Pravozhil.com > Rent > Right of purchase > Buying a room in a communal apartment - all the necessary information about the transaction
Buying a room in a communal apartment is sometimes the only option for a young family or a citizen in need of housing. It would seem that it might be simpler to acquire a certain share of an entire home, but in fact the procedure is quite complex in legal terms.
It is important to buy out a room in a communal apartment competently and with an understanding of the essence of this event, otherwise some problems will arise in the future. Read more about the procedure in the material below.
Independent search or professional help?
Everyone, of course, decides and determines which option is more convenient for him; a lot depends on financial capabilities. You may be able to easily and quickly choose the right option on your own with the help of friends or an ad.
But still, in the process of documenting the transaction, it is better to seek legal assistance , at least of an advisory nature. After all, such a transaction is not simple, there are a lot of nuances.
Without professional help, it will be difficult to take everything into account so that no problems arise in the future.
Concept
If certain requirements are met, tenants can become full owners of residential premises.
The procedure for free transfer of municipal (state) real estate into private ownership was defined as “privatization”.
The Law “On the Privatization of Housing Stock in the Russian Federation” (No. 1541-1 dated July 4, 1991, as amended on December 20, 2017) enshrines the principle of voluntariness.
If residents for some reason do not want to become owners, forced registration of property is impossible.
How to buy: step-by-step instructions
What documents are needed?
- A document confirming ownership of this living space.
- Notarized waivers of neighbors' preemptive rights.
- All technical and cadastral documentation for a room in a communal apartment.
- Certificates of absence of debts for electricity, telephone, utilities, etc.
- A certificate containing information about all registered residents.
- Consent of the second spouse (certified by a notary) to complete the transaction.
- Passports.
- Consent from guardianship authorities.
Procedure
The process depends on the procedure adopted at the regional level. Thus, in Moscow, if there is free living space, the authorized department sends a notification about the possibility of purchasing real estate. If such rules are not provided for in a constituent entity of the Russian Federation, then the applicant independently goes to the administration and receives the relevant information.
When purchasing premises owned by a municipality, you must follow the following algorithm of actions:
- Submission of an application formed according to the established template to the housing department of the local administration.
- Waiting for a response from the employees of the structure involved in considering the application.
- With the consent of the municipality, the cadastral value of the room is determined. In addition to this assessment method, information on the market price of housing in the region is used. After setting the price, an analysis of the cost of preparing documentation is carried out.
- Payment of living space by the applicant. Different sources can be used: maternal capital; personal savings; mortgage. If a citizen (family) is recognized as in need of improved living conditions, then the cost of housing is reduced according to a reduction factor depending on the time of placement in the queue. The money is transferred to the municipality's account.
- Drawing up, signing an agreement and sending it to Rosreestr. Once the document is registered, ownership passes to the petitioner.
Important! The procedure given above is similar for all beneficiaries. Documents are prepared and endorsed within five days from the date of deposit of funds by the beneficiaries.
Underwater rocks
It is possible to buy a room in a communal apartment with a mortgage; the law allows it (Clause 1, Article 5 of Federal Law No. 102-FZ “On Mortgage”). But in reality, this is not so easy to implement; banks are not very willing to cooperate in such situations, because they do not want to take risks.
You can identify some specific features when applying for a mortgage loan for a room in a communal apartment.
Bank position
Not all banks are ready to provide a loan for the purchase of a room in a communal apartment , since its liquid value is low. If the borrower experiences financial difficulties (if he stops repaying the loan), the room becomes bank property. But the bank cannot easily sell it to compensate for the damage, so lending conditions are becoming more stringent, and so are the requirements for the borrower.
Neighbors' refusals of priority rights
If the neighbors do not express a desire to buy this room, then the borrower, together with the seller, must collect written refusals from all neighbors and attach them to the package of documents for obtaining a mortgage.
Property collateral
Some banks require that the bank be given as collateral not the room being purchased (for which, in fact, the loan is issued), but other housing available to the borrower.
Banks are happy to provide a mortgage if the last room in a communal apartment is purchased, where all the others already belong to this buyer. In this case, the entire apartment is pledged.
There is a specially developed series of requirements for rooms (to authorize a mortgage):
- the minimum area of the room cannot be less than 12 square meters;
- the loan can only be issued in the area where the property is located;
- housing must be residential in status and cannot be in disrepair (no more than 55% depreciation);
- the presence of a kitchen and a bathroom in a communal apartment;
- availability of heating, running water, electricity;
- wooden floors are not allowed;
- housing cannot be new, only secondary.
