An estate is undivided ("herança indivisa") while the deceased's assets have not been formally split: each heir owns an ideal share of the whole, and nobody owns any specific asset. Hundreds of thousands of Portuguese properties sit in this limbo — often for generations, with heirs scattered from Fall River to Paris to Luxembourg.
Why it is a problem
- No heir can sell or mortgage alone;
- Costs (the IMI property tax, repairs, insurance) keep accruing — and usually one person pays;
- The house decays while every generation multiplies the number of heirs;
- Under the 2026 law, co-ownership stops being stable: a single co-heir will be able to force a sale.
Rights and duties while undivided
Every heir may use the property (without excluding the others), is entitled to a share of any income, and must contribute to expenses. An heir occupying the house exclusively may owe compensation to the rest — the classic summer-house dispute.
Four ways out today
- Amicable division (notary or the public Balcão das Heranças desk) if everyone agrees;
- Joint sale of the whole property and division of the proceeds;
- Selling your hereditary share — without waiting for anyone (co-heirs hold a right of first refusal);
- Inventário — the judicial/notarial procedure that forces a division; slow and costly, but it works without agreement.
What changes in 2026-2027
Once the new law takes effect (it still awaits promulgation and implementing decrees), exiting co-ownership will no longer require unanimity: one heir can trigger the sale procedure, with a 6-month amicable window and an auction as last resort. Living an ocean away does not pause the deadlines — prepare the file now.