Real estate can be a real pleasure.

For example, when they realize a lifelong dream or simply when they increase in value significantly, as they have in the past ten years.

But they can also cause a lot of trouble.

For example, if they are inherited or in the event of a divorce.

Then the beautiful house quickly becomes an object of dispute.

Everyone wants it, and those who don't get it feel like a loser.

Dyrk Scherff

Editor in the “Value” section of the Frankfurter Allgemeine Sunday newspaper.

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It is not uncommon for disputes to end up in court.

28 percent of all legal disputes in the area of ​​private law are inheritance disputes, 32 percent are divorce and separation cases.

These are the two leading groups in this field.

That's not surprising.

Because it is about values ​​that often exceed the million mark.

In some cases, they have more than doubled since 2010 – at least in the metropolitan areas.

And the prospects for a further, long-term rise are good.

That arouses desires.

Unfortunately, compromises are usually difficult when it comes to real estate, because at least the classic single-family house cannot be easily divided up – unlike money.

Although ownership of the property can be divided between several heads, only one can live in it.

Only in exceptional cases can two residential units be created from this.

Mixed constructions cause trouble

But such mixed constructions with several owners, but only one who lives in the property, regularly cause trouble, especially when it comes to major maintenance work.

In order to become the sole owner, he or she must compensate the other parties involved financially for the waiver.

But that usually fails because, given the high real estate prices, sums would be required that many do not have at their disposal and for which they cannot get a loan.

The problem occurs frequently.

Divorces are often about the common house.

And real estate is also passed on in around half of inheritance cases.

Forecasts for the period from 2015 to 2024 expect that 4.3 million properties will be inherited, almost half of them single-family homes and a quarter condominiums, i.e. properties that cannot be physically divided.

Around 85 percent of real estate is inherited in western Germany.

The transferred value is only slightly below the value of the inherited financial assets

(see chart)

.

So quarreling is programmed.

But it can be avoided or at least steered in a sensible direction.

There are different recommendations for inheritance and divorce.

Gerhart Flothow has a lot of experience with this.

He is a mediator for real estate disputes in Mainz and tries to mediate between heirs and spouses in divorce in order to avoid court proceedings.

"The advantage of mediation is that those involved are looking for a solution that everyone can accept, and are not presented with a decision by the court that always creates losers."

Discuss division of inheritance with children

When it comes to inheritance, Flothow finds one of the most important things that the parents discuss the distribution of the inheritance with the children while they are still alive.

"Some people find that difficult because they don't talk about death and want to avoid conflicts with children who might not like the will." But the alternative is all the worse: "If the relatives only find out what they inherit after death, quarrels are programmed.

Someone always feels disadvantaged, and the deceased can no longer explain their motives for the decision,” warns the mediator.