Glazing of balconies and loggias: difficulties encountered and legal aspects

Distribution of Responsibility

Owners of privatized apartments are divided into two camps according to their attitude towards the need to repair the balcony:

Part of your apartment (summer area). When buying a home, this is indicated in some contracts. Accordingly, they arrange their personal territory according to their wishes.
Component of the facade of a house. Repairs are required to be carried out by the management company (MC) or housing department.

If we summarize all the regulatory documents together, we get the following distribution:

Common property includes:
external fencing;
external walls.
Individual use:
window;
doors;
self-installed canopy, glazing, design solutions.

Therefore, responsibility for the maintenance of a specific element of this part of the living space may differ.

Additional approval is required for hanging flower boxes and other protruding objects that weigh down load-bearing parts on the outer part of the fence.

Legislation on the repair of balconies

Thus, this issue remains controversial to this day, most likely due to obvious inconsistencies in the legislation. For example, in the Housing Code, balconies are not part of the “common property of the owners of premises in an apartment building,” but according to Government Decree N491 of 2006, which was adopted later than the adoption of the code, balcony slabs, on the contrary, are included in this property.

Let us turn to the latest Resolution. Its Rules clearly include:

c) load-bearing enclosing structures in an apartment building, including floor slabs, foundations, load-bearing walls, slabs - balcony and others, load-bearing columns and other structures;
d) non-load-bearing enclosing structures in an apartment building that serve several (more than one) residential and/or non-residential premises (including doors and windows of premises with common use, railings, parapets and other similar structures.

Simply put, in an apartment building, on the basis of common (shared) ownership, the owners of the premises own:

all balcony slabs, since they are load-bearing enclosing structures (Rules clause 2, paragraph “c”);
balcony doors and windows that have an entrance to a room intended for common use, such as common corridors, staircases, since they relate to non-load-bearing enclosing structures serving several (more than one) residential and/or non-residential premises (Rules clause 2, paragraph . "G");
balcony railings having an entrance to premises for common use, since such railings relate to non-load-bearing enclosing structures that serve several (more than one) residential and/or non-residential premises (Rules clause 2, paragraph “d”);

resting place - balcony

But the external walls on the side of the balconies, together with their slabs, are considered common property since these are load-bearing enclosing structures in an apartment building (Rules clause 2, paragraph “c”).

If we summarize all of the above, we can conclude that the balcony slabs, which are included in the apartment plan according to the BTI (Bureau of Technical Inventory) measurements, together with the external wall to which these balconies adjoin, actually belong to the common property in the apartment building. This means that for the owners of the premises they are an object of common ownership, and the doors, windows and railings of the said balconies are, accordingly, individual property.

Consequently, when determining who is responsible for repairing a balcony, it is crucial which element of it needs this repair: “general” or “individual”.

If we are talking about an element of common property, then the basis for making such a decision is an inspection report submitted to the general meeting, drawn up in accordance with the results of inspections of this property, by the board of the HOA and (or) other persons (Rules clauses 13 and 14 ). The decision is made by at least 2/3 of the total number of voters.

The list of services, their frequency and quality provided by the management organization (or HOA) are directly related to the amount of fees determined for the maintenance of residential premises, as well as for their repairs. It is subject to approval by the owners of premises in an apartment building at a general meeting (in the case of a management company). In the case of an HOA, in accordance with the charter, the amount of the fee is approved by the governing bodies of the HOA.

To carry out repairs to the balcony slab, an application is written (in two copies) addressed to the director of the management organization. One signed copy remains with him, the other with the applicant. This is an indisputable document that allows you to sue if the claim is not satisfied. To speed up the process, it is necessary to achieve recognition of the balcony as emergency, posing a threat to people.

Is the loggia a common property of the house or not?

The balcony does not serve more than your apartment. This is your property. But you need to keep one thing in mind. It is indicated in subparagraph “c” of paragraph 2 of the Rules for the maintenance of common property in an apartment building, approved. Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation dated August 13, 2006 N 491

