Inherited a house with your siblings: what to do in 2026

About 250,000 homes in Portugal stand empty, habitable and off the market. A large share is the parents' house, frozen because the estate was never divided. Here is what the law allows today, what is coming, and the numbers that usually unblock the conversation between siblings.

Until the estate is divided, the house belongs to everyone and no one

While the estate is undivided, the heirs own everything jointly, with no fixed share of any particular house. It is run by the cabeça de casal, the estate administrator: the surviving spouse if there is one, otherwise the closest and oldest heir (Civil Code, article 2080). They pay the IMI property tax, the condominium fees and insurance from estate money, and handle the paperwork.

What they cannot do alone:

• Sell. All heirs must agree.
• Let. A lease signed by the administrator is only valid if the other heirs accept it (article 1024). A written agreement from everyone before signing avoids arguments later.
• Let one sibling live there for free. It can be done, but by agreement and in writing, because it counts in the division.

Two deadlines many families miss: the estate must be reported to the tax office (Stamp Duty form 1) by the end of the third month after the death, and the administrator's name updated on the property register, so IMI and council letters reach someone who reads them. Spouse, children and parents pay no stamp duty on what they inherit; other relatives pay 10%.

What the new regime on undivided estates changes

On 17 August 2026 Law 49/2026 was published. It authorises the Government to create a special court procedure for selling a property held in an undivided estate. The decree-law with the actual rules had not been published when this was written. What the authorisation provides for:

• A single heir can ask the court to sell, two years after the death (immediately if an inventory is already running). The sale is by electronic auction, with a base price set by an independent valuation.
• The other heirs can keep the house at the price reached, and can ask for a six-month pause to reach an agreement.
• The surviving spouse's home is protected: it is not sold without their consent.
• The administrator can be replaced by a simple majority of heirs, instead of unanimity.

Treat this as the direction of the law, not a tool you can use today. Before building a plan on it, confirm with your lawyer what is actually in force.

What leaving the house shut costs

The sum nobody does at the family meeting:

The empty-house classification comes after a year below 7 m³ of water and 35 kWh; in a declared urban pressure zone the rate can reach 10 times and rise from there, although that part is being challenged in court. The full rule is in the empty house: how IMI triples and the quick sum in the empty house IMI check.

The emigrant exception. The law does not treat as empty the home of an emigrant or of a Portuguese citizen working abroad, duly proven (Decree-Law 159/2006, article 2). It covers the emigrant's own home. In an estate with siblings living in Portugal, ask the council in writing before assuming it applies.

And the house decays: a burst hose in a shut apartment runs for months, and insurers refuse claims on homes with no use.

What it earns if let

With a registered lease at up to €2,300 a month, rent is taxed at 10% from 2026 to 2029 (EBF article 45-C) instead of 25%. Each heir declares their share on Annex F.

The same house shut costs each of the three about €600 to €1,400 a year, before counting the lost rent. That difference is what usually changes the conversation.

The three ways out, and what each one needs

1. Let it and split the rent. Needs everyone's agreement, a lease in the estate's name, electronic rent receipts every month and one person who looks after the house. It is the route when nobody wants to sell yet, or the market is not right for selling.
2. Sell and split. Needs everyone's agreement (or, soon, the new court procedure). An independent valuation before listing avoids the fight over the price.
3. One sibling keeps the house and pays the others out. It is done in the division, by deed at a notary or at the Balcão das Heranças; without agreement there is the inventory procedure (Law 117/2019). The sibling who keeps it pays IMT transfer tax on the part above their share.

While you decide, the house does not have to be left to the weather: monthly visits, consumption kept above the thresholds and bills paid on time are part of my property management, from €60 a month for an empty home.

What I do, and what I don't

I write a one-page report every heir can read: what the house earns per heir if let, what selling costs, what doing nothing costs. It is free with no commitment, and it ends many family meetings in half an hour.

I do not do the lawyer's work: the division, the inventory and the new sale procedure are theirs, and I introduce one if you need it. I do not look for tenants or buyers either: that is licensed agency work, and I introduce the ones I use. I set up and run the lease afterwards, if you want, at 8% of the rent and with no commission from anyone.

Get the free report for the heirs

Tell me which house, how many heirs and what each of you would like to do. Within two business days you have the numbers.

Sources: Civil Code, articles 1024 and 2080; Law 49/2026 of 17 August; Decree-Law 159/2006 of 8 August; IMI Code, article 112-B; CIRS, article 19; EBF, article 45-C; Stamp Duty Code, article 6; Law 117/2019. Checked October 2026.