Redesign in 2020. What to Approve if You Need to Redesign an Apartment or Country House

During the self-isolation period, we often think about extending the boundaries of apartments and country houses. We asked an expert to explain what changes in real estate law have occurred this year.

Alexey Parshin — an expert and head of the company GOROD, which deals with real estate approvals

Contrary to expectations, there were no major changes in the process of redesigning an apartment in 2020. The basics of this process are also regulated by Chapter 4 of the Housing Code of Russia (ЖК РФ). However, changes affected other rooms in apartment buildings and garden structures.

Redesign of any premises will be subject to inspection

In apartment buildings, offices and sports halls are often set up, and until now there were no restrictions on their redesign. Starting in 2020, owners will face administrative responsibility for any violations of regulations during the reconfiguration of such premises. The change was introduced in Article 7.21 of the Code of Administrative Offenses (КоАП РФ), where the definition of "residential premises" was replaced with "premises in an apartment building".

Punishments are equated to violations of high public danger (violations of rules for maintenance and repair of residential buildings and residential premises). Fines for officials are 5,000 rubles, and for legal entities — up to 50,000 rubles.

Inspections are conducted only with the consent of property owners

Before January 2019, no one asked property owners for permission to conduct unplanned inspections. Usually, such inspections revealed violations of redesign and reconfiguration rules.

Now, the basis for an inspection is the receipt of information about violations from the state housing supervision authority or municipal control. After that, authorities must obtain consent from property owners.

Responsibility for the building is shared by all its residents

If you connect additional space to your apartment that belongs to common property of the building — roof, attic, corridors and even land plots around the house — you will need a protocol of the owners' meeting with consent to make changes.

Responsibility for the integrity of the object is now shared by all its residents, according to a new amendment in Article № 46 of the Housing Code of Russia dated April 24, 2020.

Approval is now possible based on a standard project

Previously, the law provided two options for redesigning based on a standard project in Moscow and the Moscow region. The first one was based on an outline, and the second was according to a project developed by a designer.

Now, a new concept of redesign has been introduced — it is carried out based on a standard project, and the owner only needs to enter data into the document. Such a project has already been approved by the Moscow Housing Inspection and is available on the official page of the institution — mos.ru.

Redesign based on a standard project can only be carried out by owners of panel houses built according to standardized designs. You just need to choose a suitable option from the catalog. Most of these options do not allow altering load-bearing and external walls of the building. Exceptions are some modifications of panel houses of standard series П-44Т and П-44М, where starting from 2007, openings were provided in load-bearing walls (in Moscow, apartment redesign is done depending on the specific series of the house).

Registration of constructions on a dacha plot became simpler

Illegal construction objects on dacha plots bring many problems. If you don't have documents, you won't be able to sell, gift, or transfer such structures in inheritance. Also, you can't get a loan using these objects as collateral or connect them to engineering communications. Moreover, such structures can be demolished at any time.

The only way is to register all objects on the dacha plot, including the country house. On August 2, 2019, Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin signed Federal Law №267 to extend the so-called "dacha amnesty". The simplified approval process is still in effect — if you have the right to a land plot, only a technical plan is needed for approval.

Neighbors may demand demolition of constructions

The State Duma is preparing new amendments to the Civil Code. Neighbors or the administration can initiate the demolition of any illegal construction on a plot if it interferes with neighbors (e.g., casts too much shade). If constructions are not legalized, they can also be demolished at the request of neighbors.

As this item is still under development, you have time to legalize all valuable structures. In the near future, the law will be discussed remotely, and then amendments will be prepared for the second reading.