The need to pay expensive utilities for an apartment often becomes the cause of controversial situations that sometimes arise even between members of the same family. The problem becomes even more urgent if several families or former relatives live in the apartment at the same time, for example, a husband and wife after a divorce. At the same time, as a rule, they each live in their own living quarters, maintain separate households and use electricity, water and other services based on their own needs.
There is only one bill for utility services, and, most often, a considerable one. Naturally, questions arise regarding who should pay for them and in what proportion. Often the situation is aggravated by the fact that one of the residents refuses or is unable to make payments. Existing housing legislation makes it possible to solve this problem in a relatively fair manner. It provides the opportunity to carry out the so-called division of the account, as a result of which each owner will be responsible for their debts independently.
Where good relations have been maintained, the issue is resolved peacefully, after going through the appropriate legal procedures. If there is a conflict, the initiators of the division will have to file a claim in court.
Is it possible to split a personal account in a municipal apartment?
Municipal apartments are provided to citizens under a social tenancy agreement (Article 49 of the Housing Code of the Russian Federation).
The owner must pay utilities and other expenses associated with the maintenance of the property. Relatives and family members can live with him. In accordance with Art. 69 of the Housing Code of the Russian Federation, the rights and obligations during hiring are equal for all citizens living in the apartment. Family members may include spouses, parents, children, brothers and sisters of the employer. Information about them is included in the social tenancy agreement. If a citizen ceases to be a member of the tenant’s family, but continues to live in the apartment, then he retains all rights and obligations.
A personal account is an identification number assigned to a specific property.
With its help you can find out the following information:
- utility debt;
- condition of the property;
- number of registered citizens;
- availability of benefits.
There are no rules and regulations for personal accounts in the legislation. Therefore, an agreement between residents or a court decision can simply determine the payment procedure in accordance with the citizen’s share of the right to housing.
Reference! The division of a personal account occurs by agreement of citizens or through the court.
When determining shares of utility costs, the number of residents and the area of the apartment are taken into account. Both parents are responsible for minors. If they live in the same housing, then the amount is divided in half between them.
By law
If the apartment is municipal, then from the point of view of the law, for the procedure for dividing the account, it is necessary to draw up new agreements. It is important to know that financial division of the account can be requested by any adult and capable person, as well as a person who has a residence permit for the given living space.
Opinions differ regarding the division of utility bills in public housing. From a legal point of view, there are two options:
- Splitting the account is not permitted.
- Splitting the bill is possible according to the old Housing Code of the Russian Federation.
In theory, in this situation, the problem must be resolved through the court, but it cannot always satisfy such claims. The judge has the legal right to refuse the claim.
Splitting the bill will be meaningless if only relatives live in municipal housing. Such claims are generally not satisfied. It’s another matter if the former spouses continue to live together in the apartment, then you can renegotiate the lease agreement.
Procedure
The procedure depends on whether the residents have reached a consensus.
If citizens were able to agree, then they enter into an agreement and contact the municipal administration. Municipalities may issue regulations defining the procedure for dividing a personal account for paying for housing and communal services. If there are disputes, you must go to court. When making a decision, the official takes into account all the circumstances of the case.
Collection of documents
To initiate the procedure, you must prepare the following documents:
- identification;
- extract from the personal account;
- social rental agreement;
- extract from the house register.
In some cases, civil servants may require additional documents.
Contacting the administration
Citizens must submit an application to the administration to split their personal account if they are ready to enter into an agreement. Documents are submitted in person, through a representative or by registered mail. If the application is submitted through a proxy, then it is necessary to issue a power of attorney from a notary to perform actions on behalf of the citizen.
Documents are reviewed within 30 days. If additional checks are necessary, the period may be extended, but not more than by a month.
Drawing up an agreement
The agreement is drawn up after receiving a decision from civil servants. Its form can be established at the municipal level. If the sample is not approved, then the agreement is drawn up in free form.
Download a sample agreement on the division of a personal account in a municipal apartment
It should contain the following information:
- information about residents;
- data about the property;
- details of the social tenancy agreement;
- determining the share of each resident;
- requirement to separate a personal account;
- list of applications.
The document must be signed by all parties involved in the division. The agreement remains in the hands of each tenant. One copy is submitted to the administration. On its basis, an agreement is concluded with the management company. After this, separate payment documents must be issued for each tenant.
Drawing up a statement of claim
A statement of claim is filed if citizens living together cannot come to a common decision. Its content is determined by Art. 131 Code of Civil Procedure of the Russian Federation.
