Professional assessment of emergency housing in Moscow

The presence of dilapidated and dilapidated housing, living in which is life-threatening, is a serious problem for citizens. To solve this problem, the state adopted a federal resettlement program, which operated until September 31, 2020. Since it was not possible to close the issue completely before the specified deadline, a new program for resettlement from apartments and houses unsuitable for habitation was launched on January 1, 2020. The federal budget will allocate 431.9 billion rubles for this project in the period 2019-2024. Let's figure out what property owners need to know that are subject to the new legislation.

What laws govern the procedure?

According to the Constitution of the Russian Federation, every citizen has the right to housing and safe living in it.

The resettlement of citizens from dilapidated and dilapidated houses is carried out on the basis of the Housing Code of the Russian Federation and the Federal Law “On the Fund for Assistance to the Reform of Housing and Communal Services.” As well as the corresponding resolution of the Government of the Russian Federation regulating the recognition of residential premises as unfit for habitation, and an apartment building as unsafe or dilapidated.

Let's understand the terms:

Emergency housing is considered to be a house with a high level of wear and deformation of the main structural elements, making it unsuitable for habitation. Staying in such a room poses a danger to health and life due to the high probability of collapse.

Dilapidated housing is considered to be a building with a general deterioration of the structure of 70% or more for stone houses, 65% or more for wooden ones. At the same time, the key load-bearing elements provide the building with sufficient stability, but the building itself no longer meets the specified operational standards.

A premises unsuitable for habitation is a more comprehensive concept. A dwelling that poses a danger to human health or life not only due to the structural condition of the house, its state of disrepair or dilapidation can be recognized as such. And, for example, due to being in territories with exceeded sanitary and epidemiological indicators or in areas of possible destruction (landslide, avalanche, flooding, etc.), as well as the presence of other factors harmful to the environment.

Thus, the recognition of a residential premises as unfit for habitation is carried out on the following grounds:

Actual wear and tear of individual load-bearing elements of a structure or building completely.
Dangerous deformation of walls, foundations or supporting structures, creating the possibility of collapse of the structure.
Impossibility of complying with sanitary and epidemiological standards due to changes in the indoor microclimate.
Location of residential real estate in areas where sanitary and epidemiological safety standards are violated.
Location of buildings in areas prone to earthquakes, landslides, flooding and other natural disasters.
Damage to residential buildings due to fires, explosions and other emergencies.

In any case, only local authorities can recognize any building as dilapidated, unsafe or unfit for habitation. And citizens living in such premises have the right to apply to government authorities to obtain an appropriate decision.

Emergency housing: what is required for displaced people

A house can be declared unsafe not only if the foundation, ceilings and walls are so deformed that it is about to collapse, but also if the building is dangerously tilted. This involves government amendments to the regulations governing the procedure for recognizing premises as non-residential and buildings as unsafe. The document comes into force on December 10. “Parliamentary newspaper” reminds what rights the residents of the “emergency gang” have.

In what case will it be allowed to demolish houses?

Since December 10, the criteria for recognizing a house as unsafe have become more specific. Buildings are subject to demolition or reconstruction, and all premises in them are automatically considered uninhabitable if the supporting structures of the entire building as a whole are dangerously deformed or damaged, and also when their tilting can cause a loss of stability of the building.

The Cabinet of Ministers was also concerned with preventing unfounded verdicts from officials about the condition of buildings and their subsequent fate. Now such decisions, after assessing the house, are made by an interdepartmental commission. It is created by regional authorities when it comes to the housing stock of the subject, and by municipal authorities in all other cases.

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How will the rules for relocation from emergency housing change?

Now the commission’s conclusion alone is not enough to demolish the house or, conversely, to recognize it as capable of standing for some more time. In particular, commissions are now required to send copies of their conclusions to federal, regional or local authorities for subsequent decision-making on recognizing the premises as residential, suitable or unsuitable for living, as well as recognizing an apartment building as unsafe and subject to demolition or reconstruction.

