Please note, this article is written with a focus toward the German market, but very similar laws apply everywhere.

Testament – Inherit the assets correctly

Without a testament, the estate will be distributed according to the provisions of the legal succession. However, this is not always in the interest of the testator. If a will exists, the assets can be distributed differently than the law requires and non-blood relatives can also inherit. The making of a will is therefore not only important to regulate the last will and testament exactly, but also to avoid disputes in the family.

• Learn more about: Correctly inherit
• Exemptions and Inheritance Tax

The Content – What can be regulated in a will?

A will overrides the legal succession and can thus determine a new succession. The testator determines who is to take over the inheritance. If several persons are named, the assets are usually divided according to quotas. Writing a will also allows the testator to leave individual items to certain persons, such as a car, jewelry or real estate. However, these are legally not considered as inheritance but as bequest. To avoid disputes about the estate, the estate can be distributed in a will in such a way that no points of contention can arise.

Setting up – the notary helps

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

If, however, a will is drawn up with the help of a civil law notary, this means that the testator has verbally recorded his last will and testament with a civil law notary. This is particularly important when real estate is part of the estate, because 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.

Assigning Real Estate in a will – avoiding community of heirs and disputes

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 then formed in which no one can dispose of the inheritance alone. When such a property is sold, 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 that the heirs have to pay if no will exists. In a will, the last will and testament can regulate the last will and testament about the real estate in detail and save disputes and unnecessary costs for all parties involved.

Debts in your estate – Protect your private assets

The heir to an estate takes over not only the assets but also the liabilities of the deceased. In general, an heir must reject a debt inheritance within six weeks, otherwise the heir is liable for the debts with his private assets. If it is clear from the outset that it is a debt inheritance, the inheritance can be rejected within the six-week period. If it only becomes apparent later that the estate is burdened with debts, an application for bankruptcy can be filed. The private assets of the heir are thus protected and the debts must only be repaid from the estate.

The traps – What to pay attention to

Particularly when it comes to the question of how best to inherit the estate, mistakes often occur in the correct implementation that limit the last will and testament.

No will

Without a will, the legal succession automatically takes effect. This can lead not only to disputes within the family, but also to the fact that loved ones are left empty-handed

No replacement heir

If the designated heir is already deceased at the time of death, the legal succession takes effect, which is not always in favour of the testator. The nomination of a substitute heir is therefore very important to avoid legal succession.

Non-marital partners

Non-marital partners must be clearly named in the will, as they are left empty-handed according to the legal succession

No children

Childless married couples without a will do not inherit completely to the remaining spouse, but also to parents or siblings. If the spouse is to administer the estate, this must be named exactly.

No clarity

A testament should always clearly state what the last will and testament is. If it is not clear how the estate is to be treated, errors may occur.

Legal succession – this happens without a will

If the deceased leaves children and a spouse, the spouse receives half of the assets according to the legal succession. The other half is divided between the children. If the deceased has no children, the spouse receives 75 percent of the assets and second-order relatives, such as siblings or parents, receive the remaining part of the inheritance.

In general, the spouse always inherits. Apart from this only heirs of one order can inherit, for example the children. If there is a first-order heir, such as a child, no one inherits from the second or third order.

Please also inform yourself about the topic: compulsory part in the inheritance!

Statistics: Inheritance in Germany

Here you can see inheritances and donations in Germany. The survey ranges from 2008 to 2018 and shows that over 110,000 inheritances are distributed annually. Great potential for dispute if the community of heirs does not agree.

You can find more statistics at Statista

How much money is inherited?

Since 2014, Hamburg in particular has been the leader in Germany. Hamburg is currently at the top with 167.80 euros. In no other city is so much inherited. With a population share of 2.19% of total Germany (1.82 million of 82.79 million), a total volume of 305,731,600 Euro is inherited annually.

• Population share Hamburg 2.19%
• Inheritance in Germany (comparison year) 109,635; statistically 2,401 inheritances in Hamburg
• Total inheritance (Hamburg / year) 305,731,600 Euro

Sell your inheritance? House prices in Germany

Here you can see the cities with the highest prices per square meter for condominiums in a comparison of 2010 and 2018* (in euros per square meter).