The claim contains information:
- name of the court;
- plaintiff's details;
- information about the defendant;
- violation of the plaintiff's rights;
- applicant's requirements;
- list of attached documents.
It is recommended that the statement indicate the legal documents that were violated by the defendant. The obligation to pay for housing and communal services is determined by Art. 153 Housing Code of the Russian Federation. If the basis for dividing the personal account is debts, then the claim states that the defendant is violating this legal act.
Payment of state duty
The claim for division of a personal account is non-property. Therefore, the state duty for individuals is 300 rubles.
Submitting documents to court
Jurisdiction for consideration of cases relates to magistrates at the place of residence of the defendant.
A citizen must prepare the following package of documents:
- identification;
- lawsuit;
- receipt of payment of state duty;
- marriage or divorce certificate;
- registration certificate of the property;
- social rental agreement;
- cadastral passport of the apartment;
- extract from the personal account;
- certificate of family composition.
The claim is filed personally by the citizen, by registered mail with notification, through a representative with a notarized power of attorney. The judge sets the date and time of the hearing, of which each of the interested parties is notified.
The claim can be filed by any tenant of the apartment, since according to the law the tenant and his family members are equal in rights and responsibilities.
Obtaining a court decision and transferring it to the management company
After the court decision is received, it must be transferred to the management company. Based on the document, it is necessary to conclude new agreements with the management company.
After this, separate bills will have to be generated for housing and communal services.
In what case is there a chance to split the bill for municipal housing?
A chance to separate rent, light and water fees is recognition of housing as a communal apartment. The basis for this status is the presence of several separate rooms in the premises. If this is the situation, then for the division of apartment charges you will need an agreement drawn up by a notary.
The agreement contains the following information:
- personal data of residents of a communal apartment;
- a list of housing and communal services, their cost is indicated (in the absence of metering devices);
- square meters of housing allocated to an individual tenant;
- the monthly payment amount for each employer.
Based on the agreement, you can contact the Unified Settlement Center. The reason for the refusal of this authorized organization to issue several personal accounts is the need to conclude social rent agreements after the required procedure, which contradicts Article 67 of the RF Housing Code[4].
When the ERKTs does not agree to divide the apartment charges in a communal apartment of the municipal housing stock, it would be logical to proceed with the statement of claim to the district court.
Arbitrage practice
Judicial practice shows that the plaintiff's demands are not always satisfied.
Thus, by decision in case No. 2-983/2018 dated March 23, 2018, the Ufa court rejected the claim, indicating that the division of personal accounts is not provided for by law. The Samara Regional Court upheld the decision of the first instance. But the appeal decision of the Altai Regional Court states that it is necessary to divide payment documents for utility bills in accordance with the number of people living in the apartment.
We prepare a statement of claim for the division of utility bills
How to write a statement of claim to the court for the division of personal accounts for housing and communal services? Due to the peculiarities associated with this issue, you need to apply to a civil court of general jurisdiction. This is due to the fact that the claim should be classified as property issues. In addition, the constitutional rights of a citizen of the Russian Federation are affected here.
We recommend! Claim for moving into a municipal apartment
Now you can raise the topic of writing a statement of claim. It is immediately necessary to clarify that the issue is quite complicated and it is better to seek advice from lawyers.
When writing statements of claim, you must follow the letter of the law. It establishes the sequence of presentation of all circumstances and facts relevant to the case.
In this case, mistakes are unacceptable, otherwise the matter will not move forward. And all this time the rent will be charged.
This is another reason to use the services of qualified lawyers to write a statement of claim for the division of rent between the owners of residential premises.
For those who still hope to do it on their own, we offer to download a sample application from our website.
Questions from our readers
When is it impossible to split a personal account in a municipal apartment?
Division of a personal account by court or voluntary agreement is not permitted in the following cases:
- the residential premises are service premises;
- the property is privately owned by a citizen;
- the apartment has encumbrances;
- the property has been seized.
If the owner believes that his rights are being violated, he has the right to go to court, regardless of the area of the property and the number of residential premises. It is possible to determine the procedure for separate payment of utilities for several citizens living together even in a one-room apartment. The court may not satisfy the plaintiff's demands if it considers that his rights have not been violated.
Is it possible to divide the debt for utility bills when dividing a personal account?
When filing a claim, a citizen can indicate a requirement for the division of debt for housing and communal services, if any. If a positive decision is made, the judge will oblige the plaintiff to pay the debt in the share assigned to him.
