Women continue to give up their property: the spiral of emotional and social pressure

Although women and men in Montenegro have equal inheritance rights under the law, in practice women continue to renounce their share of inherited property in favor of their brothers, sons, or other family members, often under the guise of acting voluntarily or “for the good of the family.” The state does not keep records of how many women waive their inheritance rights, leaving the problem largely invisible to institutions.

“No one pressured me directly, but it was simply understood that this was what I was supposed to do,” said one participant in a mini-survey conducted by the Center for Investigative Journalism of Montenegro (CIN-CG), describing her experience during inheritance proceedings.

That single sentence best captures what has been happening behind closed family doors in Montenegro for decades. Women formally “voluntarily” renounce their inheritance, yet this decision is often made in an atmosphere of expectation, silence, guilt, and fear that, if they claim what legally belongs to them, they will be labeled as the ones who “took their brother’s property,” “caused conflict within the family,” or “destroyed the family home.”

Montenegrin law guarantees equal inheritance rights for women and men. However, CIN-CG’s research shows that the gap between legal rights and everyday reality remains profound. In practice, a woman’s right to inherit is rarely challenged in court, it is challenged at the family gatherings, through upbringing, generational beliefs, and the deeply rooted conviction that the son is “the heir to the family home,” while the daughter is expected to “get married” and thereby resolve her own property issues.

There is currently no recent data showing whether men and women inherit property equally. In 2023, the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) published the report “Gender and Property Ownership in Montenegro – Mapping the Property Gap,” warning that women frequently renounce their inheritance in favor of male family members and that property acquired through inheritance is distributed unevenly. CIN-CG has previously reported on this issue.

According to that study, women account for just over one-third (36 percent) of all registered property owners in Montenegro. Among women who own real estate, only 36 percent acquired it through inheritance.

The Government of Montenegro’s 2019 Gender Equality Action Plan highlighted the extent of the property gap. According to the document, women owned only four percent of apartments, eight percent of land, and 14 percent of vacation homes.

The National Gender Equality Strategy for 2025–2029 states that Montenegro’s Gender Equality Index for 2023 stands at 59.3, compared to the EU average of 68.6. The largest gap compared with the European Union is found in the area of financial resources and economic independence. Montenegro scored 61.9 points in this category, while the EU average reached 82.6.

The Strategy also notes that women account for 43 percent of all employed persons, are concentrated in lower-paid sectors, occupy only around 20 percent of management positions, and face a gender pay gap of 21.6 percent.

A Voluntary Decision or Family Pressure?

According to the CIN-CG survey on women and inheritance, which included 45 female respondents, 19 women (42 percent) said they had renounced all or part of their inheritance. Eleven gave up only part of it, while eight waived their inheritance entirely. Another five respondents said they had not yet decided what they would do. Among those who relinquished their inheritance, most transferred it to a brother, while others gave their share to their mother, sister, or another family member.

Most respondents said they had not experienced direct pressure. Eight women said that giving up their inheritance was simply “expected,” while six reported explicit pressure from their families. Some respondents said they had been told that “women do not take property,” that the family property should remain with a brother or son, and that claiming their legal share would lead to family conflict or the breakdown of family relationships. Others mentioned threats, blackmail, and accusations that they would be “selfish” or “destroying the family.”

One woman wrote in the survey that her brothers pressured her to renounce her inheritance, but she ultimately decided to keep her share.

“Our relationship suffered because of it, but I have no regrets. It was difficult, but I would make the same decision again,”she said.

Another participant wrote:

“My brother was treated as an only child throughout his life, despite having two sisters. That was how he was raised.”

After their father’s death, the property was divided equally among their mother, brother, and the two daughters. However, she said that her brother, through their mother, threatened both sisters because he believed that “everything had been taken away from him” and that “everything belonged to him.” She emphasized that this did not happen in a rural village but within “an educated family living in an urban environment.” Her experience challenges the common misconception that such attitudes exist only in rural communities, among older generations, or in less educated families.

Another survey response illustrates how a woman’s legal right is often replaced by promises from male relatives that they will “take care” of her.

“After my father passed away, my brother and I transferred everything to our mother. The inheritance has not yet been divided, but everyone somehow expects that I will ‘get married’ and secure my future that way. My mother keeps telling me, ‘Your brother will never abandon you.'”

