Communal apartments are still often found in Russian cities. Citizens living in separate rooms can be tenants on the basis of a social tenancy agreement, and can also be direct owners of property. In the latter case, the sale of a room in a communal apartment is often required. This process is fraught with many difficulties, since all other tenants have a preemptive right to purchase. Therefore, it is possible to sell housing to unauthorized persons only after the refusal of other room owners to acquire a room.
How is ownership confirmed?
For the sale of any property, the seller must have ownership of this property. It is confirmed only by official documents, therefore, a certificate of ownership or an extract from the USRN containing information about the owner of the room is required.
The documents must necessarily indicate that a particular citizen is the owner of just part of the premises. The size of the room is prescribed, and the room should be allocated in the apartment.
Legislative regulation
The owners of rooms in a communal apartment should sell their property only subject to the numerous requirements of the law. Otherwise, the transaction may be challenged by neighbors. Therefore, when implementing this process, the contents of HA and FA are taken into account.
Based on these regulations, it is determined who has the pre-emptive right to acquire a room, as well as what requirements the drawn up agreement must comply with.
In the LCD, the owner’s obligation is to notify all other residents of the apartment of the decision.
Nuances of selling to neighbors
Most often, a room is sold in a communal apartment to neighbors. They have the preemptive right to acquire this property. The features of this process include:
- initially, the owner of the room must notify all neighbors that he plans to sell the property;
- further, no transactions can be carried out within 30 days, since this period is given to neighbors to decide on the acquisition of this object;
- consent or refusal is in writing.
If any neighbor wants to buy a room, then a standard contract of sale is drawn up with him. The price is determined by the direct seller.
How to sell a room to unauthorized persons?
Selling a room in a communal apartment to outsiders is a rather complicated process, as homeowners often have to face the fact that the neighbors pose various obstacles to the transaction. The nuances of the procedure include:
- initially required to receive from all neighbors a refusal to buy a room;
- housing is being sold to strangers at the same price that was offered to neighbors;
- if there is written evidence of the neighbors’ refusal, then the sale of the object is carried out in accordance with the general procedure, for which a standard sales contract is drawn up;
- the transaction is then registered with Rosreestr.
The process must be carried out taking into account the numerous requirements of the law. If there are even minor violations, then they can be the basis for contesting the transaction by neighbors.Therefore, it is advisable to use legal support for real estate transactions, as an experienced lawyer will be able to suggest what actions the seller should take in a given situation.
Who has the preemptive right?
When selling a room located in a communal apartment, one should take into account the rights that the owners of other rooms in the apartment have. The neighbors have a pre-emptive right to purchase a room for sale. Therefore, it is necessarily initially offered the opportunity to buy this property to neighbors. Only under such conditions will it be legal to sell a room in a communal apartment. Neighbors are notified in writing, as well as 30 days before the sale to unauthorized persons.
The preemptive right is enjoyed by all citizens living in this apartment. Only upon receipt of a refusal from all of these persons from the property being sold does the owner receive permission to sell a room in a communal apartment.
Often, neighbors refuse to draw up a written refusal. In this case, it is important that the seller has confirmation that a notification has been sent. Therefore, it is advisable to use a registered letter with delivery confirmation for these purposes.
Room sale procedure
The procedure for selling a room in a communal apartment implies the need to perform certain sequential actions. These include:
- the cost of the room is determined, for which you can decide on your own or use the help of an appraiser;
- a notice is drawn up for all neighbors, after which the document is transmitted personally to the citizens with a signature or sent by mail with a receipt of receipt;
- if the neighbors do not want to buy a room, then they must receive a written refusal from them within a month;
- then search for buyers who are unauthorized persons;
- after finding the buyer, the contract of sale is signed;
- Rosreestr fixes the transfer of the right to real estate to another person.
If it is not possible to find a buyer, it is allowed to reduce the price, but it is important to again invite the neighbors to buy a room at a new cost. Only after receiving a second refusal is the sale of a room in a communal apartment to third parties carried out.
Ways to sell an object
The procedure can be performed in various ways. These include:
- Self selling room. In this case, the owner of the object must perform all actions independently. He must be well versed in the law so as not to violate the rights of neighbors. Will have to deal with the search for a buyer and draw up a contract of sale. If the stages of the sale of a room in a communal apartment or the rights of neighbors are violated in any way, the transaction may be challenged in court.
- Appeal to realtors. They offer legal support for real estate transactions. When using the services of professionals, you can be sure that the law will not be violated in any way. It is the agency’s employees who will be engaged in the search for buyers and processing of the transaction. Services are paid by the buyer or seller.
