, investing in your own property is considered particularly recommendable as a profitable way to invest capital. This also includes the acquisition of holiday homes in other European countries, such as Mallorca. After all, the sun-drenched Balearic island is still one of the most popular travel and emigration destinations for Germans.

• The great guide to buying property in Mallorca

Investment Q&A: Nursing home property and tax advantages

Many topics around real estate are complex. In particular, topics such as capital investment are often not understandable for laypeople. It is all the more pleasant when someone who knows the subject well explains it in simple terms. FIV has conducted an interview with an expert for you. In this interview you will learn everything about capital investment. The interview is about:

• Investment real estate, this is what you should consider!
• Should we take risks?
• Development of house prices in Germany
• Number of newly constructed residential buildings in Germany by federal state
• How have local rents developed in your region in recent years?
• Is the capital investment worthwhile?
• Different property types and investment opportunities
• Investments in retirement or nursing homes
• Investing for the long term
• …
• Questions and answers on capital investment: care property to tax advantages

Inheritance and divorce

Suddenly, you own a house. The reasons are so different, from the death of beloved parents to divorce, depending on the marriage contract.

Inherited a house: What to do? Own use or sale?

In our editorial office this week we had the case that a reader inherited a house and actually did not know what to do with her inheritance. Therefore, we have researched and today we meet with the real estate expert Jan Rickel from Bingen. He explained to us in conversation what options there are for real estate heirs if they do not want to live in the house themselves.

We want to talk about the topic of “selling a house”, but also about the future of living in general. What can housing look like in ten or even 20 years? Our real estate expert gives us answers to these questions today! In the interview we talk about

• Opportunities for real estate heirs
• Have you made a will?
• Tax aspects
• Indebtedness & all about multi-family housing
• Find & use help
• Statistics: inheritance and real estate
• …
• Read more about Inherited a house: what to do?

Inheritance tax: tax-free amount and market value

Inheritance tax for real estate in Germany – The amount of the tax-free allowance depends on the degree of relationship to the testator. Relevant here is the tax bracket to which the heir belongs and the tax rate applicable to this tax bracket. Since 2009, it has been common practice for inherited real estate to have the inheritance tax determined according to the market value.

• Who belongs to which tax bracket?
• How high does it go?
• When is it due?
• How can the market value be determined?
• Procedures by which the fair value is determined:
• Settlement proceedings
• Capitalised earnings method
• Real value method
• How can I find out the contract value?
• …
• All about inheritance tax: tax-free amount and market value

Inheritance Q&A – Will, tax, compulsory share and spouse

To inherit correctly and advantageously but especially to bequeath can be difficult. There are many things that must be considered, many formalities that must be observed to secure the inheritance. A will is always the simplest solution to ensure that one’s own interests are still protected after death and that no disputes about the inheritance arise in the family.

• Bequeath correctly during your lifetime
• The will settles everything
• Heirs without a will when intestate succession applies
• The heirs of the first, second and third order
• Spouses and Adopted Children
• Inherit debts, should I disclaim the inheritance or not?
• Allowance for inheritance
• Financial relief for heirs
• Gifts, inheritance tax and allowances
• Disinherited legacy
• …
• You can find everything else now in the Q&A Inheritance

Divorce Q&A – consequences, pension and expiry

A divorce consists of many important steps. From the separation year to the divorce petition and the pension equalization to the eventual divorce date. In all these steps, there are important things to consider, such as the right legal counsel, the correct form of applications and forms, in order to facilitate a smooth and quick divorce.

• Procedure, costs and the separation year
• Divorce Procedure
• Divorce with separation year
• Divorce settlement
• Custody, alimony and amicable divorce
• Pension rights adjustment
• Pension entitlement
• Real estate and assets in divorce
• …
• The big guide: Divorce

Tips for the visit

No matter whether it’s a house or an apartment for rent: The first viewing appointment puts many under pressure. The first shared flat, the first apartment and at some point maybe even your own house. On real estate portals we can quickly and easily find thousands of apartments in Berlin Mitte, Hamburg, Munich, Cologne or even Düsseldorf. With apps or on the notebook – but then it comes, the viewing appointment!

40, 50 applicants in 15 minutes for a single apartment are not uncommon. How can you still convince the landlord of you! We met with the brokers and experts from IHV and got 7 ultimate tips for your viewing appointment. This will increase your chances of finding the apartment of your dreams!

• Tell me about yourself. Who are you?
• You have to look serious
• Always adhere to rules of courtesy
• Tip. Bag full of documents > Businessman
• And much more

If you want to read through everything in detail, then you can find the article here: 11 tips apartment inspection.realtor tips

Finding the right estate agent for buying, selling and renting is not that easy. Therefore, we have good recommendations of reputable real estate agents for you.

Broker recommendations

Find a real estate agent!? We have everything important for the sale of house and apartment: advantages, disadvantages and 5 practical tips to find the perfect broker.

Find a broker

Finding a realtor is often more difficult than expected, as the market is crowded and there are many different listings. However, not every agent suits every property, which is why property owners should inform themselves exactly about the agents to find the right one for their property. There are many tips and tricks and some things to consider.

• 5 tips for the broker search
• The search begins on the Internet
• Learning from the experience of others
• The early bird catches the worm
• The price must be right
• With or without a broker? The advantages and disadvantages
• …
• Learn now: Find a broker

Germany

Berlin, Cologne, Hamburg, Munich & Co. we have the best of the best for you!

• Top brokers Germany
• Real estate agent Berlin
• Real estate agent Cologne
• Real estate agent Düsseldorf
• Real estate agent Munich
• Real estate agent Hamburg
• Real estate agent Frankfurt
• Real estate agent Wiesbaden
• Real estate agent Mainz

USA, UK & UAE

• Real estate agent Los Angeles
• Broker New York
• Estate agents London
• Real estate agent Dubai

More plant tips

Here we have many more interesting investment alternatives! Real estate, gold and other precious metals, sports cars, art, life insurance, stocks, funds… everything you need to know if you want to invest your money profitably. With risk assessment, advantages and disadvantages of each type of investment. Now for free in the FIV Magazine!

