The issue of housing privatization in Russia has been raised for a very long time. People first started talking about it back in 1991, and a year later a law was passed allowing residential premises to be transferred into the personal ownership of residents completely free of charge, that is, without paying a state duty. Experts say that at the moment only about 80 percent of the population of our country have undergone this procedure. Why some people have not yet formalized privatization and until when the law on not collecting state fees for this procedure will be in force, you will learn from our article.
Journey into the past
In 1992, the newspapers were full of fresh news - free privatization had started.
At that time, the State Duma set a completion date of 2007. But due to the large number of people who wanted to go through it and transfer real estate into personal property, it led to the fact that the end of the process was postponed. And this transfer was not a one-time thing, it was a step-by-step process:
- early March 2010;
- early March 2013;
- beginning of March 2021.
Initially, the draft of this law stipulated that the procedure would be carried out until 2021, but the State Duma in the second reading postponed it until this year. But the decision was changed and a new date was designated - 03/01/2018.
Background of the issue
The privatization of apartments has been extended until 2021 - this news inspired residents of municipal and state apartments at the beginning of 2021, since the period was already ending. Let's try to find out if this is actually the case.
In the winter session of 2015, the State Duma considered, and even approved at the first consideration, the option of shifting the deadline for privatization to 2021, and this date was announced by mass broadcasting , actually misinforming citizens: the deadline for apartment privatization was extended until 2018.
In fact, free registration of ownership of an apartment has been extended only until March 2021, and then for another year - 2018, apparently stimulating those who are late to speed up decision-making and actions in this direction. The privatization of the apartment has been extended until 2021 - this is a mistake by the Russian media. Law No. 33-FZ was approved by the President on February 29, 2021, when it came into force. So, in March of this year , this law ceased to apply, but now the problem of privatization of housing without redemption has disappeared, privatization of apartments has been extended for an indefinite period and will not end, thanks to the competent actions of legislators.
We are sure that you will find useful information about the new law on free land surveying.
How the original bill has changed
There are a number of significant changes to the original procedure:
- you do not need to obtain the consent of neighbors who live next to you in a communal apartment;
- division of joint property belonging to each owner in proportion to the total area of the housing;
- in terms of the re-privatization process and payment of state fees for it.
All data on real estate that underwent the privatization procedure before 1998 is stored in the archives of the BTI. And more recent data is displayed in the above register. You can go to the Rosreestr website using the link.
Privatization for a minor child
When real estate privatization is registered for a person under eighteen years of age, it is worth considering a number of features:
- A child under 14 years of age does not have the right to privatize real estate. This operation can be carried out either by the child’s parents or legal guardians with permission from the relevant authorities;
- A child has the legal right to independently privatize housing if he is between 14 and 18 years old. That is, an application must be drawn up independently, but it is necessary to obtain permission from parents or guardians.
Why is it being extended?
The authors of the bill on extending free privatization are pursuing several very important goals:
- In Russia, many families live in housing that the commission has recognized as unsafe. The resettlement is proceeding too slowly, and this entire category of people does not have time to resolve their issues regarding the re-registration of apartments as property. They cannot be deprived of this right.
- The rights of those citizens who are registered as needing housing are also not protected.
The deadline for the procedure will hasten those who have been postponing it until now. But in our country, this procedure has not been completed by the owners of more than 30% of the total apartment stock.
According to experts, this is exactly how many applications for privatization should take place during this period. It is unknown what this figure will ultimately be, but the official government is counting on at least half of this figure.
Why has the privatization of housing become indefinite?
The state adopted these amendments to the Privatization Law for the following reasons:
- A large category of citizens who live in dilapidated or dilapidated houses that are subject to demolition cannot exercise their right to privatize their home until they are moved to new apartments.
- Those on the waiting list for social housing will also be able to transfer it into ownership after they receive a new one under a social tenancy agreement.
- Residents of Crimea and Sevastopol previously could not register their apartments as property, since different laws were in force on the territory of Ukraine, and the urgent and massive transfer of housing into ownership in such a vast territory could create many difficulties in privatization, and, as a result, provoke a corruption component.
- The abolition of free privatization could provoke social tension in the Russian Federation; socially vulnerable segments of the population of the Russian Federation, who have no other way to obtain a roof over their head as property, would be especially affected.
Experts named another important reason for permanent privatization: protection from various scammers, so-called “black” realtors, unscrupulous relatives, especially in situations where elderly citizens who have little understanding of Russian legislation live in residential premises.
Since free privatization had an expiration date, as this date approached, various fraudulent schemes intensified significantly. Unscrupulous citizens visited residents of apartment buildings, persuaded them to hurry up with the registration of property, and offered to help speed up the process for a “reasonable fee.”