These amendments are the first step in a big effort to streamline legislation in the field of resettlement of emergency funds, Sergei Pakhomov,

“Previously, everything was so blurred that municipalities could sometimes make controversial decisions, which residents fought against in the courts. And the position in the courts was not always clear. Now all the criteria are being specified. At least some clarity has already been introduced,” he noted.

What will residents of the emergency zone get?

According to the Housing Code, the body that made a decision to recognize a house as unsafe makes demands on apartment owners to demolish or reconstruct it “within a reasonable time.” If the owners do not do this, then all premises and the land under them are subject to “seizure for municipal needs.”

This is where the resettlement of the residents of the emergency building begins. Local authorities can either buy the apartments from the owners or provide them with equivalent comfortable housing. It is up to the property owners to choose which specific compensation option will be used. The amount of compensation is determined by agreement of the parties based on an independent assessment, and it must take into account the market price of the apartment and all losses due to the seizure of housing - for example, moving expenses.

There were 54,700 unsafe houses in Russia as of October 1 of this year.

A slightly different resettlement mechanism for people who live in apartments under a social rental agreement, that is, in municipal housing. The authorities must provide such residents with another comfortable apartment under a social tenancy agreement. It is important that the new apartment must be equal in total area and be located in the same city as the previous one.

Compensation will become fairer

In the near future, those displaced from emergency housing will have more guarantees. In particular, last week the Council under the President of the Russian Federation for the codification and improvement of civil legislation considered a bill that would prohibit the confiscation of emergency housing if the Unified State Register of Real Estate (USRN) does not contain information about the location of the boundaries of the land plot. After all, until the borders are “cadasted”, the price of the land under the house is not included in the cost of compensation and people receive minimal money for their dilapidated apartments.

In November, the State Duma adopted in the first reading draft amendments to the Housing Code and the law on the Fund for Assistance to Housing and Communal Services Reform, prepared by the Ministry of Construction. The initiative, among other things, will allow regional authorities to introduce additional measures to support displaced people, for example, paying subsidies for mortgages.

Now parliamentarians are waiting for proposals and amendments to the bill from the regions, said deputy Sergei Pakhomov: “Most likely, we will consider it in the second reading this year, and maybe we will have time for the third reading.”

This is a very important program; it concerns about 500 thousand people.

He emphasized: the sooner this law is adopted, the faster the updated emergency fund resettlement program will work. At the same time, no one will rush to the detriment of the quality of the document: “We cannot pass a bill that will have many questions. This is a very important program, it concerns about 500 thousand people,” he noted.

How to apply for relocation?

To become a participant in the resettlement program, you must complete the registration process for the resettlement program. Before this, you need to submit documents to the local administration to declare the housing unsuitable for subsequent residence.

The recognition procedure is as follows:

Applying to a special commission at your place of residence with an application. This application can be submitted by the owner of the house or apartment.
Conducting an examination of the dwelling by this commission to determine its suitability for habitation. The assessment is made on the basis of technical standards and sanitary regulations.
Drawing up an appropriate act based on the results of the examination, which is carried out in three copies (the applicant receives one of them). For a document to have legal force, it must be signed by all members of the commission. The final decision on the inadmissibility of further residence in this premises is made within two weeks.
If a decision is made that a home is unsuitable for habitation, then members of the commission must notify the local administration about this within five days.
Local authorities issue a verdict on including residential property on the list of unfit for habitation. After this, the administration raises the question of relocating the applicants or reconstructing the building.

To get a new apartment, the owner writes an application addressed to the head of the local administration. A package of previously prepared documents will need to be attached to the application.

Here is their list:

ID cards of all family members;
certificate from the passport office about family composition;
documents to confirm relationship if other relatives are registered in the premises;
technical passport from the BTI and a copy of the plan of the apartment unsuitable for habitation;
title documents for this residential property;
written consent to relocation from all family members;
consent to the processing of personal data.

All papers can be brought to the administration in person or sent by mail.