Invest money and earn passively XXL: Capital investment

Helpful Links: Buy & Sell Real Estate

Finally, here are some helpful links for your real estate search:

• Real estate portal – Immowelt for the search
• Real estate portal – Immoscout24 for the search
• Luxury real estate agent – Real estate purchase and capital investments
• Real Estate Sales – IHV Real Estate Agents Germany

The inheritance – will, inheritance tax and the compulsory portion

Without a will, the estate is distributed according to the rules of intestate succession. However, this is not always in the best interests of the testator. If a will exists, the assets can be distributed in a different way than the law provides for and persons not related by blood can also inherit. The creation of a will is therefore not only important to regulate the last will exactly, but also to avoid disputes in the family. Find out everything about wills and inheritance from the experts at IHV.

Bequeathing correctly during your lifetime – wills and the legal consequences

Without a will, the estate is distributed according to the rules of intestate succession. However, this is not always in the best interests of the testator. If a will exists, the assets can be distributed in a different way than the law provides for and persons not related by blood can also inherit. The creation of a will is therefore not only important to regulate the last will exactly, but also to avoid disputes in the family.

A will overrides intestate succession and can thus establish a new succession. Who is to inherit is determined by the testator. If more than one person is named, the assets are usually divided according to quotas. Writing a will also gives the testator the option of leaving individual things to certain people, for example a car, jewellery or property. However, these are not legally considered an inheritance, but a legacy. In order to avoid disputes about the estate, the estate can be distributed in a will in such a way that no disputes can arise.

If there is no will and a property is part of the estate, it becomes the property of the heirs. In most cases, a community of heirs is formed in which no one can dispose of the inheritance alone. When selling such a property, all heirs must agree. This fact can often lead to disputes within the community of heirs. In addition, the costs incurred for a notarial will are usually only half as low as the costs for a certificate of inheritance procedure that the heirs face if no will exists. In the will, the last will over the property can be regulated exactly and disputes and superfluous costs are saved for all involved.

Pre-heir and post-heir – tasks, duties and rights

The testator is free to determine the heirs and can therefore transfer his property to several persons in a temporal displacement. Accordingly, the subsequent heir receives his inheritance only after another person, in this case the previous heir, has inherited. The testator can, for example, choose an occasion or a time for the succession to occur, such as coming of age or passing the master’s examination.
The previous and subsequent heirs are both legal successors of the deceased, but do not form a community of heirs in which they would inherit at the same time, but rather inherit at staggered times due to the deceased’s instigation. The subsequent heir has an expectant right to the succession, and therefore, when the succession occurs, the inheritance of the previous heir is forfeited, the latter ceases to be an heir, and the inheritance accrues to the subsequent heir. In the event that the subsequent heir is already deceased at the time of the succession, the testator should take precautions and name further subsequent heirs.

The pre-heirs are also referred to as ‘temporary heirs’. Depending on the interpretation of the will, the pre-heirs only have certain powers of disposal over the estate and are therefore quite limited in what they can do. In addition, inheritance tax always falls on the pre-heirs at the beginning, as only they are legally named as heirs and thus bear the tax consequences.

Inheritance allowances – Inheritance taxes and gifts

In order to protect the heirs from a large financial burden, different tax rates and allowances apply depending on the degree of relationship. These allowances include various things that do not have to be taxed, so that the heirs do not have to pay the most as taxes, especially in the case of a large estate.
Pension allowances are payable if the partner or children were dependent on the financial support of the deceased. For spouses, the pension allowance is €256,000 provided the surviving spouse does not have a widow’s pension or occupational pension that is not subject to inheritance tax. For children, pension allowances apply which are staggered according to the age of the child at the time of death. Infants up to the age of 5 are entitled to a pension allowance of 52,000 euros. Starting from this point, the pension allowance decreases by approximately 10,000 euros every five years. Children aged 20 to 27 can therefore claim a pension allowance of 10,300 euros, but these allowances are only relevant if the children do not have their own pension payments, such as an orphan’s pension.

The other allowances, in addition to the pension allowances, are regulated according to the degree of relationship and are independent of existing survivors’ pensions or own assets. Accordingly, spouses and registered partners inherit an allowance of 500,000 euros. Children of the deceased or grandchildren of the deceased, if their parents die before the inheritance, can claim an allowance of 400,000 euros. Grandchildren whose parents are still alive can claim an allowance of 200,000 euros. Great-grandchildren or the deceased’s own parents are entitled to an allowance of 100,000 euros. All other heirs can claim tax allowances of 20,000 euros. To ensure that as little tax as possible has to be paid on inheritance, the testator can make important decisions long before death and specify them in the will.

Inheritance tax and gifts – all important information

Inheritance tax and gift tax are closely linked. Almost the same allowances apply as in the case of inheritance, however, the gift allowances may only be left tax-free once in ten years. Testators who wish to reduce the inheritance tax for their heirs must therefore start gifting their assets ten years before their death. In the case of patchwork families, this rule means that it can make sense to adopt the spouse’s children in order to bring the tax-free amounts into line with those of the biological children. The adoption does not affect the succession to the other biological parent.

In addition to tax-free allowances, there are also goods that are tax-free. For close relatives in tax class I, movable assets such as household effects or similar objects of daily use are tax-exempt if they do not exceed a value of 42,000 euros. For all other heirs, a value of 12,000 euros applies here. If works of art, archives or libraries are part of the estate, they are generally exempt from tax at a rate of 60 percent. If the estate includes a building in which one of the heirs lives, this can also be exempt from tax.

The compulsory part of the inheritance – disinheritance, will and inheritance contract

In principle, everyone is free to decide whom to appoint as heir and whom to disinherit. The testator does not have to justify in his will why he excludes a relative from the succession. However, an exclusion does not mean that the heir receives nothing, because every heir has a claim to a compulsory portion. This claim must be requested by the heir himself, because the certificate of inheritance does not record these compulsory portion claims. If a testator designates a person as sole heir, this means on the one hand that this person alone inherits the entire estate, but also that no one else should inherit who would actually be entitled to inherit.