Many people think about whether you need to use the services of a notary when selling a room in a communal apartment. There is no need to contact this specialist to certify the contract of sale. But in order to guarantee in the future that there is no opportunity to challenge the transaction, you can contact a notary public who will study all the materials of the case and will be able to say whether the contract is legal.
How to get consent from neighbors?
Selling real estate in the secondary is always a specific and complex process, but the sale of premises in a communal apartment is considered the most unusual procedure. For its implementation, the neighbors need a refusal from real estate.
The owner of the room may not ask permission from the neighbors to sell it, but they will have to notify them of the planned decision one month before the conclusion of the transaction. Neighbors can make a positive decision, therefore, it will be necessary to draw up a contract of sale with them.
Is it possible to sell without a written refusal?
Often in the communal apartments between the neighbors there is too bad a relationship, so they do not want to contact each other in any way. Therefore, the neighbors do not respond to the notification received.
To avoid future problems with the sale of real estate in the secondary, it is recommended to perform the following steps:
- initially it is advisable to send a notice by registered mail, having paid a receipt of delivery, so the citizen will have evidence that he really notified the neighbors about the sale of the room;
- if the relationship is good, then the neighbors make up a written refusal to purchase a dwelling, on which they must necessarily be signed;
- it is allowed to invite witnesses at whom the notification is transmitted, therefore it is these citizens who will be able to confirm in court that the seller of the room strictly followed the requirements of the law.
If the rights of neighbors are violated, the transaction is easily recognized through a court as invalid, so buyers can lose their acquired property.
What documents are needed for sale?
Correct execution of the transaction involves the preparation of certain documentation by the seller. How to sell a room in a communal apartment? The following papers are required for this:
- seller’s passport;
- title papers for real estate, with the help of which a citizen confirms his right to a room, moreover, they can be represented by a privatization agreement, testament, gift certificate or other document;
- extract from the USRN, which indicates the owner of the room, the presence of various burdens, the size of the room and other important parameters for each buyer;
- technical plan and data sheet, and on the basis of these documents, future owners will be able to verify the absence of illegal redevelopment;
- certificate indicating the absence of debts for the payment of utility bills;
- written refusal to purchase real estate received from all apartment neighbors.
These documents are required not only by buyers, but also by realtors, if a decision is made to use their services.
Rules for drawing up a contract
An important point for each seller is the correct preparation of the contract of sale. It is necessarily formed in writing. Its essential conditions include points:
- Information about the parties to the agreement submitted by the seller and buyer;
- data on the subject of the contract, for which the address of the apartment, the size of the room, as well as its other important parameters, are indicated;
- the cost of the room indicated in rubles and in words;
- the calculation procedure is given;
- the responsibility for each party is indicated in case of violation of the terms of the agreement;
- the date of the contract;
- signatures of the parties.
You can use standard forms to draw up this document. If the realtor handles the procedure for selling a room in a communal apartment, then it is he who draws up the document.
The nuances of using gray schemes
Some owners of rooms in a communal apartment are thinking about the possibility of using gray schemes that allow them to sell real estate as quickly as possible and without concluding an agreement with their neighbors. Often they are used to avoid taxation. Typically, such methods are used if the neighbors pose various obstacles to a deal.
The most commonly used methods are:
- only part of the room is sold to the interested buyer, and after that the remaining square meters are transferred on the basis of the donation;
- a room is pledged on the basis of a loan agreement, after which a loan is not deliberately paid, therefore housing is recovered by a forced method;
- Housing is transferred on the basis of a gift agreement, but in fact the new owner transfers the money to the former owner for the property.
All of the above schemes are considered risky, so there is always a chance that the buyer will be a fraudster and refuse to pay for the room. Additionally, such transactions may be of interest to law enforcement agencies or the Federal Tax Service, so the seller may be held administratively or criminally liable.
The consequences of a lack of notice
The seller of the room, located in a communal apartment, must inform the neighbors about his decision. If there is no notice, this can cause negative consequences. Neighbors can challenge the deal in court, as they wish to become owners of the property themselves.
Therefore, in the absence of knowledge about how the transaction is completed, it is advisable to contact experienced realtors or get advice from a notary.
Conclusion
Selling a room located in a communal apartment is a rather complicated procedure, for the implementation of which it is necessary to take into account the requirements of the law. Necessarily about the planned sale neighbors are notified. They have a preemptive right to purchase housing.
Only after receiving a refusal from neighbors can you sell the property to unauthorized persons. For this, it is important to correctly draw up a contract of sale. It is not recommended to use gray schemes to reduce the price of a room, as this is accompanied by many risks for the seller.