What applies to the local area of an apartment building?
The adjacent territory is the common shared property of the residents of the house. It is a plot of land on which the apartment building itself and infrastructure facilities are located.
This is a single territory, therefore it is impossible to allocate a part of it for sale together with a separate apartment or to give it to the entrance.
According to, the local area includes:
- the plot of land on which the building is built;
- sports and children's playgrounds;
- elements of landscaping and improvement;
- clothes dryers;
- collective parking lots;
- heating points;
- fire passages;
- transformer substations;
- other objects that ensure normal operation of the house.
Residents can entrust the maintenance and repair of the local area to the house committee (independent management). If the building is under the management of the city, then she is responsible for landscaping the yard.
Yard boundaries
All MKD infrastructure facilities must be located within the local area. They, like area and other parameters, are reflected in the cadastral passport. The dimensions of the house plot are established taking into account:
- number of floors in the house;
- density of surrounding buildings;
- availability of public roads;
- area standards established for a given region.
Based on this information, the management company calculates the costs of cleaning the site.
All information about the territory and its borders is stored in several databases:
- in the State Real Estate Cadastre. All information is reflected on the public cadastral map, which is posted on the official website of Rosreestr. More detailed data can be found in the cadastral passport kept by the chairman of the house, the administration of the HOA or the management company;
- in the Unified Register of Real Estate Rights. The register contains data on the rights to the plot, its area, registration date and method of establishing boundaries.
How not to make a mistake when choosing a contractor when repairing a yard road
Unfortunately, there are no uniform criteria when choosing a contractor.
Most management organizations determine the fundamental criteria for the quality of repairs even before the start of construction work, which allows them to achieve positive results.
It is better to part with a contractor who has not completed the assigned tasks. To make sure how qualified a potential contractor is, you need to request their portfolio.
Reviews from previous clients will be the best confirmation of the contractor’s reliability.
How are roads in yards repaired? Watch in this video:
Responsibilities of a self-governing company
- Search for a trusted contractor.
- Negotiations with the contractor.
- Signing an agreement with the conditions for carrying out repair work and the deadlines for completion.
- Planning of repair work.
- Monitoring the progress of repair work.
- Payment for repair of a yard road.
What are the control standards?
The inspection can be carried out both upon completion of all repair work and during its implementation.
It is necessary for the management company to set certain tasks, but at the same time understand that it is impossible to complete the job 100% perfectly. You cannot judge each individual event, you should evaluate the overall work done.
If the contractor has poorly fulfilled his obligations, the management company has the right to fine the contractor in the form of a reduction in payment for services.
What is control by residents?
At the request of the customer, the contractor can be required to use in his work a video report on the road repair work in the yard.
Such innovations primarily concern state and municipal contracts. The video recording can be easily transferred to disk, allowing local residents to monitor the work.
In the near future, on the official website of the local administration, it will be possible to view video surveillance recordings for every citizen, thus, even without leaving your own apartment, you will be able to monitor the stages of construction work from your computer.
Who is responsible for repairs and maintenance of the yard?
Who is responsible for the local area of the apartment building, its maintenance and service depends on whether the site has passed the registration and cadastral registration procedure.
When forming a plot of a house built before adoption (before March 1, 2005), apartment owners can submit an application for cadastral registration of the land and registration of ownership of it to state authorities or local government.
When new houses are built, the land underneath immediately becomes the property of the shareholders.
It is important to clarify whether the adjacent area has been formed with elements of infrastructure and landscaping. If not, apartment owners have the right to register ownership of it.
When transferring into common shared ownership, the territory on which the apartment building is located, the real estate objects included in it and the yard must go through the procedure of forming a land plot and be registered in the cadastral register.
At a general meeting, residents can decide whether to become the owners of the adjacent plot or leave it in municipal ownership
. Find out who is responsible for the maintenance and servicing of an apartment building and in what case.
Powers of the municipal administration
The territory on which apartment buildings and related infrastructure facilities are located does not always belong to the residents. Until a corresponding entry appears in the state cadastre and the boundaries of the yard are established, the municipality is considered the owner of the land plot. It is he who is given responsibility for the maintenance and repair of the site, regardless of the method of managing the apartment building.
In this case, it is not difficult to determine who is responsible for lighting in the courtyard of an apartment building or paving the paths - all this is the responsibility of the municipal administration.
When the management company or homeowners association responds
If all legal formalities are met and the adjacent territory is the property of the owners of apartments in the apartment building, they can independently carry out its improvement, monitor its maintenance and carry out repairs.
