Construction on someone else's property with subsequent purchase

We have now already researched and the following points are apparently deductible from the profit as additional costs (for the seller, in addition to the old purchase price) when selling to us:

[*]Notary (original costs for purchase and for sale?) [*]Real estate transfer tax [*]Land registry entry [*]Experts (if there was something back then, this still needs to be clarified) [*]Valuation report (if there was something back then, this still needs to be clarified – do soil reports count here as well?)

- Notary ==> yes, but only for the purchase. The notary costs of the sale (= your purchase) are borne by you and not by the acquaintance. - Real estate transfer tax together with land registry fees ==> yes - Experts / reports ==> yes If repair/modernization costs for the old hut were incurred within the first three years after acquisition, these can also be applied. Also advertising costs such as ads for the sale. Surveying and partitioning are also deductible costs. Whether demolition costs can be taken into account (these only arise now) I cannot say. I would rather reduce the purchase price by these costs. P.S. Don't forget the depreciation (AfA) over the years. This increases the profit.

I somehow fear that in the effort to save taxes, one creates other, worse problems that one otherwise would not have had. I know that such thinking is widespread, but the lady is not giving anything to the state unnecessarily, nor is she giving anything away; she would only be following the applicable tax rules. If there are simple ways to reduce taxes, one can do that, but as soon as it drifts into constructs, I get a stomach ache, also because most other pitfalls then arise. With the planned demolition on your property by the current owner, the fun could already begin. I would prefer to take full responsibility for that myself. We, along with another couple, have badly fallen on our faces with a tax-saving model related to property, albeit a completely different kind of struggle, without having gained any advantage from it; another couple too. It may be different with you and work out great, but I would still advise you to have absolute clarity and no entanglements with the seller, especially since the amount is apparently not so high. If someone is so stingy or already argues almost absurdly, I see the risk that this could happen elsewhere as well.

Surveying and partitioning are also chargeable costs.

Do you possibly have any source for that? I haven't been able to find anything so far.

Do you possibly have any source for that? I haven’t been able to find anything so far.

I don’t have one off the top of my head. But don’t make life so difficult for yourselves over a few € (it’s not about more than that here).

Buy the property, reduce the purchase price by the demolition costs and the surveying costs to be on the safe side.

I’m slowly not understanding the problem anymore. And when you leave the notary appointment in the end, just hand the acquaintance a hundred euros, because what are we even talking about here? Just do it if you want the property.

There is an old, quite dilapidated bungalow on the property that definitely needs to go. If our acquaintance were to demolish it and have the debris/trash removed before selling it to us, would these also be costs to be deducted from the profit? Unfortunately, we couldn’t find anything conclusive on this. The same applies, for example, to new fences that she had purchased and erected.

A bungalow that is not worth renovating in the eyes of the buyers does not automatically mean that a demolition permit will be granted; I am thinking here, for example, of Berlin’s regulations against the misuse of residential space.

Another point would be the mentioned surveying and subdivision to straighten the interlocking property boundary. Would the surveying and subdivision be deductible from the profit? (It is done explicitly for the sale, as otherwise there would be a small shed on the interlocking property boundary.)

Is this supposed to become an exciting serial novel, or why do you come around with such exciting details like the old building (pricing potential) or the shed (lease / building right annuity) drip by drip?

Do you possibly have any source for that? Couldn’t find anything so far.

I would consider the surveying for boundary straightening and subdivision as "advertising costs".

I don’t have it ad hoc. But don’t make life unnecessarily difficult over a few € (it’s not about more than that).

Buy the property, reduce the purchase price by the demolition costs and the surveying costs to be on the safe side.

I’m starting to not understand the problem anymore. And when you leave the notary appointment in the end, just slip the acquaintance a hundred in the hand, because what are we even talking about here? Just do it if you want the property.

The "problem" seems to be the seller, for whom it is apparently important to reduce the payment to the state (not only hers but also the buyer’s). I’m curious how long this will drag on, whether the purchase will be completed, and hope for a "all’s well that ends well." :)