Payment for housing and communal services is the direct responsibility of each property owner. When there is shared ownership, disagreements sometimes arise between residents regarding the payment of utility bills. Those who refuse to transfer money for accommodation can be prosecuted in court. To do this, the other owner must submit an application to split the personal account for paying utility bills. After reviewing the document, the Criminal Code or the court will regulate the procedure for repaying bills on housing and communal services receipts in equal shares between the owners.
What it is?
If disagreements arise between residents during the process of transferring rent, the situation must be resolved by the management company. But housing and communal services representatives are unable to influence the establishment of an agreement on payment for housing and communal services between owners.
Expert opinion
Klimov Yaroslav
More than 12 years in real estate, higher legal education (Russian Academy of Justice)
Ask a Question
Those who refuse to pay can be held accountable by filing a statement of claim for the division of a personal account. The document is a statement of grounds for going to court. The plaintiff’s goal is the need to call on the other owner to repay part of the services for the maintenance of the apartment, room or house.
If agreement between the owners is reached
Suppose you have a situation where the owners were able to come to an agreement that from now on everyone pays for themselves. All those who agreed are sane people, and are happily waiting for their separate receipt.
In accordance with Article 249 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation, each participant in shared ownership is obliged, in proportion to his share, to participate in the payment of taxes, fees and other payments on common property, as well as in the costs of its maintenance and preservation. Part 2 of Article 247 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation states that a participant in shared ownership has the right to be provided for his possession and use of a part of the common property commensurate with his share.
In accordance with Article 155 of the Housing Code of the Russian Federation, payment documents for making payments for residential premises and housing and communal services are provided to the owner of residential premises in an apartment building.
Considering the above, being the owner of a share of an apartment is a necessary and sufficient condition for filing an application for the redistribution of utility payments between the owners to the management organization.
The application from the owners can be either joint (one for all), or each one has their own.
The application must be accompanied by a document confirming ownership of the apartment. It must contain a list of owners with the size of their shares. Such a document is any contract of title for an apartment - a bill of sale, an agreement for shared participation in construction, a certificate of the right to inheritance by law, a donation, a privatization agreement. Usually, to confirm the entry into force of the concluded agreement, a certificate of state registration of the right is provided. The certificate confirms the fact of registration of property and also contains information about the owners and their shares. Of course, you must also have your identification document with you. Perhaps the management company will want to keep a copy of it.
Based on these documents, specialists from the management organization can calculate the share of payment of the total amount for each owner, and send separate receipts to each apartment owner, in proportion to the share that is in their property.
If the residents of your apartment building have chosen not a management company as a form of management, but a homeowners’ association, or direct management of the apartment building, then an application for division of receipts for each owner must be addressed to the chairman of the HOA or directly to the resource supply organization.
Causes
The main reason for filing a claim or statement to representatives of housing and communal services authorities is to call other family members and relatives to financial responsibility. If the apartment is divided into shares between adult owners, they must make payments equally.
Division can be carried out in any way if there is an agreement between the owners of the property. If a conflict situation arises, someone who refuses to deposit funds into accounts may be held accountable by dividing the personal account in the receipt.
Reasons for refusal
- There are cases when the division of personal accounts will be clearly refused:
- If the apartment has only one owner;
- If the housing is official or departmental;
- If it is impossible to separate common areas without disturbing the structural elements of the building;
- If one of the rooms is unsuitable for permanent residence (one of the sides is less than 2 meters long, the room is deprived of natural light - the wall of the neighboring house blocks visibility within three meters, or the courtyard into which the window faces does not exceed 5 meters, or the entrance to the room very narrow, less than 70 cm).
Step by step section procedure
How the process of assigning responsibilities is carried out:
- When an agreement is reached between residents, contact the management company.
- In the event of a conflict without the possibility of reconciliation between the parties, go to court.
In the first case, the owner, who does not want to pay 2-3 times more, draws up an application to split the personal account for paying utility bills. The document is sent to the management company.
In the second option, a claim is filed in court. The case will be considered in the regional office at the place of registration of the defendant.
The process of dividing a personal account into a utility service in both cases includes:
- Collection of documents for property.