The procedure for relocating residents from emergency and dilapidated housing in 2020

significant deformation of the base has been identified in the building, so the foundation cannot be restored or repaired, since repair and reconstruction will not be able to solve the problem;
there are no necessary communications in residential premises to ensure the comfort of life for citizens, and these include water supply, sewerage, electricity or heating;
Central heating is not connected, so the apartments are heated individually in different ways;
there are no windows, therefore, due to poor lighting, a danger to the health of residents is created;
the building is built on a bad location, so the living quarters contain a lot of toxins or harmful substances, which is not allowed by law.

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Many people are forced to live in conditions that are considered unsatisfactory for life. This especially applies to those living in old houses where there are poor-quality communications, a sagging foundation, various systems are not connected, or there is significant damage to the walls and roof. Such houses, by decision of a special commission, are recognized as unsafe.

What kind of housing can be obtained under the resettlement program?

Legislative norms assume that the owner of the housing to be replaced will receive another housing on a “meter by meter” basis. This means that the administration must offer the citizen housing of equal size for resettlement. Moreover, it must be within the same locality in which he lived.

Replacement options depend on the type of residential property declared uninhabitable:

The property is owned by the applicant. In this case, as a replacement, the administration must offer equivalent housing, both in the number of square meters and in the number of rooms. An alternative could be the redemption amount, which will be transferred to the owner’s account for the independent purchase of housing. This payment must include the market value of the apartment or house, as well as the owner’s expenses in connection with relocation.
The apartment is part of a municipal or state housing stock. In such a situation, the administration must provide residents with separate premises of the same size as emergency housing.

An important point: if the option proposed by the administration for any reason does not suit the owner, then he has the right to refuse. In this case, local authorities will be obliged to find him a living space that will suit him.

Providing housing outside the locality in which the emergency premises are located is possible only with a written application from the owner. For example, when the administration of a territorial unit cannot provide a displaced person with an equivalent apartment.

How is resettlement from dilapidated and emergency housing carried out?

All buildings that are found unsuitable for habitation are entered into a special register. Thanks to this recording, it has become much easier to find out the status of your request. Just go to the website of the Ministry of Capital Construction and view the list of houses subject to resettlement. It is also still possible to find out whether a particular object is included in the register by contacting local governments or structures specially created by them. Resettlement is carried out within the time limits provided for by municipal programs. At the same time, it is possible to apply for a reduction in terms if further residence poses a real threat to life.

When relocating, residents are offered living space in buildings that were erected specifically for the program for the resettlement of dilapidated housing. At the same time, the area of the new place of residence should not be less than the previous one (for owners) and comply with accepted state standards per person (for tenants). In rare cases, it is possible to move into apartments from the secondary residential market.

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When is emergency housing purchased?

The Housing Code of the Russian Federation allows the sale of emergency real estate to the local administration.

This may be relevant if:

The owner of the emergency apartment has other full-fledged housing.
The owner was not satisfied with any of the resettlement options offered by local governments.
The owner of the damaged property intends to move to another locality or buy ownership of a private house.

To sell real estate, the owner must provide the administration with a corresponding application. At the same time, self-government bodies are obliged to evaluate housing in accordance with market value, and the price must suit both the owner and the administration. The administration does not have the right to refuse the owner of a dilapidated home to purchase it. The result of the transaction will be the issuance of a bill of exchange, which can be cashed or presented when purchasing another home.

Compensation for emergency housing

If people are not satisfied not only with the proposed housing, but also with the compensation, the municipal committee has the right to go to court and through it carry out an eviction, forcing them to recognize any of the options as suitable in court. But to do this, the services first need to prove that the solution they offer fully compensates for all the homeowner’s expenses, namely:

The local situation does not always meet legal standards. Often municipal programs are not developed, or due to insufficient funding they do not work fully. Other apartments are offered to replace emergency housing of a smaller area, with fewer rooms or in a remote area. It is not surprising that many people prefer to receive monetary compensation instead of relocation and purchase more suitable housing in the future.