Renovate the father-in-law's house and live in it

Hello everyone,

first of all, thank you very much for your help. I need advice on the following situation.

My wife’s grandmother (single) and her father (single) each own a paid-off house on adjacent plots. Now my father-in-law has offered us to move into his mother’s house and to let us use his house free of charge. However, he wants to remain the owner, just as his mother remains the owner of her house.

His house, which we would then live in, needs extensive renovation, if not even refurbishment, and I am expecting costs of about 150,000 to 200,000.
What would you say, are there any possibilities here?

(The reason why the houses are to remain owned by the grandmother and the father respectively is that each is their retirement provision.)

Many thanks and best regards,
Bernd

I definitely wouldn't do that. What if the father-in-law becomes severely in need of care and has to go to a nursing home, then what? Or if you were to separate? Of course, that's like painting a black picture, but what happens if these cases occur?

You make larger investments in a house -> you have yourself registered in the land register with a fair share. There is no other solution to protect your money. We are no longer talking about painting 3 rooms here. Apart from that, a bank will only pay out a potentially necessary loan to the owner.

If the appropriate equity is available, I could imagine the following arrangement: You grant the father-in-law a corresponding loan for renovation/refurbishment. The father-in-law repays the loan through reduced/free rent provision (you offset rent against loan repayment).

Investing your own money in a third party's property without further considerations is a no-go!

Good evening,

The best option would be for your father-in-law to bequeath the house to his daughter (advance inheritance) and at the same time have the usufruct registered. An investment without registration in the land register would not be good and is certainly not in the interest of your father-in-law. Because if it is for retirement security, you would always have to expect that it will be sold first, and I think you do not want that.