And since the end date for the free registration of residential premises in property was inexorably approaching, many tenants fell for scammers. Now there is no need to rush into re-registration; any tenant can re-register his home as his property when he considers it necessary to do so.
For example, in many regions of the Russian Federation, scammers used this scheme to deceive citizens living under a social tenancy agreement. They offered to help single pensioners speed up the privatization process; the citizen only had to sign a general power of attorney for the “representative.” A power of attorney was signed, the fraudster registered ownership of the property, then quickly sold it and disappeared, and the new owners filed a claim to evict the previous tenant.
For the state, free privatization of residential premises also plays an important role, since with an increase in the number of owners of residential premises, the following occurs:
- Expanding the number of taxpayers . All residential property owners are required to pay property taxes annually.
- Getting rid of unprofitable housing . As you know, all houses tend to wear out and after some time they require major repairs. If the housing is municipal, then these repairs are paid for by the state represented by local municipalities, but if it is owned by an individual, then all major repairs are paid for by the owner.
- Financial profit . Although privatization is called free, citizens still bear some costs. The costs of privatizing residential premises can range from 7 to 20 (and more) thousand rubles.
For example, the state duty for registering property rights will cost 2,000 for each person participating in privatization, for the technical plan of the premises you will have to pay from 1,500 to 15,000 rubles, and issuing a cadastral passport will cost about 2,000 rubles.
State benefit
It is not only citizens who benefit from this procedure.
This transition of housing into private ownership also benefits the state. People living in such real estate leaves a rather noticeable hole in the country's budget. And every year of such residence, it increases more and more.
The housing stock, which is on the balance sheet of the local government, incurs large expenses in terms of major repairs. The Russian treasury will also receive less money from real estate taxes, which is unacceptable given the current shortage of resources. It is also important that the amount of payments for major repairs will increase annually until 2021.
Reasons for extending the deadline
The dates were repeatedly postponed, but the new final dates did not always suit everyone. At present, little is known whether privatization has been extended until 2021 inclusive or will continue. The reasons for the postponement are:
Living in emergency and dilapidated houses is a problem that is difficult to attach to any time frame. And even if they are installed, not everyone is able to keep up;- the poor may suffer because they will not be able to receive free housing from the state;
- from March 2021, housing can be registered as the property of prisoners under previous laws.
Among the reasons for the constant postponement of the end of privatization is the fact that the country has about 30 percent of non-privatized housing out of all available housing for the population. Of course, it is physically impossible for all those in need to register their apartments as their property.
Participants in the process
The law stipulates that the following people have the right to take part in this process:
- residents of real estate who have a residence permit there and are adults;
- children under the age of majority (the minimum share is fixed by law).
There are 2 categories of people who can undergo this procedure again:
- Those whose rights were violated during the registration of this property. The violation was confirmed by a court decision.
- Those who received privatized real estate through gift or inheritance. They can privatize any other object for free.
Apartment privatization extended until 2021 documents
To initiate the free process of privatization of an apartment, you need to provide an application, which is written by each registered person. If only one resident writes, this procedure will not be fair and will not allow the property to be registered. But the most important thing for registration is the package of documents.
What documents should be prepared?
Extension of housing also involves the preparation of all necessary documents. For registration - privatization, you need to submit the following documents:
- Extract from the house register;
- Social tenancy agreement;
- Personal account statement;
- Passports of those registered in the apartment;
- A certificate that the applicant is not the owner of the housing received;
- Court decision for residents under a court decision;
- Cadastral passport.
How to go through this procedure
Despite the new deadline for free privatization, the procedure for registering rights to real estate has not been changed.
The list of documentation required for it has not changed either. So, to secure your right to real estate in which you live under a social tenancy agreement, you must:
- a written statement from everyone who is registered in this living space;
- a written refusal that reflects the person’s reluctance to undergo this procedure.
And also the following documents:
- documentation confirming the right to housing (order or social tenancy agreement);
- a reference document or extract about everyone who is registered at that address;
- personal account data (statement);
- a reference document on the replacement of a passport, if this took place since 1991 and before the date of registration at this address;
- a reference document stating that the applicant does not have his own home;
- personal identification documents of all apartment residents;
- a court decision for those who live in this living space according to it;
- cadastral passport (photo).
History of privatization in the Russian Federation
The privatization law was adopted on July 4, 1991, and it is from this date that the free privatization of residential premises is considered to begin. Based on this Law, the transfer of housing into the ownership of citizens was supposed to be completed by 2007, but life constantly made adjustments, so the terms of free privatization were extended several times:
- until the beginning of 2010;
- until January 1, 2013;
- until March 1, 2021.
The need to repeatedly extend the deadlines was explained mainly by the reasons that a large category of citizens lived in dilapidated and dilapidated houses, the housing in which they were in no hurry to register as property. Some citizens did not have the opportunity to obtain ownership of it, since it had actually already been confiscated; the residents were waiting to be relocated to newly built houses.
