In short
When one spouse dies, the most urgent question is usually the home. Article 1625 deals with it in three sentences and each does something different. The first recognises a faculty: the surviving spouse may request the preferential attribution of the family dwelling. It is a right to ask for it with preference, and the article states it without naming before whom. The second sentence addresses the most common case, where the numbers do not add up: when their hereditary quotas and the ganancial ones do not reach the value necessary for such attribution, the surviving spouse may request the right of habitation in a lifetime and free form, in proportion to the difference existing between the value of the good and the sum of their rights. Note the Code adds two pools: what comes from the inheritance and what comes from community property. The test is not whether the inheritance is enough, but whether the two together are. And “lifetime and free” are the two words to hold on to: it is not a rental and it is not temporary. The third sentence is the most overlooked and the most reassuring: the difference in value burdens the decedent’s free-disposition share. That is, the shortfall is not taken from the other forced heirs’ legítima: the Code charges it against the half the decedent could freely dispose of. What the article does not say must also be known. It does not define the family dwelling, does not say before whom it is requested nor in what form nor within what time, does not say how the dwelling is valued or as of when, does not say what happens if the other heirs object, and does not say whether the habitation right is lost by remarrying or by ceasing to live there. None of that is in the text and this guide does not fill it in.
What is it?
It is Article 1625 of the Civil Code of 2020: the preferential attribution of the family dwelling to the surviving spouse and the lifetime, free right of habitation when their quotas fall short.
Who can do it?
The spouse who survives the other and wants to keep the family dwelling, and the others called to that inheritance.
Requirements
- The surviving spouse may request the preferential attribution of the family dwelling.Verified against the official source
- If their hereditary and ganancial quotas do not reach the necessary value, they may request the right of habitation in a lifetime and free form.Verified against the official source
- That right is recognised in proportion to the difference between the value of the good and the sum of their rights.Verified against the official source
- The difference in value burdens the decedent’s free-disposition share.Verified against the official source
Documents you need
Cost
Step by step
Step 1: The right to ask for the house
Article 1625, first sentence: the surviving spouse may request the preferential attribution of the family dwelling.
Step 2: The Code does not say before whom
The article states the faculty without naming a forum, form or term. This guide does not assume it.
Step 3: When the numbers fall short
Second sentence: when their hereditary quotas and the ganancial ones do not reach the value necessary for such attribution.
Step 4: Both pools are added
The article does not look only at the inheritance: it adds the hereditary and the ganancial quotas before deciding whether it is enough.
Step 5: Then: the right of habitation
They may request the right of habitation in a lifetime and free form. Lifetime means for life; free means without paying for it.
Step 6: To what extent
In proportion to the difference existing between the value of the good and the sum of their rights. It is not automatic over the whole: it is measured on the shortfall.
Step 7: And who bears that difference
Third sentence: the difference in value burdens the decedent’s free-disposition share. It does not come out of the other forced heirs’ legítima.
Step 8: What the article does not settle
It does not define the family dwelling, does not say how or as of when it is valued, does not say what happens if the other heirs object, and does not say whether the right is lost by remarrying or moving out.
Step 9: And it is not the same as after a divorce
The family dwelling after a divorce is a different situation, with its own guide on this site. This article is about the death of a spouse.
Where to do it
The article says the surviving spouse “may request”, but names no one to request it from, no form, no fee and no time. The Code does not say it and this guide does not invent it.
How long it takes
What to do if something goes wrong
If you have been widowed and fear losing the house, start by adding what is due to you from the inheritance and what is due to you from community property: Article 1625 measures the shortfall against those two together, not against the inheritance alone. If it still falls short, the same article lets you request the right of habitation in a lifetime and free form, in proportion to the difference. And if someone tells you that shortfall is being taken from the other heirs, the article’s last sentence says otherwise: the difference in value burdens the decedent’s free-disposition share. What you will not find here is before whom it is requested, in what form, within what time, how the house is valued, or whether the right is lost if you remarry: the article does not say and we do not assume. The family dwelling after a divorce is a different matter with its own guide. MiPRFácil does not represent anyone in court and gives no legal advice.
Common mistakes
- Looking only at the hereditary quota: Article 1625 also adds the ganancial one before checking sufficiency.
- Believing the right of habitation is temporary or paid: the article calls it lifetime and free.
- Thinking the shortfall is deducted from the others’ legítima: it burdens the decedent’s free-disposition share.
- Assuming the attribution is automatic: the article says the spouse “may request” it.
- Expecting the Code to say here before whom it is requested: it names no forum.
- Looking in this article for the definition of family dwelling: it gives none.
- Taking for granted the habitation right covers the whole good: it is recognised in proportion to the difference.
- Confusing it with the family dwelling after a divorce: they are different situations.
Frequently asked questions
Can I keep the house if my spouse dies?
Article 1625 says the surviving spouse may request the preferential attribution of the family dwelling.
And if my share falls short of the house’s value?
The same article allows requesting the right of habitation in a lifetime and free form, in proportion to the difference between the value of the good and the sum of their rights.
Where does that difference come from?
Article 1625 says the difference in value burdens the decedent’s free-disposition share.
Do I count only what I inherit?
No. The article speaks of “their hereditary quotas and the ganancial ones”: it adds both before deciding whether they suffice.
Official sources
These are the government pages this guide is based on.
- Poder Judicial de Puerto Rico
Poder Judicial
bvirtualogp.pr.gov
Last verified
September 11, 2026
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