Coordination and legalization of apartment redevelopment

Recommendation points

• What is redevelopment and what is redevelopment
• Why coordinate
• How to legalize unauthorized redevelopment (reconstruction)
• How to agree on redevelopment (reconstruction)

It is about the legal and bureaucratic procedure for agreeing on the redevelopment of residential premises that will be discussed in this article. We will not go into detail about the fact that the current Housing Code, largely due to its fourth chapter, which deals with the reconstruction and redevelopment of residential premises, has caused a lot of discussion in society and even in such a homogeneous Russian politician; and without us, a lot has been said about the inconsistency of Article 29 of the Housing Code (on the consequences of unauthorized redevelopment) with constitutional principles (the possibility of free use of one’s property for purposes not prohibited by law is guaranteed by the norm of part one of Article 34 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation); first of all, you need to understand the current legislation so as not to become a victim.

What is redevelopment and what is redevelopment

The Housing Code of the Russian Federation defines the redevelopment of a dwelling as the installation, replacement or relocation of utilities and other equipment (electrical, sanitary), and redevelopment as a change in the configuration of housing. In this case, only those changes that must be made to the technical passport of the premises will be considered as reconstruction or redevelopment..

Why coordinate

If you do not agree on the above changes with the competent authorities, your actions will be qualified as unauthorized redevelopment (reconstruction). The responsibility for such actions is rather severe:

1. administrative responsibility – a fine from 2,000 to 2,500 rubles, in accordance with Article 7.21 of the Code of Administrative Offenses (sanctions are applied by the housing inspection);
2. the obligation to eliminate the changes and bring the dwelling back to its original state within a specified time.

If the obligation to bring the apartment to the previous redevelopment state is not fulfilled, the following sanctions may be applied to the owner or tenant of the residential premises by a court decision:

1. if the violator is the owner of the apartment, it is possible to sell it at a public auction, while the owner receives the proceeds from the sale, minus legal costs, and the buyer is obliged to restore the apartment to its previous state;
2. if the violator is the tenant of the apartment under a social tenancy agreement, then such an agreement is subject to termination, which means eviction of the tenant, and the obligation to restore the apartment to its previous state rests with its owner, that is, the landlord. As you can see, in the case of unauthorized redevelopment, in order not to lose the apartment, it is necessary to return it to its previous state, besides, to pay a fine, however, the Housing Code also provides for the possibility of preserving the dwelling in a redeveloped (reconstructed) state.

How to legalize unauthorized redevelopment (reconstruction)

In accordance with paragraph 4 of Article 29 of the Housing Code of the Russian Federation, the re-planned premises can be preserved in this state by a court decision, if this does not pose a threat to the life and health of other citizens, and also does not infringe on their rights and legitimate interests. This means that if for some reason you redeveloped an apartment without proper approval, or somehow acquired an unauthorized re-planned or re-arranged apartment, you need to apply to the federal court at the location of the re-planned apartment with a statement of claim to preserve the dwelling in the re-planned form. The respondents in such claims are the administrations of cities and districts.

The following documents must be attached to the statement of claim, in addition to the copies of the statement of claim according to the number of defendants, receipts for payment of the state fee, and copies of the power of attorney in case of filing a claim by a representative, which are mandatory for all applications to the court:

1. copies of title documents for the apartment (certificate of ownership or social contract) and a copy of the personal account;
2. for the owners of the re-planned apartments: a copy of the agreement for the transfer of the apartment into ownership and the written consent of all adult owners to preserve the dwelling in the re-planned form; for tenants of re-planned apartments: written consent of all adult family members, certified by the building authority, as well as a certificate of family composition;
3. copies of the plans of the dwelling before and after the reconstruction (redevelopment). Apartment plans for the legalization of redevelopment are ordered from the real estate technical registration authorities (BTI);
4. a copy of the technical opinion for redevelopment. A technical opinion is ordered from a design and construction organization that has a license for this type of activity;
5. a copy of the conclusion of the Sanitary and Epidemiological Service on the redesigned facility.

If the court satisfies your claim, the redevelopment (reconstruction) of the living quarters will be legalized, and you will be able to live in the transformed apartment with peace of mind. It is worth noting that an administrative penalty (fine) for unauthorized redevelopment will have to be incurred regardless of the court’s decision to legalize it. In addition, a more reliable and safe method of legalizing redevelopment is its advance approval..

How to agree on redevelopment (reconstruction)

The procedure for agreeing on redevelopment (reconstruction) is regulated by article 26 of the Housing Code of the Russian Federation. Based on the norms of this article, you can make action plan for the approval of redevelopment (reconstruction)

1. We find the documents of title to the apartment (certificate of ownership, social tenancy agreement, investment agreement, as well as the act of acceptance and transfer of the apartment).
2. If you are a tenant of an apartment under a social tenancy agreement, we collect written consent from all family members for redevelopment (reconstruction).
3. In the Unified Information and Settlement Center we take a copy of the personal account, and in the housing office, the homeowners’ association or in the city hall (depending on the place of registration of the house) we take an extract from the house book.
4. We apply to the Bureau of Technical Inventory (BTI) and order there a floor plan of the apartment with explications, an extract from the technical passport of the apartment in form 1A, and a certificate of the condition of the dwelling in form 5.
5. We apply to a licensed design organization for the development of a redevelopment (reconstruction) project. The project is coordinated with the Sanitary and Epidemiological Service and the State Fire Service and we receive the appropriate conclusions. If the house in which the dwelling is located is an architectural, historical and cultural monument, it is also necessary to obtain an opinion from the body for the protection of such monuments.
6. We submit to the housing inspectorate an application for redevelopment (redevelopment) of living quarters, drawn up in the form approved by the Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation “On approval of the application form for redevelopment and (or) redevelopment of a dwelling and the form of a document confirming the adoption of a decision on the approval of reorganization and (or ) redevelopment of living quarters “. We attach all the above documents to the application (title documents, an agreed redevelopment project, a technical passport of the premises, a written consent of family members, a copy of a personal account and an extract from the house book).
7. After receiving permission for redevelopment or reconstruction (the housing inspectorate examines the application up to forty-five days, makes a decision and issues a document confirming such a decision within three days from the date of its adoption), you can proceed with the repair work.
8. After the completion of the repair and construction work, it is necessary for the housing inspectorate to confirm the compliance of the redevelopment with the approved project (an act of acceptance of the work performed is drawn up).

As you can see, the procedure for agreeing on the redevelopment (reconstruction) of a dwelling is quite complicated and time-consuming, however, neglecting it can lead to severe administrative sanctions.