Married couples can jointly disinherit close relatives in an inheritance contract or a Berlin will. In a classic form of the Berlin will, the spouses stipulate that the longer-living partner will be the sole heir and that the children will only inherit when both spouses have died. Thus, the parents disinherit their children until both are deceased. If someone is disinherited, the part of the inheritance that would have gone to this heir goes to the person who would have become the heir if the disinherited person had already died at the time of the inheritance.

Settling the inheritance – communities of heirs and intestate succession

Ideally, the heirs of a community of heirs would pay any debts swiftly from the estate and then dissolve the community of heirs by distributing the surplus according to shares. However, this is often not the reality. Disputes within the community of heirs often ensure that they remain unresolved for years after the inheritance. Each member of such a community of heirs has the right to demand dissolution at any time, even without good cause.
In order for a community of heirs to be dissolved without disputes, it is advisable to follow certain steps. From the correct valuation of the estate to inheritance taxes, there are important formalities to observe.

• Determine the estate

  Until the estate has been determined, a community of heirs cannot be divided. The heirs receive most of the information from the bank where the deceased had the accounts or deposits. In order to gain access to these, a certificate of inheritance or a will with a court opening protocol is required. However, debts are also part of the estate. In order to determine the estate completely, the debts and the assets should be compared and reconciled.

• Pay the debts of the estate

  The debts of the estate can be paid by the heirs of the community of heirs from the estate. It is not uncommon for items belonging to the estate to have to be sold for this purpose, such as real estate or land.

• The gifts and donations take into account

  If an heir has received gifts or donations from the deceased during his or her lifetime, these may be subject to equalisation. The gifts that are subject to equalisation increase the estate arithmetically and are deducted from the inheritance quota of the donee. Each heir can request information from the others about such gifts so that they are correctly taken into account.

• Sell the indivisible items

  If a true division is not possible for certain items, such as a property in the community of heirs, the heirs may have to sell this item or have it foreclosed. In order to do this, a realistic sales price must first be determined. If no agreement can be reached here, a partition auction can be initiated by one of the heirs.

• Distribute the divisible objects

  The inheritance is to be divided in the first place in nature by the heirs. Each heir can therefore take items for himself from the estate in agreement with the other heirs. Money and securities can be divided by the community of heirs according to their respective shares.

• The care services take into account

  If a child has cared for the deceased parent without consideration during his or her lifetime, compensation may be claimed for this. This must be appropriate to the duration, scope and value of the estate.

• The notary helps

  If an agreement cannot be reached, a notary can be called in by the community of heirs. This mediates between the heirs in order to reach an agreement as quickly as possible. However, it should be borne in mind that such assistance is associated with some costs.

• Consider the tax office

  Inheritance tax is always payable on an inheritance. However, some things from the estate can be deducted from the tax, such as the costs of the funeral or fees for the opening of the will.

The legal succession – this is how you inherit according to law

Legal succession regulates both the order of heirs and the individual amounts that are inherited. First the closest relatives, such as children and grandchildren, inherit and then the more distant relatives, such as nephews and nieces. Closer relatives generally exclude the more distant relatives from inheritance. The proportion to which the individual heirs inherit is documented in the certificate of inheritance. The legal succession is based on the Parantel – or order system. It divides the relatives into different orders. Accordingly, children and grandchildren of the deceased belong to the first order. Parents, siblings, nieces and nephews of the testator are assigned to the second order. The third order includes grandparents, uncles and aunts as well as cousins of the deceased. Spouses and registered partners are not considered relatives, but have the right of inheritance as spouses. This gives them a special status and limits the right of relatives to inherit. Relatives of the preceding order always exclude relatives of a subsequent order from the succession.

Learn more about intestate succession!

The partition auction in communities of heirs – the costs and the procedure

Objects such as real estate or land often give rise to disputes in communities of heirs. The ideas of how to proceed with the common property are too different and the participants cannot agree. Every heir has the right to demand a partition of the community of heirs at any time and thus to force its dissolution. In such a case, a partition auction can be the last resort to settle the disputes and dissolve the community of heirs.

Heirs without a will – depending on the degree of relationship

Although the spouse or registered partner is not considered a relative in the legal succession, he or she has a special position. If the deceased leaves both a spouse and children, the spouse inherits half of the estate and the children the other half. However, if there are more than three children, the spouse receives only one-fourth and the children divide the remainder among themselves. If there are only second-order relatives or grandparents, the spouse receives half of the estate and the second- and third-order relatives share the other half. If there are no relatives of the first, second or third order, the spouse inherits everything.

Heirs of the first order – children and grandchildren

The first order includes the children and grandchildren of the deceased. Non-marital children born after 1 July 1949 are also entitled to inherit. If a child of the deceased and the spouse are living at the time of death, both inherit half. If several children are living, the inheritance is divided between them and the spouse. If children of the deceased are already deceased, the grandchildren inherit.
Explained by example: If the deceased leaves his mother, his spouse, 2 children with two grandchildren each and a deceased child with one grandchild, the following succession results. The mother is not entitled to inherit because she belongs to the second order and there are heirs of the first order. The spouse and the two living children inherit in equal shares. The grandchild of the deceased child takes the place of the parent in the succession and thus inherits in equal shares with the two living children and the spouse. The grandchildren of the living children also do not inherit.

Heirs of the second order – parents and siblings

If there are no children or grandchildren, the heirs of the second order. The second order includes parents, siblings, nephews and nieces. If both parents of the deceased are alive at the time of death, the estate is divided in half. However, if one parent is already deceased, the descendants of this parent, i.e. siblings or nieces and nephews of the deceased, take their place.
Explained by example: The testator leaves his mother, a sister with two children, a nephew of the deceased brother and a half-sister from the father’s second marriage. The inheritance is therefore distributed as follows: One half of the estate goes to the mother’s line and the other to the father’s line. Since the mother is still alive, she receives half of the inheritance. Since the father is already deceased, his inheritance falls to his children. In this case, to the sister, the deceased brother and thus to the nephew of the deceased and to the half-sister from the second marriage. These three divide the other half of the inheritance. The children of the still living sister do not inherit.

