Heritable lease property the only solution?

I do not see the financial argument as a disadvantage, though. A 150 sqm single-family house, 25 years old, was just sold to us for 800k. With leasehold...
No one can tell me that the HOUSE itself is worth 800k....

You are not selling the house itself, but the leasehold land along with the structures. The leasehold right as such can also have an immense value, especially with existing properties.
Why? Land value 25 years ago was 100k - in return, leasehold interest of 200€ monthly. Land value today 400k - but maybe still leasehold interest of 200€ monthly. Just try to get a piece of land worth 400k today for 200€ monthly. Even at 1% interest, you would have to pay 333€ monthly for 400k. Repayment, which is indeed wealth formation, but still burdens liquidity with possibly another 666€, not even considered yet.

Hmm great, if you can ignore that.
Personally, I couldn’t.

But the fact that the bank has its hand over "your" land is a difference? You could also say, "I can’t ignore that I am registered in the land register (as with leasehold, by the way) but the land actually belongs to the bank because it finances it."

Hmm great if you can hide it like that.

What am I supposed to hide? That I searched forever for a building plot? That I found one without realtor commission and building commitment to BT? That I had to wait for my financing? That I was very nervous at the notary, especially since I had 2 appointments there because I sold my old house? That I am registered in the land register? That I was looking forward to the building permit? Planted the first tree, built my house..? Etc... Emotions underlie every step...

Leaving something behind for descendants is not such a good solution, because what has been built eventually becomes part of the community again.

Well,... leaving behind... nowadays that doesn’t really work without multigenerational households, with double earners and care in old age at all. Maybe one should ignore that a bit more ;)

Well,... leaving behind... that doesn’t work nowadays without multigenerational households, with dual earners and care in old age at all.

Every child a house, an investment portfolio and some cash – many will be able to achieve that and the idea has something to it. Money is a significant means of influence, albeit secondary to personality development, education, culture and social competence. The community benefits from inheritance tax regulations – whose allowance thresholds and scope for design could of course also still be discussed and in my view urgently should be. Among “better earners,” “wealthy” and at the same time “politically rather left-wing” people, the phenomenon of cognitive dissonance typically sets in.

I am not fooling myself, whether it is my parents' house or ours: as an average earner, we will eventually have to liquidate the house to pay for a caregiver or even a nursing home. I will not inherit much from my parents, and our children will not receive what was inherited 10 years ago. It may be different in higher income brackets, but for average earnings, that simply no longer works.

Considering only one's own life horizon, leasehold is certainly an attractive option that conserves liquidity.

It depends on the contract and the building location. We were offered a leasehold plot where, in addition to the monthly €100 rent (which would be acceptable), there would have been an additional €35,000 development costs, about 60% of the land value. That is then no longer particularly liquidity-conserving. If the land is expensive, the ratio naturally looks somewhat different again.

I am not fooling myself, whether it is my parents' house or ours: as average earners, we will eventually have to liquidate the house to pay for a caregiver or even a nursing home. I won't get much inheritance from my parents, and our children won't get what was inherited 10 years ago. It may be different in higher income brackets, but for average earners, it just doesn't work anymore.

What should I ignore? That I searched forever for a building plot? That I found one without realtor commission and binding to the builder? That I had to wait for my financing? That I was very nervous at the notary, also having two appointments there because I sold my old house? That I am registered in the land register? That I was looking forward to the building permit? Planted the first tree, built my house...? Etc... The emotions that underlie every step shape this... Well,... leaving something behind... that just doesn't work nowadays without a multi-generation household, with dual earners and care in old age at all. Maybe one should ignore that a bit more ;)

That's the problem nowadays... getting anything decent at all, without having to neglect 95% of your wishes as compromises... everything has to fit in proportion... We have actually already decided on the plot... I am also happy to read experience here that so far no one has taken it... we have now waited 6 years for this area... probably if it were for sale, we wouldn't have been able to afford it and would have had to take another smaller one... it would have become very tight monthly given the size... through leasehold it is possible for us... A bungalow just needs space... I see these two factors as disadvantages: In retirement, you still have monthly fixed costs... when selling, you don't get the land value... I want to eventually solve the first with a small rental apartment and the second is the problem of my kids Many thanks for the numerous replies