Construction costs are currently skyrocketing

I have a question regarding financing methods. I have googled a bit but couldn't find anything on it, maybe I'm just missing the right terms.
We don't want children and have been wondering if there is a method to make building significantly cheaper or even finance it at all under the current situation. The question is whether there is a method where you give up the house after our death? So it is not inherited.
(We don't see renting as an alternative. And yes, we really don't want children.)

A paid-off house is for us just a lot of unused capital as soon as we die.

I was once told that there were cheap plots of land that would pass into the ownership of the church after 100 years. Something along those lines is what I had in mind.

I was once told that there were cheap plots of land that would pass into the ownership of the church after 100 years. That's the kind of thing I had in mind.

Maybe you meant hereditary lease? That is sometimes offered by cities or the like.

Back to the church

You mean leasehold... you simply pay rent for, for example, 100 years and are not the owner of the land
That used to be quite normal here with us, but our bank, for example, said right away they don’t do that

You then buy a house on credit but don’t own the land beneath it
I mean, there were even problems (not for you) if the lease expires and is not renewed, then the heirs can demand the demolition

Back to the church You mean leasehold... you just pay rent for, say, 100 years and are not the owner of the land. That used to be quite common here, for example, our bank immediately said they wouldn't do it. You then buy a house on credit but don't own the land underneath. I think there were even problems (not for you) when the lease expires and is not extended, then you can demand demolition from the heirs.

No, it's not that bad. A (dynamically determined in the notary contract) amount must be paid. Also, 100 years is already quite a long time. I currently have such a leasehold property but with the prospect of buying it in about 8 years. But honestly, I wouldn't mind, maybe even prefer to continue paying only €180 ground rent instead of financing €120K. I don't have to inherit anything, I've taken good care of myself during my lifetime... ;). It's true that not every bank finances a building on it, at least not if the term has already started long ago. I would inform myself about how it is to build a house on leasehold and then maybe sell it after xx years but with a granted right of residence. And whether such a combination is worthwhile for you, I don't know. We don't know how old you are, and many other infos are missing to try calculation examples.

We were also offered a leasehold property like this 2 years ago. It is clear that with interest rates around 1%, a lease rate of 2% was not financially attractive, even if we ignore the reversion for a moment. The whole thing would also have been linked to income development in Germany. But that was only half the story. The church also wanted €30,000 from us for development costs, for a plot value of about €60,000 (developed). In that case, we would have actually paid double the lease. I am glad that we found our current property in time. Basically, the lessor also wants to make money, and more than they would get if they sold the property and put the money in the bank. So this is not a savings model.

If you want to cash in on the house in old age, it is best to sell it under the condition that you may continue to live there as a tenant at a market rent. I would refrain from partial sales, etc., these companies combine the disadvantages of both worlds for you. You are a tenant for half the house but still responsible for the maintenance of the whole house. Since half the house is already sold, you can no longer simply sell the house to normal buyers either. On top of that, the high fees.

Something about the current market situation here with us. New build apartments in 2 multi-family houses by the developer in a small village with 6,000 inhabitants, which will be completed by February 23, are now coming onto the offer procedure through the developer. That means the minimum bid for a 93 m2 new build apartment is 199,000 €. The original price was 340,000 €. It has been listed on the internet for over a year for that price. Now anyone can bid (through the real estate agent) and if they know what others have bid, they can raise their offer again. I consider that fair. But whether many would bid in the current situation, I would doubt. But the example shows the future development in the construction industry. A price of -140,000 € less (as minimum bid) is already incredibly low. But the developer still hasn’t sold over 1/3 of the apartments. You could now make a good deal (hoping the developer does not go bankrupt, as the entire outdoor area is not yet finished). So maybe not such a good idea after all.