Courtyard and turning circle: Real encumbrances in Franconia

In the land register of the Schwabach Local Court, buyers and owners frequently encounter entries that seem puzzling at first glance: “Courtyard right in favor of Lot 423” or “Real encumbrance: tolerance of a turning circle pursuant to the 1958 partition agreement.” Those who do not understand these entries underestimate their impact on the usability and value of the property. In Schwabach and the Roth district, such historically developed land registry situations are particularly common-a legacy of the Franconian agricultural and artisanal tradition.

Legal Background: Real Burdens under Sections 1105 et seq. of the German Civil Code (BGB)

A real burden is a form of encumbrance on real property specifically regulated under German property law. According to § 1105(1) BGB, a property may be encumbered in such a way that recurring payments from the property must be made to the beneficiary. Unlike easements, which concern tolerance or abstention, a real burden requires active performance.

The in rem effect of the real burden is its essential characteristic: it attaches to the property itself, not to the person of the owner. Every purchaser of the encumbered property automatically assumes the obligation to provide the benefits without the need for a separate agreement. This distinguishes the real burden from a contractual obligation to perform, which is effective only between the contracting parties.

Typical real encumbrances in Franconian land registers include the right of maintenance and habitation (combined real encumbrance under Sections 1093 and 1105 of the German Civil Code (BGB)), life annuities in cash or in kind, tolerance of right of way and use of the courtyard with a maintenance obligation, as well as obligations to tolerate turning areas for resident traffic.

The real encumbrance arises by agreement and registration (Section 873 of the German Civil Code). It must be entered in Section II of the land register. The respective owner of the encumbered property is personally liable for the obligations-a sale of the property transfers the obligation to the new owner.

The Schwabach Local Court maintains the land registers for Schwabach and parts of the adjacent district of Roth. Notaries in the Notarial District of Middle Franconia (responsible for Nuremberg, Fürth, Erlangen, Schwabach, and Roth) are familiar with the regional specifics of the land register.

Procedure: Registration, Amendment, and Redemption

To register a new real encumbrance, a notarized agreement and an application for registration with the land registry office are required. The content must be clearly defined-in particular, for payments in kind, a precise description (type, quantity, quality, delivery dates) is necessary, as otherwise disputes regarding the scope of performance may arise.

Transaction Value (Present Value of Real Burden)	Basic Notary Fee (GNotKG)	Land Registry Fee (approx.)	Total (approx.)
€10,000	€75	€75	€150
€20,000	€115	€115	€230
€50,000	€165	€165	€330
€100,000	€273	€273	€546
€200,000	€435	€435	€870
€500,000	€935	€935	€1,870

Source: WEG Act (as of the 2020 WEG reform + 2026 adjustments), BGB, GNotKG table, Bavarian Justice Portal, Nuremberg/Fürth/Erlangen Land Registry, as of Q1/Q2 2026.

The redemption of an existing real encumbrance is effected by agreement between the encumbered party and the beneficiary. In practice in Schwabach, a redemption amount is negotiated that corresponds to the present value of future payments. Subsequently, the beneficiary issues the notarized authorization for cancellation, and the Land Registry enters the cancellation.

Upon transfer of payment obligations to a purchaser: Anyone purchasing a property encumbered by a real burden should clarify in the purchase agreement whether and to what extent the seller still owes any outstanding payments and whether the buyer is liable for them. In practice, it is advisable for the seller to provide a release statement covering all payments due up to the transfer of ownership.

Practice: Courtyard Rights and Historical Development Situations

Courtyard rights originated in earlier times, when properties in Franconian villages and small towns were densely built-up and shared courtyards offered the only way to access the rear parts of buildings. In Schwabach-the historic gold-beating town-and in the rural communities of the Roth district, such entries in older land registers are not uncommon.

These historic courtyard rights may be registered as an easement in favor of a specific property or as a limited personal easement in favor of a person. If the beneficiary is a natural person who has since died and there is no provision for succession in the land register, the right may have expired-in this case, the land register entry must be formally deleted. To do so, proof of the beneficiary’s death must be submitted to the land registry office, usually by presenting the death certificate.

> The valuation tool from leadmarkt.ch gives you an initial overview of the market value of your property in Schwabach-you can also check the market classification for encumbered properties.

Turning circle rights often arise in property divisions where a new parcel is created at the end of a dead-end street. The zoning plan or the partition agreement stipulates that a turning area for vehicles must be provided on an adjacent property. This obligation can be entered in the land registry under private law as a real encumbrance or easement. In newer zoning plan areas, it is often secured by a building encumbrance in the building encumbrance register (not in the land registry). The register of building encumbrances is maintained by the Schwabach Building Authority and can be viewed during property purchases.

The distinction between a building encumbrance (under public law, register of building encumbrances) and an easement (under private law, land register) is important in practice: A building encumbrance binds the servient property only vis-à-vis the public authority, not vis-à-vis the beneficiary as a private individual. An easement registered in the land register grants the beneficiary direct claims under private law. In practice, for complete protection, it is often advisable to secure the property through both a building encumbrance and an easement.