- Drawing up a foundation document. In the first case, it is a statement to the housing and communal services authorities, in the second - a lawsuit in court.
- Consideration of the case. Management companies make a decision within 1–10 days. The lawsuit is considered in court for up to 30 days.
- Receiving a separation document. This is a new sample receipt issued to each of the participants in the process.
Attention! Payment sharing should be carried out among all service providers if several companies are involved in the maintenance of the house at the same time. To speed up the process, you can immediately file a claim in court. If there is an agreement, owners have the right to contact the organization individually. To do this, they must bring the consent of the second owner of the property, certified by a notary.
Methods for dividing utility bills
It is possible to split an account or achieve the formation of separate payment documents by agreement of the parties or as a result of legal proceedings.
By agreement of the owners
There is no specially established form of agreement on the procedure for bearing responsibility for housing maintenance. It is compiled arbitrarily. The text of the document includes general provisions provided for by law for civil transactions.
If desired, the parties can have the agreement notarized. The law does not establish such a requirement.
The agreement is drawn up in at least three copies - for each party and the management company. A separate agreement may be required for the resource supplying organization if the contract is concluded directly with it.
Judicially
You should go to court only if it was not possible to reach an agreement peacefully. As confirmation of an attempt at pre-trial settlement, a refusal to conclude an agreement or a refusal by authorized bodies to draw up certain documents is presented. Applying to court is subject to a state fee. Its size is 300 rubles. The claim is drawn up according to the rules provided for in Art. 131 of the Code of Civil Procedure of the Russian Federation, and is submitted at the location of the disputed property. It is necessary to attach documents related to the case - an extract from the Unified State Register of Real Estate, a social tenancy agreement, a drawn up agreement, an extract from a personal account. The court decision comes into force one month after it is made. It is mandatory for execution by owners or tenants of housing, as well as for authorized organizations in the housing and communal services sector.
Information for owners of privatized apartments
Most apartments in the Russian Federation are privatized and have one or more owners. The laws of the Russian Federation allow the allocation of shares in one premises for the use of rooms at the discretion of the owners. In this case, personal accounts are also separated. To do this you need:
- Each owner draws up a division agreement and notarizes it;
- The agreement must indicate the shares, the procedure for paying utility bills and using the property.
Important additional information
Disputes regarding the division of personal accounts are quite common, since not all owners or residents of apartments and houses are conscientious about paying bills for the provided utility services.
It is important to consider that even after the separation of accounts, the legal ownership rights will not change.
One of the main documents required to carry out a division is an agreement. This is a document that sets out the basic requirements for using and paying for utility services. The agreement must be signed by all adult owners or residents, and the document itself is certified by a notary. After concluding an agreement, you must contact the EIRC to separate financial accounts, and in case of refusal to provide this service, go to court.
Procedure and necessary documents for the section
Judicial separation of personal accounts requires the correct filing of a claim and the preparation of a certain package of documents. A professional lawyer will help you draft your claim correctly. In addition, he will provide advice on the documents required to carry out the division:
- Tenancy or tenure agreement;
- Documentary confirmation of the allocation of shares;
- Information from the house register about the number of residents;
- Originals and copies of documents confirming the identity of residents;
- Registration certificate and certificate from the BTI.
It is important to consider that during the process of separating accounts, there is the possibility of filing a counterclaim. A similar situation is necessary if there are no peaceful agreements between the parties and one of the owners or tenants has gone to court to divide the accounts. If other citizens do not agree with the size of the allocated shares, a counterclaim is filed.
Such applications are considered by municipal courts in the regions where housing is registered. As a rule, legal proceedings when filing a counterclaim are protracted, since the parties are often relatives or former spouses. However, it is important to take into account that when conducting legal proceedings for residents of municipal apartments, the court cannot establish rules for the use of the premises, but only allocates a share of the payment of utility bills, based on the documents provided. In order for a court decision that suits the owner to be made, it is necessary to contact professional lawyers who will correctly fill out the application and collect all the necessary documents.
A counterclaim may also be filed if one of the parties fails to fulfill its obligations regarding payment or use of housing. In this case, the court may also revise the size of shares in payment for utilities.
