An HOA can enter into agreements for the provision of specialized services, collect the necessary fees and contributions from residents, and manage the property it owns. Moreover, all activities of the HOA aimed at ensuring the well-being of the home.
Sometimes it may happen that one of the residents is dissatisfied with the partnership, the chairman or the decisions made . In this case, it is necessary to file a complaint against the partnership. Where to complain about the HOA?
You can find out how to create an HOA, as well as how to leave it, on our website. Read also about the rules for conducting absentee voting.
Grounds for a complaint against the HOA
It is assumed that the partnership chosen by the owners of premises in apartment buildings must manage the common property well. However, in practice this is not how things work out. At the same time, housing legislation does not establish the grounds for complaints against HOAs and the procedure for filing them.
At the same time, according to the Constitution of the country, everyone has the right to protect their rights by all permitted means. If the housing rights of citizens are violated, they can also fight to restore justice in different ways.
The reason for filing a complaint against a homeowners association is dissatisfaction with its activities. Most often, complaints arise for the following reasons:
- poor quality provision of housing and communal services;
- lack of response to requests from owners;
- making illegal decisions;
- improper spending of funds of owners of apartment buildings;
- unjustified excessive increase in tariffs;
- unlawful accrual of debt;
- use of MKD property, spending of common money for personal purposes.
The cause of dissatisfaction may also be other violations in the activities of the HOA. But it is important for apartment building residents to know how to protect their rights and where to complain about violators.
What to do if the chairman of the HOA ignores requests
If the owners of apartments in an apartment building are dissatisfied with something, they can first address their complaints to the chairman of the association. He is the head of the board and provides ongoing management of the HOA's activities.
It is better to send your request (claim) in writing. It must indicate what violations were committed or what issue needs to be resolved.
It should be noted that according to the Housing Code of the Russian Federation, members of the HOA and other owners of premises in the apartment building have the right to get acquainted with the documentation of the partnership.
If the chairman of the HOA ignores the requests of residents, does not provide the necessary documentation and does not take the necessary actions, then you can complain about him. First of all, the question of his removal from office can be raised at an extraordinary meeting of HOA members.
In addition, you can complain about the chairman to the organizations that control the HOA. If there are signs of a crime in the chairman’s actions, you should contact law enforcement agencies, for example, the Prosecutor’s Office.
If the HOA voting procedure is violated
The most important decisions in an HOA are made by a general meeting of all owners. Meetings are held in the manner prescribed by the Housing Code and the charter of the partnership. All members of the partnership must be notified of the meeting.
Decisions are made by in-person or absentee voting, usually by a majority vote. In some cases, a two-thirds vote is required to make a decision. They are specified in paragraphs 2, 6, 7 of Art. 145 Housing Code of the Russian Federation.
If these requirements have been violated, then the owner of the premises in the apartment building has the right to appeal the decisions made by the meeting. This follows from the provisions of Art. 46 Housing Code of the Russian Federation. According to paragraph 6 of this article, an owner who was absent at the meeting or voted against can appeal its decision to the court.
At the same time, he can file a claim if there is a violation of his rights and interests. He can do this within six months from the moment he learned (should have known) about the decision. If the violations committed are not significant (material), and the applicant’s vote does not influence the decision, then it can be upheld.
The provisions of this article also apply to decisions of the general meeting of HOA members. Therefore, they have the right to appeal the decisions of the general meeting in accordance with Art. 46 okay.
If there is no answer
A response to your complaint must be received within a month However, please note that if documents were submitted during the holidays, the deadline may take a little longer. If a month has passed and you have not received a response, do not despair.
It is possible that your complaint has not yet been resolved. To find out if your application is progressing, call the office.
Government authorities will definitely respond to your appeal. There is no need to submit a second application, if only because it will not be considered, since the first one is already under consideration.
Protecting your rights as one of the owners of the premises of an apartment building is your direct responsibility . If you believe that you are being treated unfairly, be sure to fight for your interests.
Where to complain about the HOA, to whom and how to write a complaint
If the HOA does not properly perform its functions, then the owners have the right to defend their interests. It is not always possible to deal with the problem within the partnership itself. Therefore, its members have a question of where to turn if the management of the HOA does not cooperate.
If violations of their housing rights are detected, owners can complain to the following authorities:
- Rospotrebnadzor and its divisions;
- Housing Inspections;
- Prosecutor's Office;
- Judicial authorities.
Each of these authorities has its own competence, so you should know in what order and in what cases you need to complain there. Even if the letter was sent to the wrong address, the sender will have to receive a response explaining the procedure for contacting the relevant authority.
Complaint about your HOA to Rospotrebnadzor
The regulatory body in the provision of services to consumers is Rospotrebnadzor. If the standards for the provision of services are violated, their quality does not meet standards, or tariffs are inflated, then the owners can complain to this body.
They can send their complaint to the Rospotrebnadzor office at their place of residence. The appeal can be brought in person or sent by mail. The organization's website also has an online application form. The letter should include your details, information about the HOA and the violations it committed.