If an apartment building is managed by an HOA or management company, residents usually delegate these powers to them.
Find out in more detail what the rights and obligations of the HOA are regarding landscaping and repairs.
In the case where homeowners in an apartment building have signed a service agreement with the management company, it carries out the necessary restoration work. This is due to the fact that monthly payments include the costs of paying for services to maintain order within the local area.
Find out what the rights and responsibilities of the management company of apartment buildings are.
The legislative framework
The issues of establishing ownership of the local area, and, consequently, responsibility for its maintenance and repairs are regulated by the Housing Code of the Russian Federation (Articles 153, 154, 158) and (Article 210).
The belonging of the site to the common property of the owners and their obligation to finance work related to its improvement is stated in. This document introduced the Rules for maintaining the local area in an apartment building.
The list of landscaping and repair work is established in the rules and regulations for the operation of the housing stock, legalized.
What work is being carried out in the local area?
Homeowners in apartment buildings, who pay monthly maintenance costs for common property, are usually interested in what is included in the maintenance of the local area of an apartment building.
According to the law, such work includes:
- installation of children's playgrounds;
- cleaning parking lots and courtyards;
- landscaping of yards;
- installation of waste collection tanks;
- installation of enclosing structures around the courtyard area;
- painting of landscaping elements;
- renovation of MKD territories.
Residents can initiate improvement work by submitting an application to the Criminal Code.
What is included in cleaning work
The concept of “cleaning the local area” includes seasonally clearing it of snow and leaves, sprinkling footpaths with anti-slip compounds during icy conditions.
Also, the management organization must control the timely removal of MSW from the territory.
Maintaining cleanliness and proper sanitary and hygienic conditions in the entrances and areas is the responsibility of the management company.
Cleaning of intra-block roads is carried out by specialized organizations, and first the sidewalks and pedestrian paths are cleared of debris, and then the roadway.
Yard landscaping
Green spaces play an important role in the design of the yard. They give an attractive appearance to the site and improve environmental performance.
The rules for the technical operation of the housing stock contain the fundamental principles of landscaping measures:
- work is carried out only after the site has been cleared of construction debris and other waste;
- without special permission, it is strictly forbidden to cut down trees growing in the yard;
- when planting poplar and mulberry, it is not recommended to choose females, which cause more active clogging of areas;
- Every year, planned pest control of green spaces is organized.
There are special rules regarding green spaces that both management company employees and residents are required to follow. A large list of prohibitions is aimed at preventing damage to plants and preserving the yard area.
Laying asphalt
The poor condition of intra-block roads and sidewalks always raises the question among residents about who should repair the asphalt in the courtyard of an apartment building. The decision on the need to restore the asphalt surface should be made by the residents of the apartment building at a general meeting.
As a rule, the management company creates a special fund into which apartment owners contribute funds based on the calculated cost of the proposed work.
Additional fundraising for these purposes is due to the fact that the repair of roads in the courtyards of apartment buildings will be repaired by a contractor - an organization selected by the management company.
Road repairs must be carried out in compliance with SNiP recommendations for:
- the minimum permissible thickness of the asphalt layer is 0.15 m;
- the minimum width of asphalt around the house is 1 m;
- the use of fine-grained compounds;
- mandatory covering of paths leading to entrances and parking lots.
The fund can also be used to repair the sidewalk in the courtyard of an apartment building.
Installation of a barrier
The decision to install a barrier in the yard is taken by the general meeting of premises owners, since residents have the right to limit the use of the local area.
However, unauthorized installation of traffic lights, road signs and other means of organizing traffic, including barriers, is prohibited if they interfere with it. Therefore, to install a limiter, you must obtain permission from the city administration, agreed upon with the following services:
- communal;
- state fire supervision;
- Traffic police
At the general meeting, it is necessary to determine the rules for the entry of vehicles of residents and other persons into the yard.
Preparing the yard for seasonal use
The requirements for preparing the local area for seasonal use are listed in Gosstroy Decree No. 170. They contain a list of works that must be carried out by those responsible for its maintenance in the winter, for example:
- checking snow removal equipment and equipment;
- provision of sand and salt or its substitute for sprinkling during the period of icing of the ground, etc.
Other improvement activities
The improvement of the territory adjacent to the apartment buildings includes a number of other activities: the creation and maintenance of children's playgrounds in apartment buildings and parking lots. There are certain requirements for their arrangement. So, places for children's games should:
- correspond to different age groups of children;
- be located away from driveways and pedestrian paths;
- be located no closer than 20 m from garbage cans, parking lots, warehouses;
- be fenced off with green spaces that provide shade in the summer.