The common property includes:

a) premises in an apartment building that are not parts of apartments and are intended to serve more than one residential and (or) non-residential premises in this apartment building (hereinafter referred to as common areas), including inter-apartment landings, stairs, elevators, elevators and others shafts, corridors, strollers, attics, technical floors (including built-in garages and areas for vehicles, workshops, technical attics built at the expense of the owners of the premises) and technical basements in which there are utilities, otherwise serving more than one residential and (or) non-residential premises in an apartment building equipment (including boiler rooms, boiler rooms, elevator units and other engineering equipment);

b) roofs;

c) enclosing load-bearing structures of an apartment building (including foundations, load-bearing walls, floor slabs, balcony and other slabs, load-bearing columns and other enclosing load-bearing structures);

d) enclosing non-load-bearing structures of an apartment building serving more than one residential and (or) non-residential premises (including windows and doors of common areas, railings, parapets and other enclosing non-load-bearing structures);

e) mechanical, electrical, sanitary and other equipment located in an apartment building outside or inside the premises and serving more than one residential and (or) non-residential premises (apartment);

f) a land plot on which an apartment building is located and the boundaries of which are determined on the basis of state cadastral registration data, with elements of landscaping and landscaping;

g) other facilities intended for the maintenance, operation and improvement of an apartment building, including transformer substations, heating points intended to serve one apartment building, collective parking lots, garages, children's and sports grounds located within the boundaries of the land plot on which the apartment building is located .

That is, the balcony floor (slab) is common property. The ladder and hatch are fire-fighting equipment installed for the evacuation of residents.

Good luck. My answer is your feedback.

Heated balcony and loggia

So, when you have installed heating on a balcony or loggia, if they are glazed, the utility company has every right to count them into the total area of the living space.

When the balcony becomes heated, and you have an officially approved and legal redevelopment on your hands, the total area of the apartment increases, and payments for housing and communal services will increase.

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Documents required for the official extension of the balcony:

Documents confirming that the owner has the right to own this property (a purchase and sale agreement, a deed of gift, a privatization agreement or a document confirming the right of inheritance) and a passport of a citizen of the Russian Federation (important - if the passport and documents confirming ownership contain different surnames, then it is necessary to prepare the appropriate documents about the change of surname).

Technical passport for housing (the document must be produced no more than 12 months ago). A certificate from the Housing and Maintenance Office indicating the number of registered citizens (in other words, a certificate of family composition). Consent of neighbors above and on the landing, notarized.

Thus, if the developer initially provided for a loggia or balcony, then the utility company has no opportunity to include them in the total area. If you yourself completed the balcony or insulated or glazed the balcony/loggia, then utility services may try to include them in the total area and force you to pay a larger amount for housing and communal services.

It all depends on whether you can convince the utility company that, based on the 2005 Housing Code of the Russian Federation, balconies and loggias are not considered residential premises, and therefore are not included in the total area.

And in the case when one document contradicts another, it is necessary to turn specifically to the latest edition of the Housing Code to clarify the controversial situation. A special “advantage” is that you have the opportunity to direct, personal cooperation with the organization that provides you with housing and communal services, which means you have the opportunity to negotiate or solve the problem in a personal meeting.

Do loggias and balconies belong to the common property of the apartment building?

The regime for common property is prescribed in the Housing Code of the Russian Federation and Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation No. 491. There is also a mention there of elements of balconies, loggias, and other protruding parts of the building. Common property in the apartment building includes:

Balcony maintenance rules and regulations

The answer to the question of who is responsible for the balcony in an apartment building is clear: both parties bear responsibility here - both the management organization and the owner of the apartment. At the same time, the management company not only carries out repairs based on the fact of destruction, but also monitors the condition. Inspections are carried out regularly according to regulations - twice a year in spring and autumn.

Resolution of the State Construction Committee of the Russian Federation No. 170 dated September 27, 2003 describes the rules by which the housing stock, including balconies, is operated. From this regulatory document it is worth highlighting several significant responsibilities of management companies.

Periodic inspection of balconies to determine the characteristics of their use. Residents should be required to keep these premises clean and not clutter them with heavy objects (furniture, boxes, faulty household appliances, etc.).
Instructing apartment owners on how balconies are used and how responsibility for their condition is distributed. In particular, people need to be explained who should repair a balcony in an apartment building. This will eliminate misunderstandings and unnecessary disputes in cases where specific restoration work is required.
If damage is detected on the facade or in the interior of the balcony, then employees of the management organization need to quickly take measures to prevent further deterioration of the emergency condition. The management company must take care to prevent the structure from causing damage to the health of people or their property.
Preventive measures include sealing and closing the entrance to the emergency facility. At the same time, a preliminary briefing is carried out for the apartment residents and the necessary information is collected in order to begin repair work on the project.

Quote from the Housing Code of the Russian Federation

Article 15. paragraph 5. The total area of a residential premises consists of the sum of the area of all parts of such premises, including the area of auxiliary premises intended to satisfy citizens' household and other needs related to their residence in residential premises, with the exception of balconies, loggias, verandas and terraces.——This is so, for information. So the question is: whose balcony? very interesting.