1. 1. Munich (Bavaria) with 8,342 euros per square meter; from 6,737 euros per square meter in 2014; increase of 1,695 euros per square meter in 4 years
   2. Stuttgart (Baden-Württemberg) with 5,925 euros per square meter; from 4744 euros per sqm in 2014; increase of 1,181 euros per sqm
   3. Frankfurt am Main (Hesse) with 6,060 euros per square meter; from 4,373 euros per square meter in 2014; increase of 1,687 euros per square meter
   4. Freiburg im Breisgau (Bavaria) with 4,943 euros per square meter; from 4,740 euros per square meter in 2014; increase 203 euros per square meter in 2014; increase 203 euros per square meter in 2014

1. Ingolstadt (Bavaria) with 4,969 euros per square meter; from 4,287 euros per sqm in 2014; increase 682 euros per sqm

You can find more facts and figures on this topic at: Statistics Heritage.

The most important questions: Will and correct inheritance

In order to avoid family disputes and ignorance about the estate, it is important to settle the inheritance during your lifetime. Our experts have answered all important questions on this subject for you.

When is a donation tax-free?

Parents can give their children something from their inheritance and this is tax free. This possibility facilitates the inheritance taxes that are due on the inheritance. Parents may give their children a tax-free gift of 500,000 euros, while the amount is limited to 20,000 euros. .

Can I sign over my child to my house?

If you would like your child, or one of your children to receive your property, you can sign over the property while you are still alive. However, this is considered a gift, which is why your descendant will own ten percent of the property with every year you live after the gift.

How is an inheritance divided without a will?

Without a will, the inheritance is distributed according to the legal succession. In the first place, this succession takes into account the spouses and children. Other relatives are usually not taken into account.

What does the transfer of a house cost?

The cost of transferring a house depends on the value of the property. As a rule, the value is determined by the comparative value method.

Is a donation taxable?

A gift is taxed in the same way as an inheritance, but the same tax allowances apply to gifts as to inheritance.

What is meant by a gift?

A gift is a donation by which someone enriches someone else from his or her assets without demanding a monetary contribution.

Der Beitrag Your Inheritance: Distributing Real Estate and Property erschien zuerst auf ℄ Real Estates.

Legal Portion Despite Disinheritance – You have these Rights

In many families there are conflicts, which often lead to parents wanting to disinherit their children. The parents must determine this wish in their will. Much more common, however, is the desire to disinherit the children only until both spouses are dead. This is possible with the so-called Berlin will. The longer living spouse is therefore first the sole heir and only after his death the common children inherit. Learn here which alternatives the law offers and how the legal portion is determined.

Disinheriting Relatives – Will, Inheritance Contract, Berlin Testament

Basically, each person is free to decide who to appoint as heirs and who 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 is entitled to a compulsory portion. This entitlement must be requested by the heir himself, because the certificate of inheritance does not mention these entitlements to a compulsory portion. If a testator sets 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 disinherit close relatives together in an inheritance contract or a Berliner Testament. In a classic form of the Berlin Testament, the spouses stipulated that the partner who lived longer would become the sole heir and the children would only inherit when both spouses had died. The parents therefore disinherit their children until both have died. If someone is disinherited, the part of the inheritance that would have been due to this heir is due to the person who would have become heir if the disinherited had already died at the time of the inheritance.

The Entitlement – Only the Next of Kin Receive the Compulsory Portion

Despite disinheritance, close relatives are entitled to part of the assets. This fact is based in the law on the duty of care that the deceased has for his close relatives even after his death. However, this applies only to the next of kin, which, according to the law, are determined as follows: Close relatives include legitimate, illegitimate 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 deceased, if there are no children. Grandchildren are only eligible 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 portion of the inheritance and are therefore not to be understood as close relatives. Whoever is disinherited must assert a right to the legal portion of heir’s estate against the other heirs.The Amount – this is how the compulsory portion is calculated

The compulsory portion is half of the legal inheritance that the person is entitled to. For the exact calculation, all relatives must be taken into account, both the heirs and the disinherited, as well as those who have rejected the inheritance. Those who are not taken into consideration are those who have already renounced the inheritance during the testator’s lifetime.