Heirs third order – grandparents and aunts / uncles

If the deceased leaves only heirs of the third order, the inheritance is divided as follows. The inheritance of the deceased falls to the grandparents and their descendants. If a grandparent has already died, the inheritance also falls to the aunts, uncles, cousins of the deceased.
Explained by example: If the testator leaves only his grandmother and an aunt with two children, they inherit as follows. The grandmother receives half of the estate. Since the grandfather is already deceased, his descendants inherit his share. In this case, therefore, the aunt inherits the other half of the estate. However, the two children do not inherit.

Inherit debts – form and deadlines

To disclaim the inheritance requires some rules. Simply notifying the family or simply having no reaction to the inheritance is not enough. The form is very crucial. The heir must make a disclaimer to the probate court either in the form of a transcript or in a publicly notarized form. However, a simple letter is not sufficient. A personal appearance before the probate court is also possible. There, the heir explains his or her request and a judicial officer records it in writing. The local court in whose district the deceased had his or her last residence is responsible in each case. However, not only the form is very decisive for the success of the disclaimer, but also the content and the deadline of the declaration. This must clearly state why the inheritance does not want to be accepted. The reasons should be clearly listed. These may include, for example, that the estate consists mainly of debts.

The declaration is subject to a so-called six-week period. If the inheritance does not wish to be accepted, the relevant declaration must be submitted to the competent probate court within six weeks, otherwise the inheritance is deemed to have been accepted.
Generally speaking, the probate court does not have a duty to bring. The heirs are only notified of the inheritance if there is a will or if they succeed to the inheritance because, for example, someone else has already disclaimed the inheritance. In all other cases, the heirs are assumed to know whether or not they inherit anything from a deceased family member.

More on inheriting debt!

The inheritance – the deadlines, costs and most important information

The inheritance does not always hold only good things in store for the descendants. Even if many dream of riches and expensive jewellery, debts or dilapidated real estate can also be part of the estate. In such cases, it is possible to disclaim the inheritance within a certain period of time and in accordance with certain criteria.

To disclaim the inheritance requires some rules. Simply notifying the family or simply having no reaction to the inheritance is not enough. The form is very crucial. The heir must make a disclaimer to the probate court either in the form of a transcript or in a publicly notarized form. However, a simple letter is not sufficient. A personal appearance before the probate court is also possible. There, the heir explains his or her request and a judicial officer records it in writing. The local court in whose district the deceased had his or her last residence is responsible. If the deceased is German, but had his residence abroad, the Berlin-Schöneberg Local Court is responsible. In Baden-Württemberg there is a special regulation. In this federal state, the state notary’s office is your contact.

However, not only the form is very decisive for the success of the disclaimer, but also the content and the deadline of the declaration. This must have clearly listed why the inheritance does not want to be accepted. The reasons should be clearly listed. These may include, for example, that the estate consists mainly of debts. The declaration is subject to a so-called six-week period. If the heir does not wish to accept the inheritance, the relevant declaration must be submitted to the competent probate court within six weeks, otherwise the inheritance is deemed to have been accepted. The cut-off date is assumed to be the day on which you learned of the inheritance, which usually coincides with the day of death. The deadline is only extended in certain exceptional cases. For example, if the deceased or the heir himself is abroad at the time of death, the six-week deadline can be postponed.

Pass on right during lifetime

Without a will, the estate will be distributed according to the rules of legal succession. However, this is not always in the interest of the testator. If a will exists, the estate can be distributed differently than provided for by law and even persons who are not blood relatives can inherit. The drawing up of a will is therefore not only important to regulate the last will and testament exactly, but also to avoid disputes in the family.

Frequently asked questions are above all:

• What is the compulsory portion of the heir?
• What is the compulsory portion of the heir?
• What does the spouse inherit?
• What is the legal succession?

The will regulates everything

A will overrides the legal succession and can therefore determine a new succession. The testator determines who is to inherit. If several persons are named, the assets are usually divided according to quotas. Writing a will also enables the testator to leave individual things to certain persons, such as a car, jewellery or real estate. However, these are not legally regarded as heirs, but as bequests. In order to avoid disputes about the estate, the estate can be distributed in a will in such a way that no points of dispute can arise.

Wills can be drawn up with or without a notary. If a will is drawn up without a notary, a number of things must be taken into account. The author must be at least 16 years old and “testable”, i.e. in full possession of his intellectual powers. The will must be written by hand, because computer printouts are not sufficient as a valid will. If the will is several pages long, each page should be numbered, stapled together and each page uniformly dated and signed. A clear heading, like “Testament” or “My Last Will” is recommended to make the purpose of the writing clear.

However, if a will is drawn up with the help of a notary, this means that the testator has given his last will and testament verbally to a notary for the record. This is particularly important if real estate is part of the estate, as either a certificate of inheritance or a notarial will is required for transfer to the land register. If a notarial will exists, the heirs are spared the costly and time-consuming inheritance certificate procedure.

Heaving without a will – the legal succession takes effect

The legal succession regulates both the order of the heirs and the individual quantities that are inherited. First the next relatives inherit, like children and grandchildren and afterwards the more distant relatives, like nephews and nieces. Closer relatives generally exclude more distant relatives from the succession. The rate at which the individual heirs inherit is documented in the certificate of inheritance. The legal succession depends on the Parantel or order system. It divides the relatives into different orders. According to this, children and grandchildren of the testator belong to the first order. Parents, siblings, nieces and nephews of the testator are assigned to the second order. The third order includes grandparents, uncles and aunts as well as cousins of the testator. Spouses and registered civil partners are not regarded as relatives, but have the right of spouse inheritance. This gives them a special position and restricts the right of inheritance of the relatives. Relatives of the previous order always exclude relatives of a subsequent order from the succession.

