krakp

  This is not true if you cancel after 10 years - you should not need to pay any compensation for the interest loss. 

I think investing the borrowed money is the right approach... Or would you rather advocate consuming it? I think everyone that is smart invests the borrowed money so that they get a return higher than the interest rates. That's how entrepreneurship works... Very few people can afford to only invest their own money....

Good to see that not only I was so dense :-P

Haaaa - suddenly I got it :-) No need for the coat - thank you! 

Don't feel any smarter with the tips.... I think I will get my coat... 

I still did not get it :-(. Any tips :-)?

Sondertilgung is the word you are looking for....

I know it is an old thread, but I just found some info, that I think may help quite a few people in the Toytown Community (it is in German - so please use a translator if you do not speak the language, sorry):   https://hpd.de/artikel/erfolgreicher-kampf-gegen-kirchensteuer-17788   A short summary: 1. A French guy arrives in Germany (Berlin) and registers as "no-religion" 2. Later he receives a survey from the church which he answers with "atheist but baptized as catholic" 3. The catholic church gets hold of his Baptism Certificate (using his birthplace and contacting the church there) and starts charging the Church Tax ("You're baptized, so you're due!") 4. The guy does not like the idea - he considers himself a non catholic and does not want to pay. He leaves the church - does the Kirchenaustritt, but he should still be charged for the time of living in Berlin before he left the church.  5. This he also does not like - a court case is started 6. The case stays undecided for 5 years 7. Finally the church decides to drop the charges - the guy does not need to pay. HURRAY for him! 8. The court does not need to decide the case, which means that there is no precedence created (and many lawyers considered that the decision could be against the church). HURRAY for the catholic church.   Bottom line: it looks like it might be worth fighting with the church. However, it may of course be dependent on your individual case. It is unclear if the catholic church will stop this practice or will they continue, hoping that people will not protest (no court decision means that there is no precedence).  Of course: IANAL - involve a lawyer for real advice on this.

  You wish them a positive outcome, don't you? 

've been missing these...

Interesting... https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fl%C3%BCssiggas#:~:text=Bei%20Einhaltung%20aller%20Sicherheitsvorschriften%20sowie%20Installation%20und%20Abnahme,kg%29%20in%20der%20K%C3%BCche%20auch%20in%20Deutschland%20erlaubt.   "Bei Einhaltung aller Sicherheitsvorschriften sowie Installation und Abnahme durch einen Sachkundigen (gem. TRF Technische Regeln Flüssiggas 2012) ist das Kochen mit Gasflasche (bis maximal 16 kg) in der Küche auch in Deutschland erlaubt"   If all safety regulations are met as well as installation and acceptance is done by an expert (according to TRF Technical Rules FOR Liquefied Gas 2012), cooking with gas bottle (up to a maximum of 16 kg) in the kitchen is also permitted in Germany (automatic translation)   I think the key part here is "installation and acceptance is done by an expert" - if I were you I would ask the tenant to involve the "Bizirkschornsteinfegermeister" (local chimney sweep). My guess is that if he does not get intimidated by the name alone :-P, he will probably find out about all the safety regulations (like having a special chimney, for example) and then he may give up.   And if he actually gets it 'official approved' then you probably don't need to worry about it either...   Hope this helps. Cheers, krakp    

The time between visiting the notary and actually getting stuff updated in the Grundbuch (land register?) was over 3 months in our case. You could construct the contract in a way that only at the moment of the last payment (the missing 30%) the actual "sale" takes place (and this should be synchronized with the moment of your relocation). So your neighbour is right - you actually need to plan the notary visit and signing a contract a few months before the actual 'transaction' taking place.   Cheers, krakp  

... eine Facebook-Gruppe... 

Ask your bank for an offer without a down payment and with one. Compare the costs and then compare to the cost of your personal loan. Maths....

@BBMSteve: check out the key info from the article you quoted:   "Since 2000, children born in Germany to non-German parents automatically acquire German citizenship if one parent has been legally resident in Germany for at least eight years and has a permanent right of residence. Upon turning 21, these children have to choose between their German nationality and their parents’ nationality under the regulation obliging them to opt for one nationality (Optionspflicht). "   Neither of your kids is affected by this: - your son got naturalised with you - your daughter was born to German parents :-)   So if the info you mentioned in the OP is all correct, there is nothing worry about. Your kids are as German as it gets (not sure if this is what you wanted to hear though ;-) )