Joint ownership

The joint ownership is the organization of a real frame or groups buildings built whose Propriété is distributed, between several people, by batches including/understanding each one a privative part and a quota of the common parts.

With the the United States and in the majority of the Canadian provinces, the term “condominium” is used, the Quebec using the term “joint ownership divided”. In Australia and Colombia-British, the law uses the term “strata”, while the term “commonhold” is that which is used with the the United Kingdom.

In France

The number of residences in joint ownership rises in France with nearly 7,6 million on a total of 29,5 million residences (INSEE - investigation housing of 2002).

According to the French right, joint ownership functions under the mode of the forced joint possession. The mode of joint ownership is strictly framed by the Loi of the July 10th 1965 and its decree on enforcement of a law of the March 17th 1967, the law of the December 13rd 2000 (Loi SRU) and its decree on enforcement of a law of the May 27th 2004. These laws and decrees are of law and order, i.e. one cannot derogate from it by Contrat.

This specific scheme of the real estate was essential because of the growing number of buildings belonging, as it was of nearly general use until the 19th century, with only one owner (famous “the houses of report/ratio”), and which were sold by batches to different owners. This formerly exceptional case of figure, becoming common during the 20th century, led the legislator to facilitate the management and the maintenance of these “divided” buildings and to frame new, unknown problems in the houses of formerly: common parts, maintenance costs distributed, etc In France, the first text specific to this new statute was the law of June 28th, 1938, replaced by the law in force of July 10th, 1965.

The buildings under the mode of joint ownership go from the gathering building of two residences until whole of several buildings of the hundreds of residences. Greatest joint ownerships of France, Grigny 2 (Grigny, the Essonne) and Parly 2 (Chesnay and Rocquencourt, Yvelines) border the five thousand residences.

Principles of allotment

Joint ownership is divided into batches.

A batch of joint ownership is composed in an indissociable way:

of a privative element or left privative : apartment, garage, commercial premise, hollow, etc reserved with the exclusive use of its owner.
of a quota of the common parts and common equipment of the building (ground, corridors, staircases, roof, Carcass work heavy castings, elevator, the Second work etc).

Certain parts common, known as " common parts générales" , are the property of the whole of the owners and are intended for the use of all: roof, walls, green areas, etc Of others, known as " common parts spéciales" , are reserved for certain owners (those of a given building).

The quota of the common parts whose each joint owner is titular is expressed in percentages (thousandth, 10.000°, 100.000°, etc) and is evaluated in proportion of the value of its batch compared to the whole of the other batches of the building. The privative parts, the common parts and the percentages are defined by the descriptive state of division and the payment of joint ownership, which is a document having value of contract with regard to each joint owner. The common parts, which are listed in theory in the Payment of Joint ownership, are managed by the Syndic, in accordance with the decisions taken as a General meeting by the Joint owners, according to the rules of majority envisaged by the law.

Principles of operation

Joint owner

The joint owner is the “owner of a batch or several batches” each one made up of a privative part with exclusive right of pleasure and of a fraction of common part in joint possession.

Each batch is allotted to a joint owner. The joint owner does not have any obligation to live his housing. He can be with his suitability resident or financial backer. In the same way, if it is resident, it can with its suitability make use of its housing as main home or second home.

The whole of the joint owners is gathered within the Trade union of the joint owners. The trade union of the joint owners is consisted of the whole of the joint owners, without exception. Equipped with the legal personality (it is thus a Moral person), it manages the common parts, ensures the conservation of the building and the defense of the collective interests. It is responsible for the damage caused with the joint owners or the thirds.

Syndic

The Syndic with the responsibility of manage the common building and equipment.

He is the agent of the trade union of the joint owners. He is not the representative of each joint owner, individually. The Syndic is designated by the General meeting. Its mandate is renewed every three years to the maximum. It has three missions:

it carries out the decisions of the general meeting and applies the provisions of the payment of joint ownership;
it manages joint ownership: management of the building (subscription of the supply agreements and maintenance, engagement of the personnel) and countable management (covering of the loads of joint ownership and payment of the suppliers);
it represents the trade union of the joint owners in all the civil acts and in justice.

Trade union counsel

The Trade union counsel is a body of connection between the joint owners and the Syndic.

Its mission is to assist the Syndic and to control his management. It has an advisory role and does not have decision-making power. Its members are selected among the joint owners and are elected by the General meeting. To exert its mission, it can take note and copy near the Syndic of all the documents referring to the management and the administration of joint ownership.

The trade union counsel is generally directed by a president. In certain joint ownerships, the president of the trade union counsel holds a public role of representative of the joint owners.

