How to correctly draw up a will for an apartment: Important rules

How to make a will for an inheritance during your lifetime

Important! Please keep in mind that:
Each case is unique and individual.
A thorough study of the issue does not always guarantee a positive outcome. It depends on many factors.

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All the rules and nuances of drawing up a will are reflected in Art. 1124 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation. The procedure for writing a testamentary document includes some rules that must be followed

A will must be drawn up in writing;
It must be certified by a notary. In a force majeure situation, it can be drawn up without confirmation and a notary seal;
The writing process requires the presence of witnesses. Their role cannot be played by persons interested in receiving an inheritance or recognized as incompetent;
Indicating the place and date of drawing up the will is a mandatory item.

Order of succession

In approximately 68% of cases, property owners independently manage their apartments and do not allow legal division. After opening a will, attention is paid primarily to the will of the owner, and not to the wishes of the persons inheriting the property right.

The order in which inheritance should be entered into is strictly prescribed in the Civil Code of Russia. There are several inheritance queues.

The first of them includes people related by blood (children and parents) and spouses.

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Klimov Yaroslav

More than 12 years in real estate, higher legal education (Russian Academy of Justice)

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If there are no persons in the first group, the right to own the property passes to the next group, which includes sub-heirs: grandchildren, grandparents, brothers and sisters.

If a will is made according to the law, the property is distributed in such a way that the largest share is received by the first in line, and the last by the sub-heirs.

Persons living in cohabitation with the deceased also have the right to receive a share in the objects of the will.

Who can be the testator?

Article 118 of the Civil Code clearly states who has the right to act as a testator. This must be a capable person, of sound mind and sound memory, who is aware of his actions. Every sensible citizen of the Russian Federation has the right to draw up a testamentary document. In our country there is freedom of will, which allows anyone to express their last will. But some restrictions still exist

Children under eighteen years of age cannot write a will;
Incapacity of the testator;
Citizens who are under the influence of alcohol or drugs do not have the right to draw up such a paper;
The testator is not aware of his actions and does not understand what the concluded transaction may lead to.

Please note: This list of restrictions is a “protective barrier” against swindlers and all kinds of will fraud. A deal cannot be concluded under pressure!

nuances of inheritance

Going to court

To invalidate a will, you will need the following arguments:

Video or audio evidence;
Personal correspondence;
Witness statements;
Independent examinations.

All this should be collected before filing a claim in order to save time during the consideration of the case. Additionally, a forensic examination may be ordered.

The claim is filed in the court district at the last place of residence of the testator. Sometimes minors have to challenge such wills.

For example, a grandmother wrote a will for an apartment to her grandson from her eldest son, but she herself still has a minor daughter, about whom there is not a word in the text. In this case, his legal representative acts for the minor, and the guardianship service is involved in the consideration.

The court's decision to invalidate the will is attached to the inheritance file, after which the legal heirs have the right to receive a certificate of inheritance.

How to avoid litigation?

to whom can property be bequeathed?

Any provisions can be reflected in a testamentary document, it all depends on the specific case. But some points must be present without fail

According to the testator, all necessary information about potential heirs is recorded;
Full information about the property that will be distributed among relatives;
Date and place of execution of the will. This is a mandatory element, since in the absence of such data, relatives have every right to challenge the testator’s last will and invalidate the document.
Information about witnesses present at the notarization;
Notary certificate.

It is better to draw up the paper in the presence of a notary, an exception is made for those cases when the testator wishes to draw up a closed document. For this reason, a visit to a notary’s office becomes a mandatory point in the process of preparing a will. The office will also provide you with samples on how to correctly draw up a document so that it is impossible to challenge it later. You can get acquainted with a variety of options and choose the one that suits your case. When drawing up a closed will, the testator personally hands over the sealed envelope to the notary.

Price

To accept a will, you need to pay a state fee and specialist services.

