Inheriting a home with brothers and sisters in Flanders
Inheriting a house with your brothers and sisters is more than a matter of paperwork. There are memories, different wishes and sometimes different budgets too. These are the rules, so that you can have the conversation based on what is correct.
As long as the inheritance has not been divided, you are joint owners in undivided co-ownership, and nobody can be forced to stay that way: if someone refuses the sale, you can ask the court for the division (notaris.be, checked 28 October 2026). If one heir takes over the home, in Flanders you pay 2.5 % division duty (verdeelrecht) on the total value of the home (notaris.be, May 2024). For a home of € 400,000 that is € 10,000.
What is your home worth?
First see what your home is worth. Then start preparing early and without obligation: free, for as long as you like.
What does undivided co-ownership mean when you inherit a home together?
As long as the inheritance has not been divided, you are joint owners in undivided co-ownership: you each have a right to the same home, not each a separate part of it (notaris.be). How large each share is follows from the law or from a will.
If a parent is still alive who was married to or in a legal cohabitation with the deceased, that parent has by law the usufruct of the family home, and the children inherit the bare ownership (notaris.be). That changes who has a say; the guide on the usufruct of the surviving partner covers that.
Nobody can be forced to remain in undivided co-ownership (notaris.be). Sooner or later you choose, then: sell together, one of you takes over, or you agree to keep the home together for a while.
Part 2
How do you sell an inherited home together?
You sell together: every heir is a co-owner and signs the sale agreement (compromis) and the deed. Whoever cannot be present can give a digital power of attorney to a member of the notary's staff, by video call from home, or a power of attorney to a trusted person (notaris.be).
For the sale, the notary draws up a deed of succession for immovable property (notaris.be). Beyond that, the home needs the same certificates as any other home, such as the EPC (energy performance certificate), the soil certificate (bodemattest) and the inspection of the electrical installation, and for a construction year before 2001 an asbestos certificate (asbestattest). The proceeds go to the heirs, according to each one's share in the home.
Agree in advance who does what: who keeps in contact with the notary, who does the viewings and how you decide together on an offer. It helps to appoint one person who follows up the practical side and keeps the others informed.
A shared picture of the value helps too. The free first valuation by Hoobler gives you the same starting point, although it is not a valuation for the Flemish Tax Administration. If you sell through Hoobler, viewings, questions and bids come together in one overview, which makes it easier to discuss them together.
Part 3
What does it cost if one of you takes over the home?
If an heir takes over the shares of the others, that is a division. You then pay no registration duty as with a purchase, but division duty (verdeelrecht): in Flanders 2.5 %, calculated on the total value of the home, not only on the share you take over (notaris.be, May 2024). On top of that come the notary's fee and costs.
A worked example: three children each inherit a third of a home of € 390,000. A daughter takes over and pays her brother and sister € 130,000 each, € 260,000 in total. The division duty is 2.5 % of € 390,000, or € 9,750.
Nobody can be forced to sell his or her share to a brother or sister, not even if a surveyor has fixed the value in a binding way (notaris.be). So you have to agree on the price. An independent valuation by a third party can help with that, and the notary can guide you in setting a takeover price.
Whoever has to borrow to pay out the others is best to discuss that with the bank early. If the home is in Brussels or Wallonia, ask your notary about the rate of the division duty there.
Part 4
What if a brother or sister lives in the parental home?
An heir who lives in the home can never prevent the other heirs from proceeding with the sale (notaris.be, May 2024). So living in the house gives no right to block a sale.
The other heirs always have the right to ask for an occupancy compensation (woonstvergoeding): a compensation for the use of their share. In principle it is in proportion to each one's share, but you are free to agree something else together (notaris.be). Put the amount and the duration in writing, so everyone knows where they stand.
If the brother or sister who lives there wants to keep the home, taking it over is the route, with division duty and a payout to the others. If they cannot do that, an agreement with a clear end date gives everyone something to hold on to.
Part 5
What if you cannot agree on the sale?
If someone keeps refusing, an heir can go to court and ask for the division. You do not have to give a reason and there is no limitation period (notaris.be).
Court proceedings weigh on a family, so first try a conversation with help. The notary can act as a mediator to help reach an agreement, and record the arrangements so that they are correct and enforceable (notaris.be).
Sometimes a disagreement is not about the rules but about the value, or about what the house means to each of you. These questions help to have the conversation together:
Does someone want to keep the home, and can they pay out the others?
Who carries the costs in the meantime, such as the insurance, the maintenance and the property tax?
Do you want to sell, and within which period?
How do you decide on an offer: together each time, or with a floor price that you agree in advance?
What happens to the contents, and when? Only clear out the house after the notary has confirmed that this is possible.
Part 6
Can you keep the home together or let it?
Yes, if everyone agrees. You can agree to remain joint owners, but an agreement to remain in undivided co-ownership lasts for a maximum of 5 years (notaris.be). The notary can record arrangements on the management of the home in consultation with all of you.
Record who carries the costs, who finds and follows up the tenant, how the rent is divided and what happens if someone wants out later. Without such arrangements, every disagreement becomes harder to resolve.
An inheritance does not fall under the Flemish renovation obligation (Flemish government). If a renovation obligation was already running for your parent, you do have to meet it within the remaining term.
Part 7
How much inheritance tax do brothers and sisters pay?
If you inherit from a parent, each child pays inheritance tax in the direct line on his or her own share: in Flanders 3 % up to € 50,000, 9 % up to € 250,000 and 27 % above that, separately for immovable and movable property (Flemish Tax Administration, checked 28 October 2026). If three children each inherit a third of a home of € 390,000, each pays on € 130,000: € 1,500 plus € 7,200, or € 8,700.
If you inherit from a brother or sister, the rate is considerably higher: 25 % up to € 35,000, 30 % up to € 75,000 and 55 % above that, on your entire share (Flemish Tax Administration). If the deceased lived in Brussels or Wallonia, the rates of that region apply.
The value you put for the home in the declaration also counts later: if you sell within 2 years after the declaration for at least 10 % more than you declared yourself, you risk extra inheritance tax (notaris.be). You read more about that in the guide on the value in the estate declaration.
Frequently asked questions
Answered briefly.
Can an heir refuse the sale of a house?
Temporarily, yes, because a home in undivided co-ownership is sold together. But nobody can be forced to remain in undivided co-ownership: the others can ask the court for the division, without giving a reason and without a limitation period (notaris.be).
My brother will not leave the parental home: what now?
An heir who lives in the home cannot block the sale, and the other heirs can always ask for an occupancy compensation (notaris.be, May 2024). If he wants to keep the home, he can pay out the others and pay 2.5 % division duty on the total value. If no agreement is reached, the notary can mediate.
What does it cost to take over an inherited home from your brothers and sisters?
In Flanders you pay 2.5 % division duty on the total value of the home, plus the notary's fee and costs (notaris.be, May 2024). For a home of € 390,000 the division duty is € 9,750. On top of that you pay out the others their share.
Can I be forced to sell my share to my brother?
No. Heirs can never be forced to sell their share to a co-heir, not even if a surveyor has fixed the value in a binding way (notaris.be, May 2024). If you cannot work it out, the route of division through the court remains.
How long may we leave an inherited house undivided?
As long as everyone agrees. An agreement to remain joint owners lasts for a maximum of 5 years (notaris.be). Without an agreement, any heir can ask for the division at any time.
The free first valuation based on the address gives you a shared starting point for the conversation. It is not a valuation for the Flemish Tax Administration or the notary.