Ostroda Property / Inheritance in Poland

Looking for input on possible inheritance of Poland property.

We were contacted by Poland relatives regarding an Ostroda house for which we have a partial inheritance claim. We do not speak Polish, nor have been to the country so we would need to pay translator fees to fully understand documents we have been sent. We have been asked to submit birth, death, marriage certificates and sign power of attorney forms to allow docs to be translated for use in Polish courts, and show we are true heirs.

From what we understand, up front costs could amount to about $400 American for Polish translation of docs to get court proceedings started. Once courts determines we are true heirs, our share of known costs at that time would be about $800 American - these would be for declaration/division of inheritance, addition of name to Mortgage Book, court appointed appraiser of property.

The profit from a sale of the house would make the initial investment worthwhile even with a Polish inheritance tax. But we feel that there could be additional unexpected costs that we do not know of. We are trying to decide whether to stake our claim or renounce inheritance.

Also any information on Ostroda housing market - is it good? Bad? Growing?

Has anyone dealt with a similar situation? I would really appreciate input.

As no-one has answered your question maybe you could have a look through these threads concerning Inheritance. Not all will apply to you, but you might find some answers in them: ?phrase=inheritance+poland

If you are not in the first group of relatives, you will have to pay inheritance tax. Find out which group you belong to and the inheritance tax due.

On top of that, on the sale of the house there will be tax due of 20% of the value - property tax due on sale of property. If you keep the house for at least 5 years and do not sell it, then you will not have to pay the property tax. Make sure you understand this tax due on the sale of property.

It may be that the property is not worth the amount that you will have to pay as inheritance tax and property tax. before you spend any money up-front for any translation of documents and verification of your claim, make sure that you know how much you would need to pay. You may find that your inheritance will in fact cost you money.