The offer promises a long-term secured apartment and states a purchase price for this. The documents refer to Dauerwohnrecht. Before you compare it with an ordinary condominium purchase, you must clarify which right you will actually receive and which obligations are attached to it.
Correctly name the legal subject matter
§31 WEG describes the Dauerwohnrecht as a burden on a property in favour of a person who may use a specific flat to the exclusion of the owner. The provision distinguishes from this the Dauernutzungsrecht for premises not intended for residential purposes. [DAUERRECHT]
You must not conclude from a colloquial purchase description alone that you are acquiring an ordinary ownership share in a condominium. Have the notary explain the offered right with the concrete registration and the relevant deeds. This article deals with the German statutory Dauerwohnrecht, not holiday part-time use or a mere lifetime promise of a right of residence.
The deeds set out scope and rules
§32 WEG addresses the registration requirements and the reference to the registration consent with annexes. §33 names transferability and inheritability as well as content that may be agreed, for example on use, maintenance, burdens and insurance. [URKUNDE] [INHALT]
Therefore ask for a clear explanation specifically of the provisions of your offer. Which rooms and outdoor areas are included? Which payment is one-off, which recurring? Which tasks are you to take on? A definition read generally on the internet does not answer these questions for your property.
Hypothetical case: The purchase price conceals ongoing duties
An interested party compares only the quoted amount with apartment prices in the area. He assumes that, apart from consumption costs, he will have no further obligations. The documents, however, contain provisions on maintenance, charges and other circumstances that he has not yet understood.
He therefore has the actual scope of the right and the associated obligations explained together. The example comparison does not determine a market value. It shows why two different legal positions should not be compared solely on the basis of their one-off payment amounts.
Discuss changes and a later transfer
What provisions exist for transfer, use by other persons, structural requests or special retransfer cases? Have the actual contract explained, including the reversion (Heimfall) and compensation questions relevant there. This article does not decide any concrete legal consequence and does not describe a blanket possibility of termination at any time.
If you want to finance, the bank requires the complete concrete legal situation. An assessment for ordinary condominium ownership is not without examination the same financing. Ask about the securities and conditions actually accepted; the article does not presume creditworthiness.
Align your housing goal with the offered right
In the end you should be able to explain in your own words which right you will receive, for how long and to what extent you may use it according to the examined foundations and which obligations arise. Assign unresolved points to a specialist clarification before you commit yourself.
After examination a Dauerwohnrecht can fit a housing objective. Its suitability, however, results from the clarified content of this right and your concrete planning. The mere similarity of an advertising formulation to the purchase of a condominium is not a sufficient basis for a decision.