The amount of the amount in 2021 in Russia will depend on the degree of relationship and the value of the property:
0.3% of the cost of the apartment for relatives, but not more than 100 thousand rubles;
0.6% of the price for property for third parties, but not more than 1 million rubles.

The cost of the object will be determined after an assessment by a specialist or BTI. Typically, notary services cost up to 3 thousand rubles, depending on the region.

Sample will

Moscow city, Russian Federation November twentieth two thousand and seventeen

I, Smirnova Elizaveta Antonovna, 12.07. Born in 1950, living in Moscow, Neglinnaya street, building 50, apt. 45 (passport 64 03 075832, issued by the Meshchansky District Department of Internal Affairs of Moscow on March 25, 2003), I draw up a will and make the order:

At the time of my death, I bequeath my real estate (apartment) to Anna Viktorovna Smirnova.
The notary familiarized me with the contents of Article 1149 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation in detail and explained all the nuances.
The text of the will was recorded from my words by a representative of a notary's office. Before signing, I personally read the drafted paper in the presence of a notary.
This testamentary document is drawn up in 2 (two) copies and each of them is signed personally by the testator. One copy is kept in the notary office of the city of Moscow, in the files of the notary A.L. Serova, and the second was issued to the testator Elizaveta Antonovna Smirnova.

Testator's signature: Date:

Types of will

The testamentary document is classified into the following categories:

Type of legal form;
Confidentiality level;
Conditions of compilation: ordinary or emergency.

The most commonly used classification in practice is based on the level of confidentiality:

Open, drawn up in a notary's office. The notary knows the entire text and is familiar with the contents of the provided paper. Can be in either written or electronic form. During writing, the presence of third parties is allowed. If the testator is unable to sign the document independently, the presence of a trusted person is mandatory.
Closed, only the compiler himself is familiar with its text. It is delivered to the notary in a closed envelope, the witnesses put their signatures on it in the presence of a specialist from the notary office, then the document is placed in a second envelope, information about the testator, witnesses and the date are written on it. The envelope can only be printed after the death of the testator. During the autopsy, it is necessary to draw up a protocol, which reflects information about the number of people present, the time and the text itself. Relatives are given only a duplicate of the testamentary document.

Please note: If a will is being drawn up in an emergency, it can be written by hand in the presence of two witnesses. Has legal force for thirty days.

It is believed that this time is enough for the situation to stabilize and the person to draw up a normal document, having it certified by a notary. Receiving an inheritance under such a will is possible only after a trial, where the question will be considered: was the situation really a force majeure and the life of the compiler was in danger.

Should the mandatory share be taken into account?

This is allowed, but not considered mandatory. If this is not done, the obligatory heirs will still receive their due share of the inheritance, even if it is part of the apartment. But if you foresee the situation, in order to avoid disputes between successors, indicate them in the will. But if over time more people appear who fall under this category, they will be called to inherit after the opening of the inheritance case.

List of compulsory heirs

Such applicants fall into three main categories:

Minor children . Previously, legitimate children were taken into account. Now even an illegitimate child has the right to apply for an apartment. The same applies to adopted persons.
Disabled parents . The reason is poor health, documented, or advanced age.
Dependents . These are disabled people who are dependent and provide financial support to the testator during his last year of life. Living in an apartment is not necessary.

Any person from the group of these persons will receive their share, even if the inheritance is an apartment that is indivisible in kind. You just need to declare your rights by writing a statement to a notary.

How is the inheritance share divided taking into account this category of persons?

The sequence of property distribution is as follows:

From the amount allocated without a will, a mandatory share is allocated.
If it is not enough, the deficiency is compensated by part of the apartment provided by the will.
The remainder of the bequest is transferred to the designated successors.
Property not specified in the will is distributed in equal parts among the first-priority heirs from among the relatives.

In any case, persons in need of social protection from among the beneficiaries of inheritance will receive their due share.

How to draw up a will for an apartment?

