Estate realisation in Berlin – dissolve estate, secure values, hand over flat
When a person dies, a flat full of things remains – and little time. We handle the complete estate clearance in Berlin and Brandenburg: free inspection, fixed price, discreet clearance by our own staff and the auctioning of valuable items in our own auction hall. The proceeds are credited or paid out to the heirs.
What is an estate liquidation?
An estate liquidation dissolves the household of a deceased person and turns whatever still has value into money for the heirs. So an estate liquidator does not simply clear out: they sort, appraise, sell and only then clear. Estate dissolution describes emptying the flat or house, estate clearance the disposal of what nobody needs any more, and estate purchase the direct purchase of individual items. With us, all of this is one order with one contact person.
What sets us apart from many clearance companies: we have our own auction hall in Berlin-Buch and hold an auction there every week. Saleable items from the estate are offered in a voluntary auction to a large circle of bidders on site and online. The proceeds are credited against the clearance costs or paid out to the heirs – traceable lot by lot.
This page is intended for inheritance cases. If you are clearing a rented flat because of a move or a notice of termination, continue reading at the apartment clearance in Berlin page; if it is about a complete household with house, cellar and garage or a pure clearance, see the household clearance in Berlin.
Dissolving an estate: What heirs should settle first
This sequence has proven itself in hundreds of estates. It does not replace legal advice, but helps to avoid costly mistakes.
1. Secure Documents
Multiple copies of death certificates, will, insurance policies, bank statements, rental agreement. Set these documents aside before anything leaves the apartment.
2. Accept or Decline Inheritance
There is a six-week period from knowledge for renunciation. Anyone who clears out the flat and sells items beforehand can tacitly accept the inheritance. In case of doubt, first consult a lawyer or probate court, then clear out.
3. Certificate of Inheritance Only if Necessary
Banks, land registry offices or insurance companies often require a certificate of inheritance or a notarised will. For the apartment clearance itself, we do not need it – a power of attorney or proof of your entitlement is sufficient.
4. Terminate Lease Agreement
Heirs can terminate the rental agreement within one month after learning of the death, with the statutory notice period of three months. Rent continues until handover – set the handover date early and plan backwards.
5. Valuables and Contracts
Jewellery, cash, coins, watches and documents should be placed in safe hands immediately. Cancel electricity, gas, telephone, newspapers, insurance and memberships with the death certificate; set up a forwarding order.
6. Arrange Viewing
Then we come: We will look at everything together, explain what can be auctioned, and provide you with a fixed price with value credit – free of charge and without obligation.
Please do not throw anything away before the on-site visit
The impulse is understandable: tidy up first. But drawers, boxes, display cabinets and the cellar are exactly where the things that find a buyer at auction are often kept – old cameras, model railways, stamps, silver cutlery, tools. Take out what you personally want to keep and leave the rest. What we see during the visit, we can also credit. You will find a detailed list for the first weeks in the guide Settling an estate: what heirs should do in the first weeks.
This is how estate liquidation works with us
A dedicated contact person will accompany you from the first inquiry to the billing. You decide how much you want to handle yourself – many families hand us the key after the viewing and do not need to return to the flat.
Get in touch
Call, form or online appointment. We clarify location, size, handover date and whether you are acting as heir, authorised representative or legal guardian. During our opening hours we call back within one hour.
Free inspection
Together with you or with key and power of attorney. We check all rooms, cellar and attic, identify saleable items and discuss what stays. If you live far away, photos are often enough for a first assessment.
Fixed price offer with value credit
Within 24 hours in writing: clearance costs, estimated auction proceeds, result. No additional charges.
Clearing and auctioning
Our team clears discreetly and completely. Valuable items go to our auction hall, mementos to you, the rest is documented and disposed of.
Handover and billing
Swept clean handover with protocol to landlord or property management. After the auction, you will receive the settlement lot by lot – and, if applicable, the payout.
Request Viewing
During our opening hours we get back to you within one hour – calmly and without pressure.
Valuation and auction: What really counts in the estate
The value of an estate rarely lies in the large furniture. It lies in the jewellery box, the coin album, the showcase with Meissen or KPM, in paintings, watches, cameras, stamps, model railways or a library. Because we auction every week, we know what finds buyers in Berlin – and what does not.
You can find current lots under Jewellery & watches, Coins & collectibles and Art & antiques, for example.
During the inspection, our staff look into cupboards, drawers, cellars and attics, check hallmarks on silver, marks on porcelain and signatures on paintings. What is usable is recorded and auctioned in our auction hall in Berlin-Buch: photographed, described and offered online as well as on-site to a large circle of bidders. Each piece receives a lot number; after the auction, you will receive the settlement lot by lot.
Even simple household goods are not automatically rubbish: we combine crockery, tools, lamps, books or small furniture into job lots and auction them together. You can see what is currently going under the hammer in our current auctions. Which items typically bring money is described in the guide What is my estate worth?
How the value credit works
- We determine the effort for clearance, transport, disposal and broom-clean handover.
- We estimate what the saleable items are likely to fetch in our auction.
- Both are set out in a written fixed-price quote – the estimated proceeds are already deducted.
- If the proceeds exceed the costs, we pay the difference to the heirs.
We only quote a price once we have seen the estate – in photos or during the free on-site visit. Flat rates without a visit would not be serious for estates, because the value of the contents strongly influences the price.
Request a fixed priceEstate purchase in Berlin: auction or sell directly?
We buy saleable items from the estate or auction them for you. Which way is better depends on the items and on your situation.