After March 1, 2021, the state planned to complete privatization for the main group of citizens of the Russian Federation, leaving the right to obtain property only for three categories:
- orphans left without parental care;
- residents of Crimea and Sevastopol;
- persons living in dilapidated and dilapidated housing, recognized as such before 2012.
According to the amendments to the Law, these persons had the right to privatize residential premises occupied by them under a social tenancy agreement until March 1, 2021, that is, within three years after the completion of the main privatization.
On February 10, 2021, the Duma adopted final amendments to the Law, according to which privatization became indefinite and free for all citizens of the Russian Federation. On February 22 of the same year, the President of the Russian Federation signed Federal Law No. 14-FZ, which approved all amendments to the “Law on Privatization...” adopted by the State Duma.
When adopting the amendments, the interests of citizens standing in line for social housing were taken into account, since the end of privatization could deprive these categories of the opportunity to obtain residential property, that is, it would infringe on their rights.
For example, a family is recognized as low-income and placed on a waiting list for social housing. The line is moving slowly, and they may not receive housing until 2025. According to the old version of the Law, they would no longer be able to register it as their property; in the new version, such an opportunity remains, no matter how long they have to wait to receive social housing.
Also, citizens living in dilapidated and dilapidated housing, after 2021, when moving to new homes, would lose the right to privatization, which also did not allow them to exercise their right to free ownership of residential premises. According to Rosstat, at the beginning of 2021, approximately a third of residential premises remained in the ownership of municipalities, as the pace of privatization of apartments slowed down significantly.
For example, a family of five lives in a municipal one-room apartment with an area of 40 square meters. meters in a house intended for demolition. If they privatize residential premises, then upon relocation they will be allocated an apartment of the same area. If they delay privatization, the new housing will have an area of 80 square meters. meters.
In the latest version of the Law, the conditions for the transfer of residential premises into the ownership of citizens remain the same: it is possible only for persons living in apartments, rooms, or detached houses under a social tenancy agreement, who have never participated in privatization and do not own other residential premises.
Go to court for help
The Russian reality is that most bureaucratic procedures cannot be completed without certain difficulties.
Same with privatization. They will definitely arise among people who live in departmental apartments, for example, factory ones. But this plant has been gone for a long time, but the municipality has not yet accepted these apartments on its balance sheet. Because of this, a person is denied privatization. And you can’t do it without the help of the court.
It is he who must make a determination that will indicate the possibility of transferring part of this real estate into ownership. Based on this document, the applicant will receive a certificate of ownership of the apartment. But only if other bureaucratic formalities are met.
Privatized housing gives its owner not only the right to live in it, but also to dispose of it at his own discretion - to give, sell, inherit, etc. Even a privatized plot of land under a garage will significantly increase his property many times over.
About the new bill on free privatization of housing until 2018, watch the following video:
Reasons for refusal and possible difficulties
Despite the fact that, provided they lived in state apartments, residents could not fully manage them, some still refused to transfer them into ownership. And the point is not that the privatization of housing has been extended until 2021; many simply understand that if they become full-fledged owners, they will pay large sums for utilities and other related services.
But in such cases, you need to understand that if the state provided an apartment free of charge to a person for certain merits, and he did not manage to privatize it during his lifetime, then after his death it will become the property of the state.
If a person really needs it, then even after he becomes a full-fledged owner of a home, he will be given tax benefits. These categories include:
- disabled people;
- pensioners;
- preferential categories.
Usually, lonely old people who have no one to leave an inheritance refuse privatization. But if a person has relatives, it is better to take care of them in advance.
Even in the absence of privatization, it will be problematic to carry out any transactions with the apartment. For example, if you need to sell a registered apartment, then a purchase and sale or exchange agreement is drawn up and state duty and income tax are additionally paid.
If the housing is not privatized, then when exchanging it, administrative permission from local authorities is required. There is no need to pay any state duty or tax. However, the choice of housing for exchange will be limited. The objects of exchange can be the same non-privatized apartments that are provided to residents under social rent.
How to privatize an apartment if one of those registered is against
Unfortunately, if at least one person registered in the apartment disagrees, it will not be possible to privatize the housing. The only solution is to try to come to a common denominator and resolve this issue mutually. Moreover, such cases are rare, since few people will refuse privatization.
Privatization can be:
- owned by one person;
- into the common ownership of all citizens registered in the housing.
In the second option, shares in the apartment are allocated with the help of the court.
What kind of housing cannot be privatized:
- dormitories;
- emergency houses;
- houses in military camps;
- service apartments.
Regarding the last point, there are relaxations here. Namely, if the organization that has the rights to official housing gives consent, it can be privatized legally.