Options
How can you split the account if the apartment is municipal? There are such ways. It is much easier to carry out this procedure if two or more families live in the same apartment at the same time. There are two options:
- The simplest way is to privatize the living space. This will help avoid many problems and litigation, and the municipal housing itself will become property.
- If the previous option is not suitable for residents, then you can visit the local Unified Settlement Center with a request to divide payments for housing and communal services between them. To do this, you must have documents certified by a notary from all persons registered in this living space, stating that they are not against such a decision.
If you receive a refusal, you can go to court, however, this will not provide a complete guarantee of the division of payment costs.
Underwater rocks
Citizens may encounter various problems when processing documents.
The most common are:
- In the title of the claim, it is recommended to write not the section of the personal account, but the payment procedure and the allocation of the total share of payment. In the first case, the application may not be accepted, since such a concept does not exist for a municipal apartment.
- Filing a claim often causes difficulties for people who do not have legal knowledge. Law firms usually have ready-made document templates, so turning to professionals can make the task much easier and increase the chances of a positive outcome of the case.
- A citizen who fails to pay housing and communal services payments on time may be forcibly evicted from a municipal apartment. The basis for this is at least 3 months of delay. If the employer has a difficult financial situation or another valid reason, he can apply to the management company or court to restructure the debt.
Drawing up an application
If the problem cannot be resolved without court, then you must contact this authority with a completed application.
It can be submitted by any tenant, as well as any other citizen who is registered and lives in this apartment. In order to draw it up correctly, you can be guided by Articles 131 and 132 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation, which spell out all the necessary requirements for the document, as well as what needs to be indicated in it.
Once the application has been completed, additional documents will need to be provided.
What are the criteria for dividing into shares?
Before dividing the bill in a non-privatized apartment through the court, neighbors themselves can share financial responsibility to the municipality and housing and communal services providers by drawing up a settlement agreement. The document is drawn up in any form, indicating:
- data of each signatory: full name, passport details;
- distribution of shares in payments;
- obligations to pay the share of payment on time;
- dates and signatures of participants.
If a peaceful agreement cannot be reached, the court can distribute obligations based on:
- the area occupied by each side;
- the number of family members for each of the employers: children, elderly family members not participating in the division.
Legal basis
Issues related to the change of owners and division of personal accounts are reflected in some regulatory legal acts.
These include:
- Housing Code of the Russian Federation.
- Resolutions of the Plenum of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation dated July 2, 2009 No. 14 and June 27, 2021 No. 22.
These regulatory legal acts determine that each resident, along with the tenant of the premises, is responsible for its maintenance.
Does the right of inheritance solve the problem of housing division?
If the homeowner has taken care of the division of property after his death in advance, securing his wishes in the will, no special problems will arise. If the apartment is bequeathed to anyone, even a stranger, half of the property will be received by the relatives of the deceased: retired parents, disabled spouse, minor children. If a will was not left, the property, including the apartment, will be divided in accordance with the degree of relationship. Children, spouses, and parents of the deceased can primarily claim the inheritance. Sisters, brothers, grandparents - the second degree of kinship (there are seven degrees of kinship in total). When dividing an apartment, the surviving husband or wife has the advantage of receiving half of the home. If there are no heirs in the first line, the property is divided among subsequent levels of turns.
Does the right of inheritance help in dividing living space?
To avoid problems with the division of the apartment, its owner must resolve this issue in advance by appointing an heir and indicating him in the will. If the deceased owner of the property bequeathed it to any person, not even a relative, half of the property rightfully belongs to the relatives of the deceased: retired parents, minor children, disabled wife/husband.
If the owner of the apartment died without leaving a will, the living space will be divided between relatives according to the degree of relationship.
The spouse of the deceased has priority to receive half of the living space. In the absence of first degree relatives, property is divided between persons of subsequent degrees of relationship.
Contacting the Managing Organization
The easiest way to split a personal account is to contact a management company. This option allows you to solve the problem most quickly with minimal costs. To do this, residents of the premises must enter into an agreement. The document must indicate in what shares each person will pay for the services. In this case, it is necessary to reflect the reason for the division, as well as the start date of this method of calculation. A sample is attached to the article.
In practice, it would be right for everyone living together to visit the management center, since other methods of contact may not give the desired result.
If the answer is positive, a separate agreement will be concluded with each payer, since they will become independent employers.