The testator has the right to make a will for all of his real estate or for individual objects. In the latter option, it is necessary to draw up a separate declaration of will. This will make it possible to draw up the paper in such a way that it is impossible to challenge it. It reflects the following points:

Full information about the apartment;
Information about the potential heir, including date of birth and place of registration;
The size of the shares and between whom they will be distributed (provided that there are many heirs);
Date of preparation.

Registration of ownership

To re-register a privatized apartment, you should submit an application to Rosreestr or the Multifunctional Center. You must have the following documents with you:

Passport.
Certificate confirming the death of the testator.
A certificate indicating that the successor has an inheritance right to the apartment.
Cadastral passport and other technical documents for housing.
Receipt of payment of the fee to the state.

The fee for registering ownership of an apartment is 2 thousand rubles.

After submitting the documents, the citizen will be given a receipt for receipt of the papers. It indicates the date when you can come for the finished certificate.

Certification by a notary and without it: which option is better?

The will can be drawn up by the testator himself, or the document can be written from his words by a notary. In the second option, before certifying the paper, the testator must familiarize himself with its contents. The finished sample is read to everyone present. The drafter notifies the notary of the presence of a mandatory share, which will go to the heir in any case, regardless of his last will. The obligatory share can be received by young children, elderly parents or spouses.

You can make a will without notarization. This is possible if :

A person lives in a nursing home or is undergoing treatment in a clinic. It can be certified by a doctor or the head of the institution.
The seafarer is on a voyage, and the captain of the ship acts as a witness.
The man is on a long expedition, the leader assures.
Citizen, undergoing military service, witness - unit commander.
The man is serving time. The head of the colony acts as a notary.

This requires compliance with some rules:

There must be at least two witnesses.
Only written form is permitted.
It is necessary to maintain the accepted format of the will.

FAQ

Who will get the privatized apartment after the death of a relative?

Many citizens are interested in this aspect, probably believing that the free transfer of property to the former owner gives rise to special conditions of inheritance. This is not true. After the death of the owner, a privatized apartment is transferred to new owners in accordance with the general procedure.

However, persons who have refused privatization may apply for a privatized apartment. Housing legislation has assigned them the right to indefinite use of such real estate. Not being the owners, they can live in the apartment, even if the housing is privatized and transferred to another owner.

Important

This should be taken into account by apartment users who are just planning to register real estate as their own. To protect the heirs from an unwanted tenant, he must be evicted before the apartment is privatized.

Who will get the apartment after the death of the husband if it is in joint or shared ownership?

The wife's share is 50% of the joint apartment. 50% of the husband is divided among the heirs, including the spouse, in accordance with the general procedure. Inheritance occurs in a similar way in the case of shared ownership of real estate. The only difference is that the husband's share has already been determined and may be more or less than the wife's share.

How to find out if there is a will?

The procedure for drawing up a will requires maintaining the secrecy of the document until the death of the testator.

Therefore, without the desire of the owner, it is impossible to find out his last will during his lifetime.

After the death of the owner of the property, the will may be found in his documents and belongings. The notary's copy is kept by the specialist. You can obtain information about the document and the notary who executed the will by making a request to the regional notary chamber.

How to make a will for all property?

The procedure for drawing up a testamentary document for all property is as follows:

A paper is drawn up where all the points are spelled out in detail;
The preparer and two witnesses with all the necessary documentation are sent to the notary for certification;
If the testator cannot move, a specialist will come to the required address and certify the paper;
If the testator decides to change any points, he can at any time cancel the document drawn up or simply adjust it;
All reflected points acquire legal force only after official confirmation of the death of the originator.

After this, the process of entering into inheritance begins.

Additional information

Sometimes additional documents may be required.

Elderly persons. For testators over 75 years of age, a medical certificate of legal capacity and sanity is often required;
If a share in an apartment is bequeathed. In this case, the consent of other owners may be required. Especially if it is indivisible property (which includes an apartment and a house), as well as property acquired jointly during marriage.

In addition to all the above documents, you will need a receipt for payment of the state duty. The notary will issue a receipt form, but without a paid copy, he will not register the will for the apartment.