Art. 15 of the Housing Code determines how the total area of a residential premises is determined. The area of the balcony does not relate to the total area of the living space; this does not mean that the balcony does not belong to anyone.

Legal relations with the developer

To save money when participating in shared construction of an apartment building, you need to carefully study the text of the concluded agreement. It states:

cost of 1 sq. m;
square footage of the apartment taking into account the reduction factor;
the final price for the apartment.

The general square footage specified in the contract must also be checked with the technical documents provided by the developer. This is important not only for saving money, but also for further registration of ownership and obtaining a technical passport for housing.

In practice, there are often situations when, based on incorrect data, the balcony is included in the total footage of the apartment and the owner has to pay more for utilities. Care when concluding a contract and preparing a technical passport will save you from clarifying relations with utility services.

If, before registering property rights, you saw that in the transfer and acceptance certificate of the apartment a loggia or balcony was included in the total area, contact the BTI. Based on the Housing Code of the Russian Federation, they will make the appropriate calculations, with which it will be possible to obtain a certificate of ownership without fear.

If, when participating in shared-equity construction of an apartment building, reducing coefficients were not applied, you can go to court. There are many cases in judicial practice when the developer had to return to the buyer the money overpaid “for the balcony”. In some of them, the plaintiffs' demands for moral compensation were also satisfied.

Who is required to repair a balcony by law?

Russian legislation is not yet perfect and contradictions can be found in different legal acts

. Immediately after privatization, the apartment becomes the property of the residents, and legislators are ambivalent about the balcony.

The Housing Code names all the elements of a high-rise building that are recognized as common property, that is, those being repaired at the expense of the house, and balconies are not listed there. But in Resolution No. 491, which was adopted in 2006, that is, after the adoption of the Housing Code, balcony slabs are included in the common property of the house.

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The rules of the Resolution clearly state that common property includes the following:

load-bearing structures of a high-rise building (including foundations, floor slabs, load-bearing walls, balcony slabs and other load-bearing slabs and columns);
load-bearing structures of a high-rise building used by the owners of several apartments (including doors and windows of public balconies, parapets, railings and other structures).

From this we can conclude that there are two owners of the balcony.

Who owns the balcony?

To answer this question, we should draw analogies with the ownership of residential premises - an apartment. Who is the owner of the apartment? After all, for example, the load-bearing wall of your apartment is also the wall of your neighbor’s apartment, and the floor slabs, which are your floor and ceiling, are both the ceiling and floor for the apartments of your neighbors living on the floor below and on the floor above. Thus, floor slabs and load-bearing walls are in common shared ownership, because they serve more than one room in the house.

It turns out that you are not the sole owner of either the load-bearing walls or the floor slabs that serve as the floor and ceiling of your apartment. What remains your property?

In fact, you are the owner of a three-dimensional space enclosed within the walls of an apartment, which, in fact, is a structural part of an apartment building. You are also the owner of the decorative elements and finishing of your living space - wallpaper, suspended ceilings, parquet, etc. Ownership of an apartment is a legal fiction designed to provide certainty for the population without immersion in complex matters and ease of understanding.

The situation is similar with balconies. The balcony slab is the common shared property of the apartment owners by virtue of the law. However, this does not mean that the interior space of the balcony with finishing elements is also common property.

How to submit an application for repairs, sample

Drawing up and submitting applications for repairs to the management company can become a real headache for residents of apartment buildings

In order to encourage the management company to repair a collapsing balcony, it is important to write the document correctly

It must contain the details and data of the applicant and the management company, a description of the problem, the requirement for repairs and its justification. The application is drawn up in several copies and signed by the applicant or applicants. In an emergency, it is possible to draw up a collective statement. It is advisable to attach photographs, documents indicating the need for repairs, and explanations from the other residents of the house to the application.

⇒ A sample application requesting repairs is provided at.

You can submit your application in person at the management company office or by sending it by mail. It is better to send correspondence by registered mail with acknowledgment of receipt.

An application for balcony repair (by law) must be considered within a period not exceeding one month. The response to the application will also be sent in writing.

The refusal of the management company to carry out repair work or the absence of any response may become the basis for a complaint from residents.

Is the balcony the property of the tenant?

Free legal advice:

Heated discussions on the issue of whether a balcony is part of the common property are due to the difference in apartment owners’ understanding of the concepts of “structural element” and “personal space”.