The spouse

The spouse or registered partner is not considered a relative in the legal succession, but has a special position. If the deceased leaves behind both spouse and children, the spouse inherits half of the estate and the children the other half. However, if there are more than three children, the spouse receives only a quarter and the children divide the rest among themselves. If there are only second order relatives or grandparents, the spouse receives half of the estate and the second and third order relatives share the other half. If there are no relatives of the first, second or third order, the spouse inherits everything.

The first-order heirs

The children and grandchildren of the testator are counted to the first order. Nonmarital children born after 1 July 1949 are also entitled to inheritance. If a child of the testator and the spouse lives at the time of death, both inherit half. If several children live, the inheritance is divided between them and the spouse. If the deceased’s children have already died, the grandchildren inherit.

The heirs of the second order

If there are no children or grandchildren, the heirs shall be of the second order. The second order includes parents, siblings, nephews and nieces. If both parents of the deceased live at the time of death, the estate is divided equally. However, if one parent has already died, the descendants of that parent, i.e. siblings or nieces and nephews of the deceased, take this place.

Third order heirs

If the deceased leaves only heirs of the third order, the estate shall be divided as follows. The grandparents and their descendants shall inherit the estate of the deceased. If a grandparent is already deceased, the inheritance also falls to the aunts, uncles, cousins and cousins of the testator.

Adopted children

An adoption gives a child the legal relationship. If the child is a minor at the time of adoption, it acquires the legal status of a joint child of both spouses and thus belongs to the heirs of the first order. Thus not only the adoptive child inherits from the parents, but also vice versa. With the adoption, however, the child loses every claim, all rights and duty to the blood relatives and is therefore no longer entitled to inherit from the natural parents. This is not the case for adopted children who are of full age. The relationship to the biological parents does not expire and so an adopted child of full age can be entitled to inherit from up to four parts of the inheritance, the biological and the adoptive parents. However, there is no legal right of inheritance against the relatives of the adoptive parents.

Herit debts – reject inheritance or not?

An inheritance does not primarily mean wealth and new possessions. An inheritance is often burdened with debts and means a lot of responsibility for the heirs. After death, the heirs not only take over the assets, but also the rights and obligations of the deceased. If this includes debts, the heirs are also liable with their private assets. If it is clear from the outset that the debt is inherited, the inheritance can be rejected within the six-week period. If it only becomes apparent later that the estate is encumbered with debts, an application for insolvency can be filed. The private assets of the heir are thus protected and the debts only have to be repaid from the estate. If there is an inheritance case, the inheritance should be carefully examined and examined for debts. The inheritance can be refused by any heir. This is particularly useful if debts or real estate in need of renovation are part of the estate.

Reverse the inheritance – depending on the situation, sensible

The inheritance does not always provide only good things for the descendants. Even if many dream of riches and expensive jewellery, debts or dilapidated real estate can also belong to the inheritance. In such cases it is possible to reject the inheritance within a certain period of time and taking into account certain criteria.

No heir is obliged to accept the inheritance. This is possible above all for the protection of the heirs, because this gets not only the fortune, but also the debts of the deceased, for which it is responsible with the own private fortune. So before an heir is started or struck, each heir should first of all get a precise overview of the financial circumstances and debts of the deceased. These include bank balances, securities, valuables, land and real estate as well as funeral expenses, loans, maintenance arrears and compulsory portion claims. The costs of administering an estate or opening a will can also be added. If this examination reveals that there is more debit than credit, it makes sense to reject the inheritance. If the estate includes real estate in need of renovation, a detailed examination is also necessary. If the inheritance is taken up, a lot of money has to be invested in the renovation work, which can be very expensive depending on the case. So consider carefully whether or not you want to take up the inheritance in such a case.

Once an inheritance has been accepted or the deadline has been exceeded, there is usually no turning back. However, here again exceptions confirm the rule. In certain cases it is possible to withdraw from the inheritance afterwards. If, for example, it comes to light after acceptance of the inheritance that the estate contains a high credit of the deceased, of which you knew nothing until then, the acceptance of the inheritance can be challenged. As a prerequisite, however, you must have had comprehensive knowledge of the assets and debts of the estate. However, if the heir wishes to challenge the assumptions because the six-week period was not known or it was not clear when it would begin, a good lawyer can do the same.

Heirloom rejected due to overindebtedness

In the opposite case, there are also some possibilities. If the inheritance has been rejected due to over-indebtedness and it turns out afterwards that the inheritance does not contain as many debts as initially assumed, the rejection cannot be contested. However, if it turns out afterwards that securities or real estate belong to the estate of which you had no knowledge at the time of the disbursement, a challenge is indeed possible. The challenge must be made in writing and justified to the probate court within six weeks of the error being discovered.

Free heir’s allowance

In order to protect the heirs from a large financial burden, different tax rates and allowances apply depending on the degree of kinship. These allowances include various things that do not have to be taxed so that the heirs do not have to pay most of the tax, especially in the case of a large estate.

Financial relief for heirs

This includes the allowances to be paid if the partner or the children were dependent on the financial support of the deceased. For spouses, the pension allowance amounts to 256,000 euros provided the surviving spouse does not have a widow’s pension or a company pension for which no inheritance tax is payable. If such a pension is available, the value of the pension is determined based on the expected duration of the benefits and the benefit allowance is reduced by this value. For children, benefit allowances apply that are graduated according to the child’s age at the time of death. Infants up to the age of 5 years are entitled to a pension allowance of 52,000 euros. Starting from this point, the allowance falls by approx. 10,000 euros every five years. Children aged 20 to 27 can therefore claim a pension allowance of 10,300 euros, but these allowances are only relevant if the children do not have their own pension, such as an orphan’s pension.