The example explains the distribution of the inheritance as follows: There is a testator who leaves three children as heirs. Child1 has already rejected the inheritance during the testator’s lifetime. Child2 has been disinherited by the testator and must claim his compulsory portion from Child3, who has been designated as sole heir in the will. In a normal inheritance case, each child would receive one third of the estate. Since Kind1 has already waived the inheritance during his lifetime, this is removed from the calculation. The inheritance is therefore divided half each between Child2 and Child3. As Child2 was disinherited, he is only entitled to the legal portion of heir, i.e. half of his actual inheritance. Child2 thus inherits a quarter of the inheritance and child3, as sole heir, inherits three quarters of the inheritance.</block quota>.
If the odds are clearly calculated, the value of the discount can be determined to find out how much is allocated to each odds. Decisive for this second calculation is the market value. Our property valuation explains the methods. This is based on the amount that the heirs could obtain in the event of a sale. For this determination it is often necessary to have the value of real estate, companies or land estimated by experts. The costs incurred for this, however, reduce the right to the compulsory portion. It is therefore advisable, especially for small estates, to determine the value without an expert and to agree among themselves on a compulsory portion.

Remove compulsory portion – these are the Testators’ Rights

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. The BGB sets out some reasons for a complete disinheritance. In § 2333 BGB the following is listed, who can be completely disinherited:

• Seeks to kill the testator or a close relative
• Has been sentenced to imprisonment without parole for a criminal offence for at least one year, or is being held in a psychiatric hospital or rehab facility for that reason
• Has committed a crime against the testator or a person close to the testator. This includes, for example, theft or bodily injury.
• Killed the testator or both parents

In general, it must be unreasonable for the testator to leave his share to the beneficiary of the compulsory portion as the minimum economic participation. No reason for a complete disinheritance is, for example, a child who has broken off all contact with the parents and does not care for them. If a child is disinherited in the will and the testator forgives this child however before the death, the disposition in the will is ineffective.

Claims for a compulsory portion are subject to a limitation period of three years. This begins with the end of the year in which the claim arose. As a rule, this means on 01 January of the year following the year of death.

The Most Important Questions on the Subject of the Legal Portion of Heirship

The issue of the compulsory portion and disinheritance in the will is a difficult one that often raises questions among those affected. To ensure that you are well informed and do not make any mistakes regarding deadlines or form, the Lukinski experts will answer all important questions on the subject of the legal portion of heir.

How much is the compulsory portion in percent?

The compulsory portion of a disinherited relative is half of the inheritance share that is actually due. The percentage must be determined on a case-by-case basis, as it depends on how many co-heirs there are and how much of the inheritance is.

How high is the compulsory portion with 3 children?

If the inheritance is divided equally among three children, each would receive one third of the estate. If one of the three is disinherited and therefore demands the legal portion of heir, he would receive half of the inheritance that he would actually have been entitled to. In this example one sixth of the inheritance.

Can a compulsory portion become time-barred?

A compulsory portion shall become time-barred after three years. The period begins on January 1 of the year following the year of death.

Can the compulsory portion be refused?

In order to receive a legal portion of heir, the heir must claim it. If he does not do so, the claim expires after three years. The heir with a right to the compulsory portion does not have to reject it, but simply does not have to claim it.

What is the compulsory portion in the case of disinheritance?

If an heir has been disinherited by the testator in the will, the testator is still entitled to a legal portion of heir. This compulsory portion amounts to half of the legal inheritance.

Can the compulsory portion be claimed during one’s lifetime?

The compulsory portion can be paid by the testator during his or her lifetime in the form of a gift or compensation to the disinherited relative. A claim is not possible, only an agreement with the testator allows this alternative.

Der Beitrag Berliner Testament: German Inheritance Law Explained, Amount for Children, Partner + More erschien zuerst auf ℄ Real Estates.