Oftentimes, the first priority to claim an estate in Puerto Rico is to gather information on the properties left behind. After all, what is there to claim if not the properties that the deceased family member has left?

The decision to initiate an estate claim in Puerto Rico is directly dependent on whether or not there IS something to claim. It makes very little sense economically to initiate legal proceedings without first establishing what is to be claimed, how much it is worth, and how much it’ll cost to get it.

From a sentimental standpoint, many heirs wish to begin an estate claim regardless of the fair market value of the house where they grew up, or their parent’s last home. Other times, the decision to proceed legally, and the costs and legal fees associated may far outweigh the final value of the investment.

In any case, it’s always a good idea to start by investigating what assets were left behind, and how much they’re worth.

Here are a few pointers on where to begin:

Real Estate

Finding real estate properties in Puerto Rico is a daunting task. Outdated tax records, few if any online access to public records, and disorganized non-computerized filing systems make for a tedious and costly search of real estate properties.

There are ways to work around this.

Tip #1:

The first is the Puerto Rico Property Registry, or “Registro de la Propiedad”. The inclusion of real estate properties within the registry is voluntary in Puerto Rico. Registrants acquire certain legal rights or benefits if they do register their properties, but it is not compulsory, so this system is plagued with outdated records, mistakes in entries, and absolutely no way of gathering information aside from physically visiting the regional offices and searching.

There is something good to all this: apartments.

Apartments, and apartment buildings MUST be registered in the Puerto Rico Property Registry, so if the deceased family member owned an apartment, you will surely find it here.

Here’s a quick tip:  Hire the services of a Title Investigator to search the Index and find if the decedent left any real estate properties. These professionals are much more adept at searching for properties, and title studies are not expensive.  Most range about the $50 to $100 range, depending on the complexity of the study.

You will receive a list of all the properties registered under that person’s name, just as long as they are contained within the registry.

Click here for the Puerto Rico Property Registry’s addresses.

Tip #2:

The CRIM. The Center for the Collection of Municipal Taxes, or CRIM, for it’s name in Spanish (pronounced “cream“) is the government agency in charge of organizing real estate property information for property tax purposes in Puerto Rico.

If anyone needs to know who owns what, where, and how much it costs, it’s this agency. Every real estate property built, sold, segregated or existing in Puerto Rico receives it’s own lot number, called a “Catastro”. It’s a numerical denominator, much like a real estate property’s Social Security number that is used to identify it, and gather it’s taxable value.

Here’s a another quick tip:

You can search all the properties under a person’s Social Security number, and it makes for a quick cross search of what the decedent owned at the time of death.

While heirs are liable for paying property taxes before selling any real estate in Puerto Rico, there are exceptions to reduce the overall debt associated with these properties, so you needn’t worry that just by asking the government will initiate collection on past due property taxes. Now, if the decedent owned property taxes, the CRIM will require that these be paid before any new transaction is made.

You can write a letter requesting a Certification of Debt, and a listing of all the properties under the decedent’s name. You’ll need this for the PR Estate Tax form, so you might as well apply for it anyway.

Click here for a map of each municipality’s CRIM address.

Unfortunately, there isn’t much public record information online, as government agencies in Puerto Rico have yet to establish a serious online presence. As you may know from my previous posts, most of waht is available online is a downloadable form to print and mail in with a Money Order, and wait for a reply through regular mail.

There aren’t any dedicated heir or estate asset locating services in Puerto Rico, at least none that I am aware of. Personally, I have been hired to search for properties, and to provide advice on the reasonability of pursuing estate properties in Puerto Rico. Like all legal matters, it’s sometimes worth it, sometimes not. It depends on what your priorities are at the time to decide to claim an inheritance.

I’d like to thank Astrid Mangual for her comment regarding this topic on www.BoricuaLaw.com, which has prompted me to write about this complex relationship between a testamentary civilist jurisdiction such as Puerto Rico, and Common Law Wills such as those drafted and probated in the United States or elsewhere.

First off, let’s start by stating that there is no such thing as “probate” in Puerto Rico. Wills must comply with such strict legal and notary guidelines that our Civil Code has practically replaced the need for a probate procedure. No legal procedure is necessary for the estate to be partitioned amongst all the heirs if they all convene on how to do so. Unless an executor (”albacea” in Spanish) is designated, the testament itself is enough to transmit the ownership of the totality of the estate to the heirs. With a valid testament, heirs can partition the estate as they see fit.

If by this time you’re asking how creditors are protected if probate doesn’t exist here, know that heirs personally owe all the debts incurred by the deceased if they accept their inheritance. Estates are also tax exempt in Puerto Rico up to $1,000,000.00, so in most cases, estates are tax-free.

Our Civil Code establishes that a testament drafted outside of Puerto Rico must comply with the law of where it is drafted to be valid. If the testament is valid where drafted, it is valid here (31 L.P.R.A. § 2221), just as long as it complies with our local law regarding the institution of heirs in thirds, and does not contain any illegal disposition. If the testament has been probated, then perhaps the best way to apply its distribution of the estate is through an exequatur procedure. But remember, even if valid in another jurisdiction, and legally probated, it must comply with Puerto Rico’s testamentary law.

While in Common Law jurisdictions the disposition of the testator is paramount, in most Civilist jurisdictions, the inclusion of descendants is protected. In Puerto Rico, a third of the estate must be reserved for the “forceful” heirs. A will that leaves the totality of the estate to the surviving spouse must be treated as intestate for the “strict legitimate third”, and the rest of the will is valid as to whatever properties are left to be bequeathed. In order to disinherit a “forceful” heir in Puerto Rico, the testator must expressly exclude the heir in a valid will, and only by applying a cause specified in our Civil Code.

So, to sum up this complex partly intestate partition, the birth of a mixed estate partition may usually require a Declaration of Heirs in order to divide the estate left in Puerto Rico.

Thus, the conditioned treatment of a stateside or foreign will, be it probated or un-probated will must comply with Puertorrican law. If part of the estate that is to be treated as intestate, a Declaration of Heirs is mandatory for that portion of the estate. The remaining two thirds of the estate is to be distributed according to however the foreign will disposes.

As a growing number of expatriates begin to claim their parent’s estates in Puerto Rico, those who expect the estate to be partitioned exactly as their testator wished the estate to be divided amongst his or her heirs, face the sometimes uncomfortable truth that estate partitions in Puerto Rico are completely different from their familiar laws.

Again, thank you Astrid for such an interesting topic that I’ve barely scratched here, so feel free to comment and ask about anything that I’ve written today.