Table of Contents
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What is the usufruct?
The usufruct is the real right of enjoyment or enjoyment of a good that does not belong to us, that is, of an alien thing. This translates in legal terms to the possession of the thing, but not to its property.
In conclusion, the usufruct is the right to use and have a good, without becoming the owners of it. It is a legal figure whose origins date back to Roman law, and that is very frequent today.
In legal terms, the usufruct is understood as the temporary dismemberment of the domain over the thing, that is, while the usufructuary is entitled to the profits of the thing, the owner of the same will have temporarily lost his ability to enjoy or enjoy it, leaving only the right of disposition on it.
Put more simply, the owner of a good continues to be so despite the usufruct, but it will be the usufructuary who has the right to enjoy and enjoy it. There is the “partition” of the rights traditionally granted by the property.
Any form of usufruct responds to what is established in the matter by the national Constitution or whatever the current legal system, and the civil codes that regulate the matter.
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Usufruct characteristics
The usufruct is a real right in an alien thing, so usufructed assets are not part of the heritage who uses them, but of its owner or owner.
Therefore, many of the property rights of the thing will be prevented, such as sales, for example. For the rest, it is a right to complete enjoyment, without limits, but defined in a preconceived timeframe, that is, temporary.
There are several usufructible goods: material goods (movable or immovable), rights, services, even a part of the thing can be usufructed and not the whole thing, as desired. This ranges from homes, cars, machinery, plantations, capitals, flocks, etc.
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Temporary usufruct and lifetime usufruct
In general, the usufruct is classified in two, according to its preconceived duration: temporary and lifetime. The temporary usufruct is one that has a period of duration established in its contract and beforehand, at the end of which it expires, that is to say, that the right of enjoyment and enjoyment returns to the rightful owner of the thing. This is the most common type of usufruct.
Instead, a lifetime usufruct has the duration of the lifetime of the usufructuary, and only then will the rights of enjoyment of the thing return to the owner.
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Usufruct Contract
Every usufruct relationship is guided by the terms of a contract of usufruct. This contract, of course, governs the terms of the agreement and, among other things, determine the type of usufruct and its duration.
It also indicates the percentage of the total value of the good that the owner must receive from the usufructuary, as well as the bonds, ordinary charges, the writing of an inventory (if applicable), and the way in which the contract itself will be extinguished.
In many of these contracts, in addition, suspensive conditions may be included, which establish requirements to access the usufruct or not to lose it. These contracts must be submitted and certified before the relevant agency of the State, like any other.
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Example of usufruct calculation
The value of a usufruct It is calculated based on the terms of use time scheduled. For example, a lifetime usufruct usually uses the following formula:
Usufruct = 89 – age of the usufructuary
Since, being for a lifetime, the usufruct value ranges will be between 10% and 70% of the total value of the good. For example, if we want to use a house to live in it for life, we must pay the owner an amount estimated according to the previous rule, to compensate him financially for the right to enjoyment and enjoyment that he will be giving us.
We will not be able to sell the house, nor decrease its value freely, but we can enjoy its fruits: we can rent a room, for example, or have a small garden in the garden.
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Usufruct and Nuda property
The Nuda property it is the exclusive right of the owners on a thing given in usufruct, so it does not hold the right to enjoy it.
For example, the owner of an apartment that is assigned under rental terms is known as the owner’s node, being able to sell it if he wishes; Meanwhile, the rights of use and fruit (from there comes the term, from usufructus Latino) of the same will correspond to the renter.
The rights of the owner knot, then, are:
- Recover the thing ceded in usufruct in good condition, once the usufruct is extinguished according to the terms of the contract.
- Dispose of the thing, that is, dispose of it at will.
- Exercise other rights that the property of the thing grants.