So that your partner is not left out in the rain after a death, you should write a will as soon as possible.
Posted today at 5:30 am—
–Little cash and inheritance payments: Often surviving partners can no longer bear the joint house with the mortgage.
Illustration: Christina Baeriswyl
My husband and I have a large condominium and a mortgage. The children have moved out. Although we amortize indirectly through the 3rd pillar, it is still a lot. Since we’re both over 55, I worry about what would happen if either of us died. Do we need special cover? Readers question from DL
The first question is whether you are married or whether you are cohabiting. If you are married, the question to be considered is whether you live in benefit sharing as most married people do. In this constellation, half of your joint achievement, namely the share of the deceased partner, as well as his own property would end up in the estate. The other share of the achievement as well as his own property remain with the surviving partner. Half of the estate is allocated to the children and the surviving partner without any special regulation.
You have to consider whether you or your partner in this constellation could still bear the condominium with a mortgage alone. It happens again and again that surviving partners have to find out after a death that they can no longer bear a house or apartment with a mortgage because they have to pay adult children the portion of the estate to which they are legally entitled. In practice, many married couples have invested a large part of their savings in home ownership and not so much additional free funds that would be needed to pay out the portion of the estate to their children.
One simple means I recommend is a will. Each partner places the children on the compulsory portion in his handwritten will and allocates the free quota to the surviving partner. The aim is not to disadvantage the children with malicious intent, but rather to protect the surviving partner and to enable him or her to keep and carry the condominium after a death.
Otherwise it can happen that it is too late for a settlement after a sudden death.
You can also secure each other through a marriage contract and thus assign the full achievement to the surviving partner. Let a lawyer advise you on the relevant options and arrangements. You can also discuss the usufruct variant.
The starting position is much more complex if you are not married and instead live together as a cohabitant. In this constellation, a will in which all other heirs are given the compulsory portion is even more important. Because unlike married couples, cohabiting couples have no inheritance claim by law – even if they have perhaps been living together like a married couple for decades.
Therefore, as a cohabiting couple, you should also fully assign the freely available quota to the surviving partner in the will. It is also important that you both check whether the pension fund of the respective partner has been informed about the cohabitation so that in the event of death, a claim can be made at all. You should also have each other set up as beneficiaries for your Pillar 3a. However, the statutory compulsory portions of other heirs – especially your adult children – are not invalidated.
As a first step, I advise you to check the estate arrangement in detail with the person you trust at your bank or insurance company and, if necessary, with a lawyer or a notary. Even if it is uncomfortable to deal with these aspects, it should not be postponed, otherwise it can happen that it is too late for a settlement after a surprising death of a partner.
Other interesting posts from the money blog:
Do I have to plan my pension in detail?
Should couples coordinate their pension fund payments?
Does the corona crisis endanger pensions?