They are trying to attach free access to all residents to the definition of “common property”. Differences in interpretations of current legislative norms were filed in the form of lawsuits in the courts, up to the Supreme Court. Thus, on January 17, 2012, the Appeal Commission of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation issued ruling No. KAS11-789. Let's look at how shared ownership rights are distributed.

Whose property is the balcony?

Judging by the fact that there are stairs and a hatch there, the property is common to the building. Look at the technical passport - if the apartment has a balcony, then it is your property, then you can clean it.

Video: legal consultation

There are no contradictions in the regulatory legal acts of the Russian Federation regarding the inclusion of a balcony in the total area of the apartment. They only differ in the purposes of the corresponding calculations.

Comments

drnuggetice:
01/29/2021 at 08:32
I hope I was able to answer the question that plagues many people: is the area of balconies, loggias, terraces included in the total area of the apartment, and also whether the area of the balcony is included in the payment for utilities.
Answer

The procedure for recognizing the emergency condition of a balcony

In order for the management company to carry out a major overhaul of the balcony, it is necessary that its condition be recognized as emergency. Signs of this are:

the presence of deep cracks along the connecting seam;
exposure of reinforcement as a result of destruction of the concrete coating;
the presence of loose areas on the outside of the slab as a result of precipitation;
“crumbling” of the edge of the slab and collapse of larger fragments;
collapse of cornice or handrail;
loose fencing, etc.

The reasons for this may be either a violation of construction technologies, or destruction as a result of aging of the structure and the lack of timely maintenance. Very often the cause of damage is improper drainage. As a result of regular collection of water or melted snow, the balcony leaks. Who should repair it depends on the floor on which the apartment is located and the nature of the damage.

Explanatory note The owner of the damaged balcony must also provide the management company with an explanatory note in which the need for repairs is substantiated. It is imperative to point out that the destruction of balcony structures is potentially dangerous to human life. If such damage occurs, first of all, it is necessary to notify the management company in writing. The application is written to the manager. It must contain a detailed description of the destruction and voice a request for recognition of the emergency condition. It is advisable to certify the application with the signatures of neighbors and attach photographs to it. In the article https://realtyinfo.online/6365-pretenziya-v-upravlyayushhuyu-kompaniyu, find out how to make an application to the management company.

It is better to send the application by registered mail. The management company must also respond in writing. All correspondence must be saved. If repairs to load-bearing structures are not carried out, correspondence will be needed to file a claim in court.

It is worth noting that if a HOA or TSN was created in the house, then the decision to overhaul the balcony is made at a general meeting of participants (how does a HOA differ from a TSN, read). To find out who is responsible for repairing the balcony, and how responsibilities are divided between the apartment owner and the management company, watch the video

To find out who is responsible for repairing the balcony, and how responsibilities are divided between the apartment owner and the management company, watch the video

If the housing and communal services institution does not carry out repair work in a timely manner, explaining this by a lack of funds, you can reach an agreement with them: the owner of the apartment carries out the repairs at his own expense, but the funds spent are counted towards the rent. If the utility company agrees with this, the resident must collect all documents that will confirm the purchase of materials and payment for work.

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In a situation where the tenant has repaired the load-bearing structures at his own expense, but the rent has not been recalculated, he can go to court to recover his costs.

If there are controversial issues, when there is damage and the balcony is leaking, who should repair it is also decided in court.

Management companies

The result is the following situation. If there are no shut-off valves on the branches to the coil, then the heated towel rail is completely a common property and your management company or HOA should be responsible for it. If there are taps on the heated towel rail to turn off the heated towel rail, then the common property will be the pipe up to the control tap, and after that your personal property.

Premises in the house that extend beyond the apartment: stairs, landings, elevator equipment (elevators, elevator shafts), basements, corridors, technical floors, attics. In modern apartment buildings, basements and technical floors are often sold as non-residential premises for offices. However, Article 36 of the RF Housing Code, paragraph 1.1, states that the common property includes basements and technical floors in which there are common utilities. Therefore, some of these premises will still be part of the common property.
Any premises in an apartment building that are not specifically owned by a specific owner. That is, if you and your tenants have organized a gym in your basement, then it will belong to all the tenants as community property.
Roofs, supporting structures of the house, any equipment that is located in the house and outside it, which is used to service more than one apartment/room.
The land plot on which the apartment building stands along with landscaping elements: landscaping, playgrounds, parking, etc., which relate to this house within the boundaries defined by the current land and town planning legislation.