The other allowances, in addition to the pension allowances, are regulated according to the degree of kinship and are independent of the surviving dependant’s pension or one’s own assets. Accordingly, spouses and registered civil partners inherit an allowance of 500,000 euros. Children of the deceased or grandchildren of the deceased, if their parents die before the inheritance, can claim an allowance of 400,000 euros. Grandchildren whose parents are still alive can claim an allowance of 200,000 euros. Great-grandchildren or the deceased’s own parents are entitled to an allowance of 100,000 euros. All other heirs can claim an allowance of 20,000 euros. So that as little tax as possible has to be paid in the case of inheritance, the testator can make important decisions long before death and determine them in the will.  Only what remains after deduction of the tax-free amounts from the estate is taxable. Each taxable acquisition is rounded down to a full 100 €. The individual tax rates for inheritance tax depend on the different tax classes of the heirs and are also graduated progressively.

Gifts and inheritance tax – the allowances

Inheritance tax and gift tax are closely linked. Almost the same allowances apply, but as in the case of inheritance, the tax-free allowances may only be transferred once every ten years. Testators who wish to reduce inheritance tax for their heirs must therefore start giving away their assets ten years before their death. In the case of patchwork families, it follows from this regulation that it may be sensible to adopt the spouse’s children in order to equate the tax allowances with those of the natural children. The adoption does not influence the succession to the other biological parent.

A gift thus actually makes it possible to save on inheritance tax. The testator must be aware of these possibilities and use them in a targeted manner in order to have to pay less of an inheritance tax. Nonmarital partners must bear in mind that even long-term civil partnerships only allow the given tax-free amounts if they are officially recognised, either by marriage or by registration of the partnership.

Duty part despite disinheritance – you have these rights

Basically every person can decide freely who he/she will appoint as his/her heir and whom he/she will disinherit. The testator does not have to justify in his will why he excludes a relative from the succession. However, an exclusion does not mean that the heir receives nothing, because every heir has a right to a compulsory portion. This claim must be requested by the heir himself, because these compulsory portion claims are not noted in the certificate of inheritance. If a testator determines a person as sole heir, this means on the one hand that he alone inherits the entire estate, but also that no one else should inherit who would actually be entitled to inherit.

Married couples can disinherit close relatives together in an inheritance contract or a Berlin will. In a classic form of the Berlin will, the spouses stipulate that the longer living partner is the sole heir and the children only inherit when both spouses have died. The parents disinherit their children until both have died. If someone is disinherited, the part of the inheritance that would have been due to this heir falls to the person who would have become the heir if the disinherited person had already died at the time of the inheritance.

In spite of a disinheritance, close relatives are entitled to a part of the property. This fact is based in law on the duty of care which the deceased has for his close relatives even after his death. However, this only applies to the next of kin, who are determined as follows according to the law: Close relatives include both legitimate, non-marital and adopted children, the spouse as long as the marriage is still effective at the time of inheritance, partners in a registered same-sex partnership and parents of the testator as long as there are no children. Grandchildren are only entitled if they have been excluded from the inheritance and their parents are no longer alive. Siblings and grandparents of the deceased are not entitled to a compulsory participation and are therefore not to be understood by law as close relatives. Anyone who is disinherited must assert a right to the compulsory portion himself against the other heirs. Under special circumstances, it is possible for parents to disinherit their children completely and also to withdraw the compulsory portion from them. This wish must be expressly ordered and justified in the will.

Preliminary inheritance and subsequent inheritance – determined in the will

The testator is free to determine the heirs and can therefore transfer his assets to several persons in a time transfer. The heir receives his inheritance only after another person, in this case the previous heir, has inherited it. The testator can, for example, choose an occasion or a time for the occurrence of the subsequent succession, for example the age of majority or the passing of the master craftsman’s examination. The previous heir and the subsequent heir are both legal successors of the testator, but do not form a community of heirs in which they would inherit at the same time, but inherit at a different time due to the cause of the testator. The heir has an expectant right to the subsequent inheritance and thus the heir of the previous heir lapses in the event of subsequent succession, the latter ceases to be the heir and the inheritance accrues to the subsequent heir. In the event that the subsequent heir has already died at the time of the subsequent inheritance, the testator should make provisions and name further subsequent heirs.

Pre-heirship and post-heirship are often used by spouses to ensure that all joint assets remain in the family. The spouses nominate the other as the previous heir and the common children as the subsequent heirs. Even in the event of a remarriage after the death of a spouse, the assets cannot be bequeathed to the new spouse.

The communities of heirs – open communication and agreement

A community of heirs describes all the heirs of a testator. This comes into force when there is more than one heir and a community of heirs is automatically formed. The community of heirs, however, loses its effect at the beginning of an inheritance dispute. However, a dispute does not necessarily have to occur in a community of heirs. Since there are often disputes about the objects of inheritance in communities of heirs, many communities of heirs still exist many years after the death.

Discussing a community of heirs

In the ideal case, the heirs of a community of heirs pay any debts quickly from the estate and then dissolve the community of heirs by distributing the surplus according to shares. However, this is often not the reality. Disputes within the community of heirs often ensure that these remain unresolved for years after the inheritance. Every member of such a community of heirs has the right to demand dissolution at any time, even without good reason.

pay debts and distribute inheritance

In order for a community of heirs to be dissolved without disputes, it is advisable to follow certain steps. From the correct valuation of the estate to inheritance taxes, there are important formalities to be observed.

Pay the debts of the estate

The debts of the estate can be paid from the estate by the heirs of the community of heirs. It is not uncommon for objects belonging to the estate to be sold, such as real estate or land.

The indivisible objects sell

If a real division is not possible for certain objects, such as a property in the community of heirs, the heirs may have to sell or force the object to be auctioned. In order to do this, a realistic selling price must first be determined. If there is no agreement here, a division auction can be initiated by one of the heirs. Distribute the divisible objectsThe heir is primarily to be divided in nature by the heirs. Each heir can therefore take objects from the estate for himself in agreement with the other heirs. Money and securities can be divided by the community of heirs according to the respective shares.