If you are thinking about purchasing real estate, then it would be useful for you to familiarize yourself with such options as buying a room in a dorm and a share in an apartment, including from relatives.
Who has the right to take action to purchase a room?
According to parts 1-3 of Art. 59 of the Housing Code of the Russian Federation, not all citizens can afford to formalize a transaction for the alienation of housing from the municipality. The list of persons who have the right to carry out the designated action includes tenants who need to improve their living conditions and are in the appropriate queue. In this case, persons must be recognized as low-income in the prescribed manner. The transaction can also be completed by persons who do not fit into the standard for area per person. Their income also should not reach the subsistence level established in the region. And the last category is those provided with living space that is less than the standard of representation.
Important! The first two of the designated categories of persons (families) have the right to receive housing under a social tenancy agreement. Citizens from the third group have the right to register a room only by concluding a purchase and sale agreement.
Each subject sets its own subsistence level and minimum wage. In this case, the first indicator is approved for the main population groups. Thus, if there are children and two able-bodied adults in a family, the average per capita income is calculated by adding these indicators and dividing the amount by the number of citizens living together. If the total family income is less than the minimum level established by law, then citizens are recognized as low-income. The status is verified upon receipt of the document upon personal application of those in need. Taking into account the situation of tenants of communal housing, the authorities provide benefits.
Right to privatization
All citizens of the Russian Federation are given the opportunity to participate in privatization once (Article 11 of Law No. 1541-1).
The following requirements are imposed on applicants for free ownership of premises:
- Residence under social rent conditions for at least one year.
- Availability of permanent registration (registration) in the residential premises.
- Documented citizenship.
- Lack of information on the use of the right to privatization.
It is mandatory to involve minor members of the tenant's family in the re-registration of real estate. The exclusion of children from the parties to the transaction requires permission from the guardianship authorities.
Privatization objects
Law No. 1541-1 (Article 4) defines the categories of residential premises that cannot be the subject of privatization.
The following objects are not permitted to be transferred into ownership:
- living space transferred for the duration of work duties;
- premises in houses officially recognized as unsafe (read more about which houses are considered unsafe);
- dorm rooms;
- housing located on the territory of closed military settlements;
- objects located in environmental zones.
In some cases, the transfer of official housing is allowed (for example, to employees with extensive work experience).
Read: how to privatize a service apartment?
It is possible to privatize premises in dilapidated buildings if the building has not received the official status of “emergency”.
Judicial practice on refusals to privatize
To go to court you need serious reasons. When considering a case, the judge examines all the circumstances of the dispute.
M. demanded that the room be transferred to her ownership. The house in which the communal apartment is located belonged to a departmental fund.
After the bankruptcy of the enterprise, the house was transferred to the balance of the municipality. The city administration refused to formalize the privatization agreement on the grounds that there was no social rental agreement concluded with M. The plaintiff has been using the room for more than 10 years and pays utilities on time. The court ordered officials to carry out privatization.
In another example, one of the residents of a 3-room apartment appealed to the court. The local government refused to transfer the room to the plaintiff. The premises in the apartment were not allocated, the housing was not given the status of “communal”. Legislation allows the privatization of indivisible objects only as a whole. The applicant did not provide the consent (refusal) of the remaining residents to privatization. Under these circumstances, the judge sided with the municipality.
In most cases, the court satisfies the citizens' demands. However, each case has individual characteristics, so it is impossible to predict the court's decision.
Price
The concept of “free privatization” only means the absence of payment for square meters. The very paperwork itself will require the investment of some funds. The approximate cost of some certificates and extracts and the cost of state duty is as follows:
Prices for issuing other certificates and statements depend on their cost in each region.
Features of privatization in communal apartments
The legislation does not provide a precise definition of a “communal apartment”. A communal apartment is a room in which several unrelated people live.
The difference between communal housing and a regular apartment is the presence of several isolated rooms and common areas.
The tenant of each premises must have a social tenancy order or agreement.
The following features of the privatization of communal services are highlighted:
- The fact of allocation of living space is confirmed by a technical passport (issued by the BTI).
- The social rental agreement defines the room as a room with a separate entrance.
- Common areas are transferred to all residents as shared ownership.
- The size of the share in the common property is determined by the area of the premises.
The procedure for using the kitchen, bathroom, and toilet does not change. The Housing Code of the Russian Federation (Article 42) prohibits owners from allocating and alienating their part of common areas.