Another woman explained that when her family became worried she might claim the apartment that had originally been intended for her, the situation completely changed her perspective.

“Now I know that I would never give up anything in any future division of property. In the past, I probably would have given in to expectations and followed the pattern where women always renounce their inheritance in favor of a brother or another male relative.”

For many women, the right to property is still not primarily a matter of justice or the rule of law, it is treated as a matter of family loyalty and trust. Women are expected to place their trust in a brother, son, uncle, or their husband’s family, even while being asked to give up the only tangible asset that could provide them with long-term financial security.

Zorica Konatar, a social worker at the Women’s Rights Center (CŽP), told CIN-CG that relatively few women have approached the organization directly because of pressure to renounce their inheritance. Most seek legal assistance and representation in proceedings concerning the division of marital property, where questions of inheritance and property rights within their family of origin often arise only indirectly.

“We believe that so few women come to us because many are simply unaware that they are legally entitled to a share of the property or inheritance, and consequently do not recognize that they are being pressured to give up those rights,” Konatar explains.

She emphasizes that the belief that family property should remain with male family members, most commonly brothers, is still deeply rooted in Montenegro.

“Most women grow up receiving indirect, and sometimes very explicit, messages that giving up their inheritance is simply expected of them. As a result, they often make this decision without questioning it or considering the long-term consequences it may have for their financial security and economic independence,” says Konatar.

She adds that such pressure rarely takes the form of overt threats or blackmail.

“In the vast majority of cases, it is not about explicit threats or coercion, but rather emotional and social pressure,” Konatar explains. Women are often led to believe that accepting the share of property to which they are legally entitled would damage family relationships, provoke conflict, or mean “taking something that belongs to a brother.”

For this reason, many decisions are presented as voluntary, even though they are made under the influence of years of family and societal expectations.

“Based on our experience working with women, we can say that a woman’s decision to claim her rightful share of an inheritance often results in serious family conflict and strained relationships with brothers or other relatives,” Konatar says.

Property Is a Matter of Security

Many women do not give up their property because they do not need it, but because they trust promises made by those closest to them. Families may promise to compensate them later, to help them financially if needed, or to care for them when they grow old or are left alone. Particularly vulnerable are situations in which a widow renounces her share of the property in favor of her son, believing that she is preserving family unity and that she will, in return, be cared for and financially secure.

However, the Women’s Rights Center warns that such promises frequently go unfulfilled. Women are often left without both the property they relinquished and the support they expected. In some cases, Konatar notes, heirs have later initiated legal proceedings to evict these women from their own homes.

“When women give up their share of property, they often lose a significant asset that could have provided them with greater financial security and independence,” Konatar says.

This is especially significant for women experiencing domestic violence. Without property, a home of their own, or financial security, many find it much harder to leave abusive relationships. Konatar points out that economic dependence remains one of the primary reasons why women stay in abusive relationships or postpone leaving, particularly when they have minor children and do not know where they would live or how they would support themselves and their children.

The broader economic context further explains why property ownership is so important for women. The National Gender Equality Strategy reports that the employment rate for women is 45 percent, compared with 58 percent for men, while the gender pay gap stands at 15 percent. The Strategy also notes that women make up 43 percent of the workforce but remain concentrated in lower-paid sectors and hold only around one-fifth of managerial positions. When inheritance renunciation is added to this already unequal economic position, the loss of property is no longer merely a family matter, it becomes a long-term risk factor for economic dependence and poverty.

Previous CIN-CG research on women’s property rights also showed that inequality is not always reflected through direct violations of the law. Instead, legal rights are often circumvented through family agreements, gifts, lifetime care contracts, or pressure on women to “voluntarily” give up what legally belongs to them.For this reason, the findings of this mini-survey align with what national strategic documents identify as one of Montenegro’s key challenges: traditional gender roles and expectations continue to limit women’s opportunities in the economy, politics, and other areas of society. Inheritance is one of the clearest examples of these expectations, as inequality is rarely created through explicit legal discrimination, but rather through family arrangements that women often find difficult to refuse without facing serious personal consequences.

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Author: Andrea Perišić & Predrag Nikolić

This story inspired a cross-border collaboration with the Meduza platform. As part of this collaboration, we will publish stories of women’s experiences with inheritance from Western Balkan countries.

Featured photo: Meduza platform/Damjana Vidicheska