Preparation of a statement of claim (sample)
In the process of preparing a claim, it is recommended to use a sample application drawn up taking into account the requirements of the legislation of the Russian Federation.
It should include:
- Name of the judicial authority. Cases related to the distribution of a personal account for a communal apartment are considered in the regional court at the place of registration of the defendant.
- Full names of the participants: plaintiff, defendant, head of the management company in which it is necessary to change the terms of the payment agreement.
- The name of the document is a statement of claim.
- Content. Here you must indicate the basis for the claim. This is the refusal of another tenant to pay the costs of maintaining the property in accordance with legal requirements. It is recommended to refer to the articles of the law. The second part of the content is the plaintiff’s demands - a request to divide the personal account for utility bills.
- List of attached documents.
- Signature of the applicant and date of preparation.
A claim must be submitted in at least 2 copies. One is registered and remains in court, the second with a note of acceptance is returned to the plaintiff. If the claim needs to be applied to several companies, then you need to generate 2 copies of the claim for each case separately.
Court decision on a claim for account division
It should be understood that the division of a personal account leads to the need to independently fulfill the obligations of making payments. However, such a situation will not affect the terms of the residential rental agreement. The apartment will not be converted into a communal one. It’s just that from the moment the decision comes into force, two or more receipts will be received for one apartment. In case of debt, the management company will not sue all residents, but only specific debtors.
It should be taken into account that utility bills cannot be divided. Only obligations for the future can be divided. For the past time, you can collect part of the debt by filing a claim in court for collection by way of recourse.
So, after the decision on the claim for division of the personal account is made and it enters into legal force (appeal), the management company will be obliged to enter into separate agreements with the co-owners (tenants) of the housing and payment will be made in accordance with the procedure established by such a decision.
Required documents
To go to court, the plaintiff must bring:
- Ground statement. This is a sample application (claim) to the court.
- Russian Federation passport.
- Certificate of ownership.
- Housing and communal services receipt or other sample personal account that needs to be distributed.
- A receipt for payment of state duty is required in one copy.
- An extract from the house register or a certificate of family composition.
If the need to go to court arose after the management company refused to resolve the issue, the plaintiff must take with him a copy of the application to the Criminal Code and a document on the refusal.
What does the law say about dividing a personal account?
From a legal point of view, a personal account is assigned to a specific piece of real estate, and not to the owner. Accordingly, it can be divided only in the case when two or more real estate objects are formed. If we consider a separate apartment (one-room, two-room, three-room), division of the account will become possible after the allocation of shares.
The concept of a personal account is defined in the Housing Code of the Russian Federation. This is an economically important document regulating the payment of utility services. In addition, it contains data on the type and condition of the living space. As a rule, it also additionally includes the number of living rooms, floors, elevator and other data, including the level of comfort of housing. The document also contains information about all registered persons, and when registering shared ownership, information about the size of the share of each adult owner.
However, in some situations it is necessary to divide personal accounts between owners or persons living in the same living space. As a rule, the procedure is carried out by the court, since it is difficult or impossible for residents or owners to resolve the issue of payment of payments peacefully.
Legally, the process of determining shares for owners also includes the division of personal accounts by the management company. It is documented by an agreement defining the use of housing and the process of paying utility bills. The agreement is concluded between all residents who have reached the age of majority (for municipal, communal and non-privatized apartments) or the owners of the premises.
To simplify the procedure, it is possible to generate separate payment documents while maintaining one personal account. This is exactly what happens in practice most often.
However, no one can prevent the separation of accounts, since:
- in Art. 249 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation states that each owner is obliged to promptly pay fees for the use of residential premises in proportion to the size of his share in the ownership of the property;
- in Art. 69 of the Housing Code of the Russian Federation states that family members of a tenant under a social tenancy agreement bear the same responsibilities, and former family members are obliged to maintain housing on their own.
It is impossible to divide personal accounts if the housing is official or security measures have been imposed on it by bailiffs or the court. In addition, division is not allowed when the residential premises have only one owner. For example, if the owner of a two-room apartment rents out one room, he will not be able to split the personal account so that the tenant pays for utilities separately.
