i wonder if you can help this newcomer.

has anyone any experience or info they can share regarding " geschütztes Baudenkmal " ( protected historical monument ) ?

in particular, if an occupied house/dwelling is a protected historical monument, what is the situation under German law vis-a-vis: maintenance and up-keep? structural changes to the building?

has anyone info/opinions on: maintenance costs or subventions from the authorities or other sources? the re-sale potential if/when the dwelling were put on the market?

much obliged for any assistance!

We ran into this with an old farmhouse we had considered buying last year. After exploring it a little, we chose to stay far, far away from any building listed as a protected or historically valuable property. You must maintain the building so that it keeps its original character, which means that maintenance costs are quite a bit more expensive. Any renovations or improvements must go through a special approval process, and you're often denied permission to make any changes that might alter the external appearance. You also might have to stick with building materials that are the same, or close to the same as the original. That means you can't change the roof, for example, to another kind, or change the siding when restoring a building.

There used to be a program whereby owners could get money from the government to help restore these old buildings. The German government was trying to encourage people to buy and preserve these old places. This program has been stopped now, and so folks aren't as interested anymore. Resale nowadays can be difficult if the property hasn't already been renovated and brought up to more modern standards.

The restoration can often cost much more than the original purchase price. Also be wary of places that aren't yet attached to the main sewer system! We were also considering another place, that wasn't historically protected and had its own very clean well water. Turns out that a new law is being considered in these parts (Landkreis Schwaebisch Hall), forcing all home owners to connect to the water and sewer systems if they aren't already - at their own cost! So we would have been facing an estimated additional cost of 30,000 euros to lay the pipes (even though the place had water which tested cleaner than the county's!) There are quite a few new listings for farms now which aren't connected, in anticipation of this new law. Some folks can't afford the change, and there's no provision for monetary help as the proposed wording now stands. (The law forcing houses to be attached to the county water system has now been passed, but the sewage is still being considered.)

My advice would be to stay away from any protected buildings if you're in the market to buy. Unless you really enjoy restoring and preserving old places and have money to spare, they can end up being a real money pit. And you won't get the money back through resale in Germany's real estate market.

thanks indeed for that, certainly gives me food for thought.

major infrstructural work doesn't seem to be required in this case, however, as the the current owners have already given it a complete make-over: "lovingly restored" is what springs to mind.

i guess the feedback i really need is from s.o. who's actually been living in such a building long enough to experience whatever the Denkmalamt might throw at you as owner/occupier...