The management company is obliged to monitor compliance with sanitary standards: replace sand in the sandbox 1-2 times a year, ensure the cleanliness of the structures located on the site.
What yards are not accepted to participate in the program?
The decision to include a yard in the project is made at the budget level. In accordance with the terms of the project, the following list of restrictions has been established:
- if there are emergency buildings in close proximity to the yard that are subject to demolition during this period;
- when carrying out repairs or replacement of utilities running through the yard planned for a given year;
- if new buildings have been erected in the areas adjacent to the yard, in which the warranty period has expired upon commissioning;
- in the case when the types of work that the residents planned to carry out were already carried out at the expense of the local budget
It is recommended that you check with your municipality in advance about these restrictions.
Types of repairs to the local area
Maintaining the area around the apartment building in proper condition involves carrying out timely repair work.
The management company must carry out current and major repairs of the adjacent territory of an apartment building. Current repairs mean planned annual activities aimed at correcting damage and partially restoring elements of the apartment building itself and everything belonging to the owners of the site.
Find out in more detail what the rules are and what is included in the current renovation of an apartment building.
For a comprehensive restoration of structures or their complete replacement, a major overhaul is required. It is carried out as needed or upon request. The list of works of the management company for major repairs includes:
- restoration of fences;
- restoration of children's playgrounds;
- renovation of recreational facilities and others.
Find out how often it is carried out and what is included in the overhaul of apartment buildings.
Who sets rates for yard maintenance?
Tariffing for services for the maintenance of land plots adjacent to apartment buildings is carried out by the utility organizations that provide them, and in some cases - by local government bodies.
The regulatory role in this matter is assigned to the state. It participates in pricing by adopting regulations:
- »;
- separate government resolutions.
Market factors have a significant impact on the cost of services: the level of inflation, prices for fuel and lubricants, wages and others. Tariffs may be revised annually.
Payment for maintenance of local areas is charged per square meter, taking into account the resident’s share in the common property. If the tariff rate is 10 rubles per 1 m2, and the area of the local area is 200 m2, then at a share of 3% the monthly fee for its maintenance is 60 rubles.
Find out in more detail what the tariffs for maintaining common property in an apartment building depend on.
What to remember
- Good roads are a requirement for road safety.
- Any road must be repaired within 1-14 days without any excuses.
- If you receive an unsubscribe, you need to resend requests until the problem is resolved.
- Silence is a sign of agreement with broken roads.
- It is worth involving friends and acquaintances in the matter. If at least 5% of motorists begin to demand order, then the traffic police will drown in mountains of paper. It will become easier for them to fix problems without waiting for calls.
Who to complain about poor quality service to?
The quality of services for maintaining the local area should always remain at a high level. This is especially true in winter, when snow drifts sometimes prevent you from even getting out of the house.
But service companies do not always cope with clearing yards and sidewalks of snow, removing household waste, or timely cleaning the site in the summer. In this case, the management company is obliged to revise payment tariffs.
The owners of the site send a written application for revision of tariffs no later than 6 months from the moment the violation was recorded.
If management officials do not respond to the claim with appropriate actions, homeowners in apartment buildings have the right to appeal to the Housing Inspectorate, the municipal administration, and even to court.
Find out more about where to complain about the management company.
How to save on road restoration
To avoid overpaying for repair work, you need to follow fairly simple rules:
- Carry out road repairs only in the summer season.
- Decide on the performer in advance.
- Carefully study the potential contractor's portfolio to see if he is competent in this matter.
- Don’t put off repairs for too long; timely restoration of the road will save money.
If you have problems with the HOA: they refuse to carry out road repairs, or they did their work poorly, it is recommended that you immediately contact the city prosecutor’s office to clarify the circumstances.
Judicial practice in cases of challenging cleaning fees
The courts often receive claims from owners of apartments in apartment buildings challenging the established fee for cleaning the local area due to poor quality of the service. When making decisions, the courts, guided by the norms of Housing Legislation and decrees of the Government of the Russian Federation on this issue, often take the side of the plaintiffs.
As judicial practice on the adjacent territories of apartment buildings shows, many controversial issues arise related to the establishment of boundaries, the lawful use and maintenance of courtyards. In each specific case, the court examines the arguments, evidence and other relevant information.