Residents of communal apartments confirm the right to use the property with a lease agreement, and the correct use of the premises is determined precisely by the section of personal accounts. If the apartment has metering devices installed (for water, gas, electricity, etc.), the residents notarize their consent to split the bills and pay according to indicators or number of square meters.
To carry out the division of personal accounts in court, it is necessary to provide not only a corresponding application, but also a certain package of documents, including the original lease agreement or certificate of ownership, as well as a technical passport of the property.
Contacting the management company
Property owners can turn to home maintenance service providers voluntarily. After drawing up the document, the housing and communal services office will take into account that each of the applicants bears individual responsibility for the maintenance of the home, in accordance with Art. 210 Civil Code of the Russian Federation. When responsibilities are divided between the participants, the joint requirement cannot be applied to citizens.
But sometimes the dispute cannot be resolved by the housing and communal services authorities. In this case, the owners submit a sample statement of claim to the court. During the consideration of the case, the judge will make a verdict on who and in what amount will deposit cash on receipts.
Division through court
If one or more of the owners refuses to pay for utilities, the property owner has the right to apply to a judicial authority to distribute responsibilities in equal shares. A claim between owners can be filed after an appeal from one of the parties or each of the residents.
Reference! The basis for an appeal may be not only the refusal of residents to draw up a voluntary agreement. If the Criminal Code refuses to register the appeal or division of responsibilities, citizens must file a claim.
When registering an application for documents, you must attach a copy of the refusal from the Criminal Code. An unjustified negative decision in the distribution of financial obligations between clients threatens the company with possible punishment under Art. 330 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation “Arbitrariness”.
Peaceful solution to the issue
Figuratively speaking, you and the other co-owners (or tenants), receiving a receipt in the amount of two thousand rubles, can agree on a proportional payment of all expenses. But since payment documents come with the name of the responsible tenant, if disputes arise, it will be problematic to prove that the money was contributed by all family members.
To resolve this issue, you can do the following:
- Every month write a receipt for the transfer (receipt) of funds to pay the receipt; Contact the management organization with a request to issue separate receipts in accordance with the agreement reached.
- If there is an agreement between the owners or tenants of the apartment, the management organization does not refuse this procedure and sends receipts to each of the owners in proportion to their share.
Dividing a personal account when the apartment is in shared ownership
According to the law, the personal account for housing and communal services receipts can be distributed among the owners if the property is divided into shares. Financial obligations will be formed based on the size of the share of each of the participants in the case.
Distribution will be carried out in the presence of a document-foundation of one of the owners. In this case, it is possible to change the terms of debt repayment within only one organization.
Important! Responsibilities for utility bills can only be distributed among the owners. Other residents who are registered in the apartment can take part in contributions for the maintenance of the property voluntarily. They cannot be forced to contribute funds to housing and communal services providers in court.
In what cases can you split bills?
The obligation to pay for housing and communal services is regulated at the legislative level, but the law does not provide for payments by minors and incapacitated persons.
Expert opinion
Klimov Yaroslav
More than 12 years in real estate, higher legal education (Russian Academy of Justice)
Ask a Question
The law provides for split payments for utilities only in a privatized apartment. Residents living in municipal property do not have the right to distribute responsibilities for paying cash for the maintenance of residential premises.
Distribution for joint ownership
Separation of obligations is impossible if the property is common, without indicating the shares of each owner. In this case, the other owner cannot be required to fulfill financial obligations for maintaining the housing. But if tenants change the main title deed, they can share responsibilities.
To do this, you should contact a notary. He will draw up an agreement on the allocation of shares in the property. After this, the owners will receive a new property document describing the shares of each of them. With the new certificate, they can apply to the management organization or the court to pay for utilities independently of each other.
Recourse requirement to pay off utility bills
The law does not provide for the division of rent if there is debt. In this case, the management companies will demand that all residents repay the debt jointly. If one of the owners was paying off debts and the other was avoiding financial obligations, the owner of the property may file a recourse claim in court.
According to Art. 325 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation, a citizen who has paid a debt for another person to a creditor (management company - in a particular case) has the right to submit a recourse claim in equal shares to the other owners, with the exception of taking into account his share in the process of paying for utilities.