The donations and endowments take into account

If an heir has received benefits or gifts from the testator during his lifetime, these may be subject to compensation. Gifts that are subject to extinguishment increase the estate mathematically and are deducted from the recipient’s inheritance quota. Each heir may ask the others for information on such benefits so that they can be taken into account correctly.

Consider the tax office

An inheritance is always subject to inheritance tax. However, some things from the inheritance can be deducted from the tax, such as the cost of the burial or fees for opening the will.

Calculate the discount

A community of heirs cannot be divided until the estate has been determined. The heirs receive most of the information from the bank where the deceased had the accounts or deposits. In order to obtain access to these, a certificate of inheritance or a will with a court opening record is required. However, the debts are also part of the estate. In order to determine the complete estate, the debts and the assets should be compared and balanced.

The notary helps

If an agreement cannot be reached, a notary can be called in by the community of heirs. The notary mediates between the heirs in order to reach an agreement as quickly as possible. However, it should be borne in mind that such assistance is associated with some costs.

Consider the nursing services

If a child has cared for the deceased parent during his or her lifetime for no consideration, compensation can be claimed for this. This must be commensurate with the duration, scope and value of the estate.

The partial auction – the last resort for communities of heirs

Objects, such as real estate or land, often give rise to disputes in communities of heirs. The ideas of how to deal with the joint property are too different and the parties cannot agree. Every heir has the right at any time to demand a dispute of the community of heirs and thus to force its dissolution. In such a case, a partition auction may be the last possibility to settle the disputes and resolve the community of heirs.

The partition auction involves some risks which should be well thought out in advance. The real estate could be sold below value and lead to low profits for the heirs. There are some alternatives that exclude these risks. The property can be sold privately, saving on application, legal and attorney fees. In addition, the heirs can choose the buyer themselves and thus ensure that the property is not sold below value.  Another alternative is voluntary auctioning. The community of heirs can turn to a public auctioneer who organises and conducts an auction. The advantage for the heirs is that the minimum bid can be determined by the heirs themselves and there is therefore no risk of an auction below value. In both cases, however, the community of heirs must agree unanimously to the sale of the property.

Interview with real estate expert Jan Rickel from IHV – Die Immobilien Makler.

Possibilities for real estate heirs

FIV: Let’s start with the exciting case “I inherit a house or an apartment and don’t want to live in it myself”. Renting, selling – what’s the best thing about it?

For this decision a lot of things play a really important role regarding the private situation of the heir and regarding the condition, location and size of the property. A simple “right or wrong” gibt´s with this thing unfortunately not.

Before that, however, an action is very important for the heir: The heir must be entered in the land register as a new owner within the framework of a “land register correction”. Incidentally, the simple handwritten will of the heir is not sufficient for this! You need a certificate of inheritance from the probate court or a testament of the testator drawn up by a notary. Anyone applying for the transfer within two years of the death of the previous owner does not pay any fees for the entry in the land register and no land transfer tax.

And something else is very important in the case of inheritance! Is the property of value or over-indebted? Is the house in need of renovation or are there already high land charges registered? After all, I can also refuse the inheritance if the costs or debts on the house are higher than its current market value. But in the end only a real estate expert can determine that.

FIV: What do you mean by private situation of the heir?

Anyone who is in acute financial difficulties as an heir, for example, and has possibly even taken over debts from the testator, will certainly immediately think of selling the property. An understandable thought, but not necessarily the best. Finally, there is also the possibility of borrowing on the property as collateral for a loan. With this credit you can repay your debts, for example. I then repay the loan from the rental income. This variant makes sense if I have very personal ties to the house as an heir and do not want to sell it without further ado. Maybe I can even imagine as an heir living in this house later on. In discussion with the banks, it can then be clarified whether the loan can be arranged in such a way that the house is available to me again debt free at the desired time.

Broker, Energy Performance Certificate & Tax Aspects

FIV: But how well do I have to know about real estate in such actions?

The estate agent or a proven real estate expert can also help with such questions. For example, there is a big difference between renting a detached house in the countryside and inheriting a large apartment building in a big city with, say, a dozen apartments. The question of whether the house already has an energy certificate or not is also important.

FIV: What does an energy certificate show and how do I get it for my inherited house?

Since 2010, the presentation of an energy certificate or passport at the request of the buyer or tenant is mandatory. Special guidelines apply to commercial properties or houses with a commercial share. Basically, this passport shows me how high the energy consumption in this object is in relation to an average comparable object. For this purpose, the consumption values for heat generation in different years are usually averaged and entered on a multi-level scale. For a better understanding, there is a classification into colour levels in addition to the energy efficiency classes with letters A to E or similar. Green is the best color. When it’s red, a lot of energy really goes out the window.
An alternative method is to calculate the energy demand of a property. The degree of insulation, the design and the age of the object are taken into account.
The energy passport is issued by companies or persons, the building specialists – engineers, master craftsmen, etc. – are. It doesn’t cost much, by the way.

Renting a detached house is a very demanding business. As a rule, the tenants themselves are very demanding when it comes to the quality of the property. The landlord is always required to maintain an optimal building condition. This costs money – and sometimes even nerves if the tenant regularly arrives with wishes.
Economically – i.e. in terms of rental income – letting a single-family house means that I have to take into account loss of rental income. At least if the house is in a less sought-after area. The first problem for the heir is finding tenants. When they move out again – because they are building or buying their own house – it becomes difficult to find new tenants. In metropolitan areas, of course, this is less of a problem…
My tip: If the house is within the reach of larger companies that regularly have to accommodate employees from abroad, the rental of single-family houses is going very well. In most cases, the leases are concluded by the company for two to three years. This gives you flexibility as the owner. In addition, the companies usually pay well above average, because they attach importance to rapid availability of the property. Of course, the house must be in perfect order for something like this!

Fiscal aspects

FIV: Are there any tax aspects to inheriting a house?