The trade union counsel can, if need be, be made assist of a technician of his choice, whose fees are with the load of the whole of joint ownership.

Resident, Financial backer and Tenant

A resident indicates that which resides in the building. He is either joint owner or tenant. It with the pleasure of the building. He is not member of the Trade union of the joint owners that if he is owner of a batch.

Any joint owner is free to rent his housing with a tenant, provided that the tenant does not carry on there an marketing activity which is not in adequacy with the payment of joint ownership. Any tenant pours a rent with the owner of housing in the framework of a contract signed between him and the joint owner. The tenants are free to constitute themselves in association to expose their projects to the Trade union of the joint owners, and to defend them.

A financial backer is a joint owner who places its (or his residences) at the disposal of tenant (S).

Payment of joint ownership

The payment of joint ownership comprises 2 parts: a descriptive state of division in batches of joint ownership which enumerates and defines the privative parts and the common parts and a regulatory part which determines their conditions of use. It fixes the various categories of loads to which each batch must contribute, by respecting the legal principles of distribution. It specifies the rights and obligations of each joint owner, and the general organization of joint ownership.

At the time of the purchase of a batch, it with the value of a contract enters the purchaser and the Trade union of the Joint owners. As for any contract, it is recommended to read it attentively and to respect all the provisions of them.

General meeting

The General meeting allows the joint owners to make any useful decision referring to the management of the building: maintenance, heating, installation, recovery of the debts, choice of the Syndic, etc

The Trade union meets as a General meeting at least once per annum. The General meeting is the body of expression of the Trade union of the Joint owners. She is consisted of the whole of the joint owners, without exception. Each joint owner holds as much voice than it has percentages in the common parts of joint ownership. It only has decision-making power, by the vote. It follows obligatory rules of convocation, quorum, day order and majority.

In Quebec

Articles 1010 and following Civil code of Quebec of a legal device strongly inspired of the law of the French July 10th, 1965 on joint ownership. The Canadian lawyers very carefully consulted the French substantive law in order to organize a situation which remains delicate under all the legal modes. Articles 1010 to 1037 relate to undivided joint ownership. Article 1039 to 1109 relate to divided joint ownership.

For the reform of the Civil code coming into effect on January 1st, 1994, the Québécois legislator also took as a starting point other modes more close to the Territory like the Ontarienne legislation and that several states American (Connecticut, etc.

Although the mode of Quebecoise joint ownership is strongly inspired by the law (French) of 1965, of the major differences persist. On the level of the vocabulary one speaks about declaration of joint ownership and not of payment about joint ownership as in France. In Quebec, declaration is divided into three parts (Deed of partnership, descriptive state of the fractions and payments of the building) what allows modifications with degrees of different obligations. One uses also the word fraction of joint ownership to indicate the batch of joint ownership. The percentages of joint ownerships as in France and Belgium are rather the relative values of the fractions in Quebec. A fraction includes/understands a privative part and a quote share of the common parts. In France there is not the notion of the contingency funds as it is the case in North America and especially in Quebec and in all the provinces Canadian where it is obligatory.

Principles of allotment

Principles of operation

Joint owner

Board of directors

Resident, Financial backer and Tenant

Declaration of joint ownership

General meeting

Forces and weaknesses

The mode of joint ownership makes it possible a person to be owner of a private housing wedged inside an other private field (common parts), on which it has property rights, of use and management. The financing of housing is with the load of the owner but the financing of the common parts is shared between all the recipients. Operation between the various actors is governed by the Law. This law is one of the legislative texts most complete and most finely written French right.

Such are the main forces of the mode of joint ownership. However, this mode knows some limiting.

The abundant jurisprudence which was born from this statute shows the conflict character of the habitat in joint ownership. The dispute relates to the use of the common parts, the disorders of vicinity and the maintenance expenses. Individualism puts up badly with this system, the more so as, in accordance with the priorities instituted by the law, the judges privilege the continuity of the management of the building and the defense of the collective interests and not the interests individual.

This system seems adapted to the middle-classes but proves less adapted to deal with the housing problem of the most modest households. After one had tried to reabsorb the shortage of post-war period (law of 1948), the possibility of home-ownership seemed the obvious result of the gigantic real estate schemes of the years 1950 and 1960, all locatives. The governments largely supported the possibility of home-ownership of the households including more modest. However the unemployment and the rise of precariousness involve unpaid loads, even the bankruptcy of the trade union of joint owners, and, consequently, for lack of maintenance, the degradation of the building.

These difficulties brought the public authorities to think of the means of adapting this mode. But the legislator hesitates to amend in-depth a law for which he imagines badly what could replace it.

See too

Property owners' syndicate owners
Syndic
Glossary of the real estate

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