The structure of the German land register - and how do you get into it?

Since I still have to wait a few days for a new book, which I would like to have for my contribution to the foreclosures, I would hereby address as a small interim contribution times something that certainly plays a role for owners and owners of a property. But also for those who think about buying, it could certainly be helpful.

The land register - the book everyone wants to get into. First of all, how it works at all.

Nowadays, the land register is no longer a physical book, but an electronic land register, which is kept at the district court in whose district the property is located (§ 1 GBO).

If you are interested in a piece of land, you will not be able to avoid looking at the land register in advance. Who buys a pig in a poke? For this you are dependent on the seller, since you need a justified interest for the view into the land register, to which however interest in purchase does not belong.

Even though it may not seem very clear at first glance, it has a fairly simple structure.

So if you decide to buy a piece of land (or a condominium for which a condominium land register is kept) and the conveyance is declared in the notarial deed, in most cases the notary makes the application to the land registry on behalf of the contracting parties. Conveyance according to §§ 873, 925 BGB (German Civil Code) is the in rem agreement that the ownership is to be transferred. The purchase agreement in fact only establishes a claim under the law of obligations for the transfer of ownership. Often, however, both are declared in one deed.

If the application is ready for execution, the legal officer at the land registry will redden the old owner (see attachment) and register you as the new owner.

Now to the structure:

The land register is divided into:

- Inventory

- Section I

- Section II

- Section III

The individual sections and the inventory (BV) are divided into columns. I have also attached a picture for each of them. For reasons of the clarity however in each case only the first columns. The change columns are to be neglected here.

Inventory:

Here you will find the individual properties that are booked on the land register sheet. In addition, the parcels and their designation are indicated there. A property (consecutive numbers in column 1) can consist of several parcels. A parcel is a part of the earth's surface, which is registered in the cadastral map (by the cadastral office) under its own number. Changes often take place here. For example, parcels are united, divided or remeasured. This is then entered and noted in columns 7 and 8 of the BV. Land plots, on the other hand, can only be divided or united with the permission of the owner. If the owner of a parcel in the same district acquires a new parcel, the parcel can simply be added to the person's existing sheet under a new number.

Division I:

The respective owner is written in here and the reason for the registration (succession, conveyance, etc.). Several owners are registered with their joint relationship (e.g. person A and person B to ½).

Section II:

Here you will find rights of use and other rights. These are mainly easements (rights of way, rights of way), limited personal easements (rights of way, housing rights), usufruct, priority notices, rights of first refusal. In other words, all encumbrances that are not in section III. The list is not exhaustive, otherwise it would go beyond the scope of this document.

Section III:

Here you will find mortgages and land charges. In the past, there were also annuity debts, which are no longer to be found today. Mortgages are also becoming increasingly rare. Mortgages and land charges can be registered either as a letter right (mortgage letter is issued) or as a book right without a letter. Those who cannot pay for their property immediately and need financing for this (the majority) will not get around a land charge. This offers the creditor security, as it can be used to sell the property at a compulsory auction, thus securing the creditor a good ranking.

In sections II and III you will also find any changes or deletions in the change columns. In this case, the right is again underlined in red or crossed out.

All the rights in sections II and III are ranked among themselves. In the same division the rank depends on the order of the entry. Within the different divisions it depends on the time of the registration. Equal rank or possibly an exchange of rank would be found again in the change columns or directly on the right.

I think that this small overview is sufficient, in order to be able to find your way around possibly better in the future. If you have any questions, I will try to answer them as best as possible. Please forgive any spelling mistakes despite reading twice.