Oh, yeah! Own use of a property can be tax advantageous. If the heir is the spouse of the deceased, for example, he does not have to pay inheritance tax on the property if he/she remains in it for at least ten years. This also applies to the testator’s children if the living space does not exceed 200 square metres.

If, on the other hand, the property is leased or is leased, then 90% of its value is subject to inheritance tax. By the way, the rental income is also taxable. On the other hand, you can of course credit certain expenses for tax purposes, but these are things that you discuss with your tax advisor.

FIV: Do I actually have to renovate an inherited property?

In a case like this, no one has to “have to” anything. If I want to sell the object, the price depends also completely crucially on the building condition of the house. The condition of the property as such is also important for a good selling price. The Basic Law states that property obliges the owner. So also obliged to maintain the property in good condition. It really depends on the individual case whether renovation is necessary or not.

Leverages & all about apartment buildings

FIV: Let’s go back to the subject of debt. How can I tell if my inherited property is in debt?

The insight into the land register is indispensable! Even those who believe they know if and what debts are encumbering the inherited property should ask for an extract from the land register. There may also be unknown encumbrances, such as rights of way to neighboring properties, third-party residential rights, redevelopment notices, etc. Since the heir enters into the inheritance with all rights and duties, one can also experience nasty surprises.

And finally it can be also that the inherited real estate is not yet paid off with the bank. If you want to sell hastily, you may have to include the fees for the early redemption of the loan in your bill when you redeem the loan. So it can be cheaper to enter the credit and wait for the remaining term until you sell. These are just a few aspects that need to be considered. But quite serious…

FIV: And what about an apartment building? Let’s start with renting out an apartment building.

Strictly speaking, renting an apartment building is something for professionals. But you can also become a professional over time. Also here I recommend – at least in the beginning time – to cooperate with a broker with the letting. For example, if there are vacancies in the house or if new tenants are to be sought.
The easiest way is, of course, if the house is well rented and the tenants do not cause any problems. If you don’t want to deal with the tenants yourself with regard to utility bills, renovation work, etc., you can fall back on property management.

FIV: Surely selling an apartment building is not easy?

I don’t necessarily want to call it the “supreme discipline”, but it takes a lot of experience to do something like that! This begins with the professional and market-oriented evaluation of the house, the appraisal of the building condition and continues with the preparation of the exposé, the coordination and execution of viewing appointments to the accompaniment of the sales process at the notary. Also real estate owners with a lot of experience like to use the help of real estate agents at this point.

All the other things we have talked about also apply to the sale or rental of an apartment building or an inherited flat.

Find help & use

But I would like to emphasize that nobody needs to be afraid of all these things. In addition to estate agents and real estate experts, there are tax specialists and lawyers who answer the heir’s questions. First aid can also be obtained from the appropriate websites. However, the individual appraisal of the inherited property should always be carried out personally by an expert.

FIV: That’s really encouraging! What is – to conclude the topic – if there are several heirs for the property?

Basically simple, but sometimes complicated in its effects: The individual co-heir cannot in any case dispose of the property alone. It is best if the community of heirs reaches an agreement and the property can be sold by private contract – i.e. in the normal course of business. However, I have often experienced that the heirs cannot agree on the sale. If that degenerates into a long dispute, then the property loses value day by day…

FIV: Then let’s talk about your job and living in general. Being a real estate agent means being available at all times. Buyers and sellers certainly often want immediate service, whether in the morning or – I exaggerate something – at night. With all the questions, calculations and valuations: What do you like most about the real estate business?

It’s not that exaggerated with the service even at night times – you add 22 o’clock to the night time… It’s really rare, but there are also customers who still have urgent questions at these times. In any case, weekends are often enough times for business with visits, inquiries about valuations and exposés, etc.
My parents already put the occupation with the building of houses, the trade with real estates into my cradle. But that doesn’t mean that I never wanted or could have done anything else! I really enjoy holding a really tangible and almost living product in my hands with the property. An apartment or a house is not just a simple enclosed space. Even if there are no people living in the property, the property has changed a lot over the years. By that I don’t mean the building condition, but the value. It changes with the value of the city, the district, the street.

But the main thing is the people who live, work and grow older in the property. They give every house, every apartment its individual character. I find it absolutely exciting to think about every property I build, sell or rent: How would I live and work here myself? Are the rooms cleverly arranged? Is there enough light at the right times of day? What type of person is this property best suited for?

Realtor philosophy

All these are the questions and considerations that help to connect man and property. It is a real feeling of happiness for me when I notice that the customers I have searched for and found for the property are just as enthusiastic about the property as I am. Of course, this does not always succeed. But in the course of the years not only the customer file grows but also my experience. The seller and buyer of a property then also profit from this.

FIV: What philosophy do you follow in your advice when helping customers sell their property? Is there a kind of philosophy that you follow as a broker or do you calculate sober prices and square meters?

Sobriety with regard to the valuation of an object is absolutely part of the business. It is she who gives the real estate agent the opportunity to evaluate a house, an apartment etc. without a personal history with the object. But for me, real estate is not just the proverbial concrete gold. Real estate is a living and working environment that should suit its inhabitants. When I now say that I am bringing both – property and owner – together like a marriage broker, it sounds strange, but it is a good comparison.

FIV: If I look for a real estate agent now, what do I have to pay attention to? What makes a really honest and good broker?

Until today the professional title broker is not protected. Although there are trained and partly studied real estate specialists, in the end every real estate agent who wants to can call himself a real estate agent. Also the membership in one of the many professional associations of brokers is not necessarily a quality criterion for a good broker.

Everything starts with a good gut feeling towards the broker. If I get along with his individual nature, this is the basis for a trusting cooperation. Objective criteria are then further whether the real estate agent knows the area where the property is located. he should be able to provide comprehensible information about the current market situation for purchase, sale or lease. You can also ask other buyers in the broker’s vicinity – for example – how the cooperation went. References are of course also available in bulk via corresponding portals on the Internet.

Thank you so much for the interview.

Interview with real estate expert Jan Rickel from IHV – Die Immobilien Makler.