Attention! A recourse claim can only be applied if the payer can prove that it was he who fulfilled the obligations. It is required to submit checks, payment orders and other documents confirming the fact that the plaintiff personally paid cash for rent.
In the absence of documents, law enforcement officers may refuse to accept a claim seeking recourse for a utility debt. If the plaintiff has all the checks in his hands, he can apply for a refund of part of the expenses. Cases with a claim amount of up to 50 thousand rubles will be considered in a magistrate's court, and with a larger amount of recourse - in a regional court, at the place of residence of the defendant.
Application for recourse on utility bills after separation of duties
After satisfying the plaintiff’s demands and distributing financial obligations for the maintenance of the house, the owner can apply for recourse. When drawing up an application, the plaintiff can indicate additional expenses: travel commission, transfer of funds to the supplier through a cash desk or online banking.
Reference! Payment of the state fee is the responsibility of the plaintiff. Its amount is included in the cost of damages during the consideration of the case.
When drawing up a claim document, it is required, in addition to indicating the judicial authority, the details of the participants, the date and signature of the plaintiff, to substantiate the claim and attach checks for rent. It is necessary to explain to the court that the defendant was notified of the need to pay off utility bills, but refused to fulfill his obligations.
We separate bills for housing and communal services:
Responsibilities for tenants
Tenants of property, when concluding an agreement with the owner of the property, are responsible for rent only by prior agreement. The owner can temporarily register residents. But registration does not affect the ability to distribute payments according to the law.
Reference! Residents who are not owners are exempt from collecting utility debts, so they are not subject to the rule for distributing personal accounts for housing and communal services.
The owner may require payments for the apartment during the rental process. But he will be responsible for possible debts to utility services independently.
Agreement on the division of utilities - example of a document and contents
The division of personal accounts, which is carried out on a voluntary basis, implies the conclusion of an agreement by those living in a municipal apartment.
Tenants can enter into new social tenancy agreements, if they wish, with new conditions. But they can also make an agreement with each other.
The agreement should contain the following important information:
- Document's name.
- Date and place of conclusion of the agreement.
- Information of the parties: full name, passport details, residential address, share in the apartment.
- Conditions agreed upon by citizens. For example, it can be indicated that the parties have agreed that the accrued fees for residential premises, utilities and other services (hereinafter referred to as housing and communal services) in residential premises will be paid by them in certain shares.
- All obligations of the parties.
- Effective date of the document.
- Conditions for termination of the agreement.
- Responsibility of citizens for failure to fulfill obligations.
- Information about the approval of this agreement by regulatory authorities.
The agreement can indicate all the nuances that concern the parties.
How do you pay for housing and communal services after your application is accepted?
If a personal account is divided between the owners, each of them will receive a personal receipt. If meters are installed in the apartment, payment according to the readings will be divided equally between all owners. If there are no meters, the calculation will be made by dividing the area by the number of people.
Important! Repayment of utility bills after separation will not be taken into account jointly and severally. Each person receiving a receipt will be responsible for repaying only their share. If a debt arises from one of the owners, utility services do not have the right to demand payment from other residents. Sanctions by law can be applied directly to the debtor.
Rent is included in the list of mandatory expenses. When real estate is in shared ownership, the owners are required to participate in paying for housing and communal services jointly, equally. The presence of disagreements may lead to a division of rights to pay rent. After consideration of the application, the owners will be responsible for financial obligations individually. If the house is served by several organizations, you must submit an application to each of them.
What is a municipal apartment?
The Constitution of the Russian Federation provides for three forms of ownership: municipal, state and private. Thus, housing may be owned by a person as private property, or it may not belong to them and be the property of the municipality.
That is, the municipality and the residents enter into a social tenancy agreement , and the latter own and use the apartment without the right to change its legal fate: without the right of sale, will, and rental is permitted only with the consent of the municipality.
privately owned by individuals (this can be both individual and shared ownership), organizationally owned, owned by enterprises, or municipally owned.
Such housing can be privatized or purchased from the municipality according to the rules provided for by the housing code.
What documents are needed to privatize an apartment and how to prepare them correctly, you can read here.