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How to deal with the distribution of property

In multi-storey buildings, walls, floors, and ceilings separate the apartments; they are not divided between residents - this is shared ownership. To take into account “living space”, the area of residential and utility rooms, measured in m², is used. Such a space is equipped with finishing materials, filled with objects of use, and the ability of anyone to enter is limited. Actual ownership of an apartment, as a set of building materials, is just a legal term.

This is how the right to use a balcony with an exit from a privately owned premises is interpreted - the space indicated in the technical passport of the apartment for the tenant. Improving the situation by installing canopies, light frame structures for protection from bad weather and the sun, their repair, maintenance are included on the balance sheet of the apartment owner, will be part of his property. Some reconstruction options require approval from permitting authorities. The structural elements of the house belong to all participants in the housing association.

It is significant that the same relationships between residents arise when deciding on the placement of advertising structures and banners on the outer surface of the loggias. The general meeting of all owners decides by protocol the issue of consent to the placement of the poster. Moreover, the decision to remove unauthorized advertising products (by a resident, an outsider, a tenant) is also made by all homeowners.

Those parts of the house that are not divided by agreement of all participants according to some other criteria are divided into equal parts by everyone. If one owner has made a permanent improvement to his part, his share may be increased accordingly. The improvements being removed are the property of the resident.

It is for the operation of the building as a complex of technological systems that a mechanism of shared participation of all owners of individual apartments has been developed.

Balcony or loggia in an apartment: whose property is it

Let's say this situation arose. Your apartment is adjacent to a store, and its owner unauthorizedly hung an advertising banner on the wall of your loggia. And at first glance, the loggia is your property, just like an apartment. This means that you can, having made this decision on your own, remove this sign. But, according to the law, the external walls of the apartment are part of the condominium. And for this reason, in order to remove an object from the external surface of the loggia, its owner must obtain the approval of his actions by all residents of the house. Because it is their common property.

It seemed that it couldn’t be easier: you register your property as your own and that’s it, the apartment and its loggia or balcony are at your complete disposal. But the owner's powers are limited. He owns only the interior spaces, their ceilings, walls and floors. Everything outside belongs to the collective property of the shareholders. Therefore, they can only be disposed of jointly, with the consent of all owners of apartments in a given building.

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What rights and responsibilities does the owner of the balcony have?

After we have figured out what is considered common property and what is the property of the home owner, we should find out what rights and responsibilities the owner of the balcony has.

Whose responsibilities include carrying out repairs on the balcony?

Who should carry out repairs and reconstruction depends solely on who owns the item that needs repair. If the item is in common property, the reconstruction must be carried out by the Management Company or the Housing Department. For example, if your balcony slab is cracking and crumbling, then you need to contact the employees of the HOA (homeowners' association), who must make a decision on what repair work needs to be done. Next, an application is written to the director of the Management Commission or the director of the housing department to carry out repairs. The application must be written in two copies, one of which must be kept for yourself in order to go to court if repair work is refused.

Next, the HOA employees will decide how much money needs to be allocated, when to start and finish the work, how much material is needed, and so on.

If the element that is subject to repair and reconstruction is individually owned, then its repair must be carried out by the owner of the dwelling in which it is located.

The dimensions of the slab can only be changed if permission has been obtained. Permission is also required to add a balcony if there was none initially.

It is possible to combine a loggia with a room, but in this case you will have to pay a higher amount for the room that serves as a balcony, since this room will be considered heated.

If changes occur that do not entail a change in the size of the room or the addition of additional structures, and the changes consist of design and decorative changes, then in this case permission is not required.

Who should repair a balcony in an apartment building?

The responsibility for reconstructing the balcony rests with the person who owns the element in need of repair. For example, replacing window units or painting railings is the responsibility of the residents. Accordingly, the owners are also responsible for maintaining their self-built canopies and awnings in proper condition. So, in winter, residents must clear them of snow and ice.

In situations where repairs to common property are required (for example, a balcony slab begins to crack), responsibility for restoration falls on the HOA or management company.

The basis for repairing part of the property of an apartment building is a decision of the general meeting of owners. Residents draw up an inspection report and write a corresponding statement to the Criminal Code (two-thirds of the present owners must vote for repair work). It must be compiled in two copies. The first is handed over to the service organization against signature, and the second remains with the residents in case of refusal of repairs and possible legal proceedings.

After receiving the application, utility workers prepare an estimate of the costs of reconstruction, decide on the allocation of funds and determine the timing of the repairs.

Do balconies and loggias belong to common property?