Auction in our auction hall
The standard case. Furniture, porcelain, art, collections and household goods go into our weekly voluntary auction. Many bidders drive the price, and the statement shows you what each individual lot fetched. This is the most transparent way – especially when several heirs are involved.
Direct purchase of individual items
For gold, jewellery, brand-name watches, coins or individual works of art a direct purchase can make sense, for example if the heirs want to close quickly. You receive a firm offer and decide in your own time. More on the page Purchase & Valuation.
Be careful with buyers who ring the doorbell unannounced or only want to pick out the best pieces: afterwards the hard-to-sell rest remains and the clearance becomes more expensive. With us, purchase, auction and clearance are part of one quote.
What does an estate liquidation cost? The cost factors
Every estate is different, so we have no price list but a fixed price after photos or a free on-site visit. These points determine it:
- Size of the flat or house, plus cellar, attic, garage and garden
- Floor, lift, distance to the vehicle and parking options in front of the building
- Amount of household contents and how full cupboards, cellar and side rooms are
- Share of bulky waste, electrical appliances and hazardous waste such as paint or chemicals
- Additional work such as dismantling the kitchen or a flat that has stood empty for a long time
- The value of the saleable items – it is credited and lowers the price
This is included in the fixed price
- Free on-site visit and written quote
- Clearance by our own staff, transport and disposal
- Recording, photos and auction of the saleable items
- Broom-clean handover with protocol
- Statement lot by lot after the auction
Discreet and documented – also for guardians, estate administrators and property managements
Discretion
An estate is private. Our employees work quietly and treat personal items with respect: letters, photos, certificates, and mementos are set aside and handed over to you – as well as items you ask us to look for, such as jewellery, cash, savings books, or keys. No subcontractors, no changing staff.
Community of heirs
With multiple heirs, an account that everyone can understand is needed. Our offer, the handover protocol and the auction settlement with all lots and hammer prices are available in writing – a clean basis for distribution. Mementos can be reserved for individual co-heirs and delivered separately.
Guardians, estate administrators, property managements
Legal guardians, estate administrators, executors and property managers regularly work with us: invoice to the ward or the estate, appointment coordination with the landlord, key handover without relatives on site, photo documentation before and after clearing upon request. We also take on apartments after a long vacancy or in difficult condition.
Regular Estates? Framework Conditions and Portal for Partners
Documentation and handover protocol
Anyone settling an estate often has to account for it later – to co-heirs, the guardianship court or the landlord. That is why we record every step in writing. You do not get verbal promises but documents you can pass on.
The handover protocol is drawn up at the end of the clearance in the empty flat: condition of the rooms, meter readings, number of keys, with photos on request. If you cannot be there, we hand over directly to the landlord or property management and send you the protocol by e-mail.
You receive these documents
- Written fixed-price quote with value credit
- List of the secured documents, valuables and keepsakes
- Handover protocol with meter readings and keys
- On request, photos before and after the clearance
- Auction statement with every lot and every hammer price
Estate clearances in Berlin and the Brandenburg area
Our auction hall is located in Berlin-Buch, Am Stener Berg 41e. From there, we handle estates throughout the city – often in Pankow, Prenzlauer Berg, Weißensee, Buch, Karow and Französisch Buchholz, in Mitte, Lichtenberg, Hohenschönhausen and Marzahn-Hellersdorf, in Reinickendorf, Spandau, Charlottenburg, Steglitz-Zehlendorf, Tempelhof and Neukölln. Many heirs do not live in Berlin: We organise viewing, clearance and handover completely without your presence and send protocol, photos and billing via email.
In the surrounding area, we are regularly in Bernau, Panketal, Wandlitz, Ahrensfelde, Hohen Neuendorf, Oranienburg, Eberswalde and as far as Potsdam. We also completely clear houses with gardens, garages and barns in the Brandenburg area.
Typical situations
- Bereavement: the parents' rented flat has to be handed over at the end of the month
- The inherited house is to be sold and has to be empty beforehand
- A community of heirs wants to sell the household contents fairly and settle accounts properly
- Move into a care home: the household is dissolved during the owner's lifetime, often on behalf of relatives or legal guardians
- Estate curators or estate administrators need a documented clearance
We take care of that in the estate
- Complete clearance of apartment, house, cellar, attic and garage
- Inspection and valuation of all marketable items
- Auction in our own auction hall, settlement lot by lot
- Securing and handing over personal documents and keepsakes
- Documented disposal as a certified specialist company (§ 53 KrWG, No. LTB000117)
- Swept clean handover to landlord or property management with protocol
Related services
- No inheritance, but a move or notice of termination: Estate clearance
- Entire house with garden and outbuildings: Household dissolution
- Business or practice of the deceased: Business liquidation
- Only have individual valuables appraised: Purchase & Valuation
Frequently asked questions about estate liquidation
Book Viewing Appointment Directly Online
Would you prefer to schedule an appointment right away? Select an available appointment online for a free viewing – you will receive immediate confirmation by email.
- Freie Termine sofort sehen
- Kostenlos und unverbindlich, ca. 30 Minuten
- Bestätigung sofort per E-Mail
Lieber telefonisch? 030 229087545
Hinterlassen Sie kurz Ihre Kontaktdaten – wir rufen Sie zurück und finden gemeinsam einen Termin.
Estate realisation in Berlin & Brandenburg
Own staff, own auction hall, firm commitments. Call us – we inspect for free and advise calmly.