Local Nuance: Schwabach and the Gold Leaf Tradition

Schwabach is known nationwide as the historic center of gold leaf beating. This commercial tradition has shaped the city’s structure: Many properties in the old town and the adjacent alleys combine residential and workshop use in a very confined space. The associated historical rights of use for courtyards and passageways are still reflected in the land registers today.

The Schwabach Land Registry Office, as part of the Schwabach Local Court, has experience in dealing with historical Franconian land registry records. Buyers of older properties in Schwabach’s old town should always request a complete land registry extract (Sections I through III) as well as the partition plan and the declaration of partition before making a purchase. It is also advisable to consult the register of building encumbrances at the Schwabach Building Authority.

In the district of Roth-which directly surrounds Schwabach as an independent city-similar land registry situations can be found in rural municipalities such as Roth, Georgensgmünd, or Hilpoltstein. The development of farmsteads based on historical rights of access to farmyards remains relevant in practice in these municipalities to this day, particularly when agricultural and residential uses coexist on the same property. When properties formerly used for agriculture are converted into residential buildings, it often becomes apparent that historical rights of use are incompatible with the new use or must be renegotiated.

Valuation: Impairment Due to Real Burdens

The Schwabach Appraisal Committee takes real burdens into account when determining market value using the income approach or the cost approach. A real burden is valued through capitalization: The annual value of the obligation is multiplied by a capitalization factor, which depends on the remaining term and the current interest rate level.

For a lifetime care encumbrance registered in favor of a 75-year-old person, the present value is calculated, for example, based on the annual care costs (e.g., €6,000) and the statistical life expectancy factor (approx. 10-13 years), plus a safety margin. This results in a liability value of €60,000 to €80,000, which is deducted from the unencumbered property value.

Courtyard and turning circle rights are assessed as limited encumbrances in rem. The value reduction depends on how severely the property’s usability is restricted and whether the encumbered area is no longer available for alternative use (development, garden).

Conclusion for property owners in Schwabach

Courtyard rights, turning circle tolerances, and real encumbrances from the Franconian land registry tradition are not uncommon-they appear in many Schwabach land registries and can significantly influence the sales value and usability of a property. Before any purchase or sale, it is essential to check the land registry extract, understand historical entries, and, if necessary, negotiate their removal or redemption.

Before taking any concrete steps, it’s worth checking out the valuation tool from leadmarkt.ch - it takes into account current market values in Schwabach and helps you factor land registry encumbrances into the overall valuation.

Deletion of Courtyard and Turning Area Rights: Possibilities and Limitations

The deletion of an easement registered in the land register (courtyard right, right of way, tolerance of a turning area) requires the cooperation of the entitled party. Only if the entitled party issues a notarized authorization for deletion can the land registry office remove the entry.

In Schwabach practice, it is common for courtyard and right-of-way rights from past decades to be registered on properties where the current owner no longer knows the original beneficiary or the beneficiary has passed away. If the beneficiary has died and no successor can be identified, a public notice procedure may be initiated at the Schwabach Local Court (Sections 1170 et seq. BGB by analogy, Section 949 ZPO). The court issues a public notice seeking the beneficiary-if the beneficiary does not come forward, the right may be declared extinguished.

For easements with a limited term (e.g., for the lifetime of the beneficiary), the entry automatically expires upon death-but the land registry office does not delete it ex officio. The owner must take action and apply for deletion by submitting the death certificate.

Anyone wishing to sell a property in Schwabach should clarify and, if necessary, remove any outdated easements before the sale. A land registry extract containing unclear encumbrances from the 1960s raises suspicion among buyers-even if the rights have long since expired under substantive law.

Schwabach’s Unique Features: The Land Registers of the “Goldbeater City”

Schwabach, known as the “Goldbeater City,” has a historic land and development structure that has left many older encumbrances in the land registers. In the historic old town area and in the established residential neighborhoods around the town market, easements from the 19th and early 20th centuries are frequently found.

These older encumbrances often involve rights of light (the right to unobstructed light through a window), eaves rights (the right to drain rainwater onto a neighboring property), building encumbrance obligations (public-law obligations entered in the city’s building encumbrance register), and-most commonly-courtyard and right-of-way rights from a time when properties were still developed collectively.

For Schwabach property owners who own a property in the city center or in established residential areas, a thorough land registry analysis is recommended prior to sale. Many of these historical easements are now obsolete-but only a notarial authorization for cancellation formally removes them. The Schwabach Land Registry Office (Schwabach Local Court) is responsible for processing such applications.

The City of Schwabach’s register of building encumbrances (at the City Planning Office) contains public-law obligations that are maintained separately from the land registry. Building encumbrances concern, for example, the assumption of setback distances (owner A allows B to build closer to the shared boundary) or development obligations. Building encumbrances cannot be removed by cancellation at the Land Registry Office-the Schwabach City Building Authority is responsible for this.

---

Compiled by the my-home.de editorial team in collaboration with regional real estate analysts. Data as of: Q1/Q2 2026.