Complaint to the housing inspection
If the HOA does not fulfill its duties well, then you can also send your complaints to the housing inspectorate. Its main office is located in Moscow, and divisions operate throughout the country. It is better to send your appeal to the inspectorate at your place of residence.
The application is drawn up in writing, indicating information about the applicants, the HOA, and the violations committed. Facts and their legal basis should be presented, rather than unconfirmed speculation. Otherwise, you may receive a negative response to your complaint.
It can be presented in person, sent via mail or the inspection website. Upon receipt of a complaint, the inspectorate conducts an inspection and, if necessary, takes appropriate measures. Violators may be given an order to eliminate the shortcomings, and if it is not fulfilled, a scarf will be awarded.
Contacting government agencies
A citizen can complain about the improper functioning of the HOA to various regulatory and law enforcement agencies. The partnership has the status of a legal entity and is under the supervision of several government authorities.
Housing inspection
An application must be sent to this department if a HOA participant is dissatisfied with:
- the level of quality of utility services provided;
- timing of repairs and other work in an apartment building;
- how orders to eliminate identified violations are implemented;
- in what technical condition is the house entrusted to the HOA maintained;
- how the norms of the Housing Code are observed.
Application for HOA to the prosecutor's office or lawsuit
Contacting the prosecutor's office
By law, the Prosecutor's Office is responsible for considering complaints about the inaction or unlawful actions of the HOA. It belongs to the system of law enforcement agencies, so you should contact them if there is arbitrariness of the management of the HOA (and, accordingly, the need to combat it), serious violations of the law are committed.
You should write a complaint to the Prosecutor's Office according to the same rules as to other authorities. The text must be readable and the meaning of the message is clear. The factual circumstances of the dispute should be stated without “water” and unnecessary emotions.
If, in the course of a prosecutor's inspection, signs of a crime are established in the actions of the management of the HOA, then they will be held accountable. The punishment is most often the imposition of fines.
Court
Disputes about appealing decisions of the general meeting of the HOA, forcing the fulfillment of obligations, returning excessively withheld contributions for housing and communal services, and compensation for damage can be considered in court.
The claim is submitted to the court in writing or electronically in compliance with the requirements of procedural law. If it is not complied with, the applications may be left without progress or returned to the plaintiff.
Consideration of the application may take more than one month, especially when the other party is trying in every possible way to delay it. The decision made by the court is binding.
Procedure for considering complaints against the HOA board
If homeowners in an apartment building have complaints against the board, then first they should convey them to the chairman of the board. He supervises his work and must understand the situation.
If the chairman does not want to do anything, then, depending on the nature of the claims, you should choose one of the above methods of protecting your rights. In this case, complainants can also make claims against the chairman himself for his inaction.
Deadlines
The accepted period for consideration of complaints in any of the authorities is 30 days.
This period may be extended twice if circumstances so require.
from the chairman, the HOA itself and the housing inspection about the progress of the review , for example, by phone.
If during the specified time the problem remains relevant or is completely ignored by one of the authorities, the following steps should be immediately taken, that is, contact a higher authority.
General regulation occurs in accordance with the Federal Law “On the procedure for considering appeals from citizens of the Russian Federation”
Keep all copies of requests and responses..
A complaint to a homeowners association about the lack of hot water at the required temperature is a sample.
Claim for improper performance of obligations by the chairman of the HOA, sample
If the chairman of the partnership does not perform his duties properly, the owners of the HOA can act in different ways. Firstly, they can raise the issue of removing his powers at an extraordinary meeting of the partnership.
Secondly, they can complain about his unlawful actions (inaction) to the Prosecutor's Office or file a lawsuit. The judicial authorities may consider claims to compel the fulfillment of obligations or compensation for damage caused by the unlawful actions of the chairman.
To successfully consider a case, it is important to draw up an application correctly, competently substantiate your claims, and provide the necessary evidence. Documents substantiating the stated demands must be attached to the claim. The claim form can be found below.
Download a sample claim from the link. ⇐
Document submission options
There are 3 ways to file a complaint:
- text on paper, typed on a computer or written by hand, is sent as registered mail with return receipt requested;
- an electronic form of appeal addressed to the website of the Prosecutor's Office of your region;
- You can independently take the complaint to the Prosecutor's Office, make 2 copies of the application, give one to the prosecutor, and keep the second.
The complaint is filed at the actual place of residence.
Application for boorish behavior of the chairman of the HOA
If the chairman not only does his job poorly, ignores the owners’ comments, but is also rude, then this cannot be ignored. The behavior of this person, which has signs of an offense, may become the subject of an administrative or criminal case.
If the chairman publicly insults the residents of the house, then you can write a statement to the police. If the applicant's arguments are confirmed, the offender will be fined. In addition, you can remove his leadership powers in the HOA.
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Collective application from residents to the chairman of the HOA in the OBEP
Some owners have to deal not only with improper fulfillment of obligations by HOA chairmen, but also with outright fraud with the owners’ funds.
If we are talking about economic crimes, then a special police unit - Obep - will help deal with the situation. Owners have the right to write a collective complaint to the police about the actions of the chairman and (or) other members of the board. An example of such a complaint can be found at the link.
Application to the Department of Economic Crimes. ⇐
