The governing bodies of the HOA are the general meeting of members of the partnership and the board of the partnership.

Article 135 of the RF Housing Code. Homeowners Association

1. A homeowners' association is a non-profit organization, an association of owners of premises in an apartment building for joint management of common property in an apartment building or, in the cases specified in Part 2 of Article 136 of this Code, the property of owners of premises in several apartment buildings or the property of owners of several residential buildings, securing ownership , use and, within the limits established by law, disposal of common property in an apartment building or joint use of property owned by the owners of premises in several apartment buildings, or property owned by the owners of several residential buildings, carrying out activities to create, maintain, preserve and increase such property, provision of utility services to persons using premises in these apartment buildings or these residential buildings in accordance with this Code, as well as for carrying out other activities aimed at achieving the goals of managing apartment buildings or sharing property belonging to the owners of premises in several apartment buildings, or property of owners of several residential buildings.
2. The charter of the homeowners' association is adopted at a general meeting, which is held in the manner established by Articles 45 - 48 of this Code, by a majority vote of the total number of votes of the owners of premises in an apartment building.

   2.1. The charter of the homeowners' association may provide for the use of a system or other information system when resolving issues related to the management of the homeowners' association, taking into account the functions of these systems.

3. The number of members of the homeowners' association who created the partnership must exceed fifty percent of the votes of the total number of votes of the owners of premises in an apartment building.
4. A homeowners' association is created without a limitation on the period of activity, unless otherwise provided by the charter of the association.
5. A homeowners' association is a legal entity from the moment of its state registration. The homeowners association has a seal with its name, a current and other bank account, and other details.
6. The homeowners association is liable for its obligations with all the property it owns. The homeowners association is not liable for the obligations of the association members. Members of a homeowners association are not liable for the obligations of the association.

Distinctive features

HOA or TSN? Let's look at the differences between associations. As mentioned earlier, TSN is a broader concept that includes HOA. Main differences:

1. An HOA is formed for one specific or a number of identical apartment buildings located nearby. TSN can be formed in relation to any real estate (garden plots, residential buildings).
2. The HOA was created exclusively to resolve utility issues. TSN is a full-fledged organization that has the right to carry out business activities and receive loans.
3. Although TSN is a non-profit enterprise, it has the right to receive profits to sell funds for the needs of the enterprise.
4. The law established taxation for HOAs according to the simplified tax system. TSN is subject to UTII.
5. Members of the HOA could only be citizens. TSN includes individuals and legal entities and their associations.
6. TSN needs licensing. The HOA did not need to obtain a license.

TSN includes such concepts as HOA, SNT, DNT and other associations of property owners. The organization is a licensed legal entity. The law gives the organization the right to receive loans, carry out business activities and make a profit.

TSN is not liable for the debts of the owners, and members are not liable for the obligations of the partnership.

There are three ways to manage an apartment building (Part 2 of Article 161 of the RF Housing Code):

1) direct management by owners;

2) management of a homeowners’ association (HOA) or a housing cooperative or other specialized consumer cooperative;

In this case, the management method is chosen by the general meeting of premises owners and can change it at any time based on its decision (Part 3 of Article 161 of the Housing Code of the Russian Federation).

An HOA is an association of owners of premises in an apartment building (MKD), created for the joint management of common property in an MKD or property in several MKDs or residential buildings, the provision of utilities, and the implementation of activities aimed at achieving the goals of MKD management or the joint use of property of the owners. At the same time, the HOA is a non-profit organization and is recognized as a type of real estate owners' partnership (TSN) (clauses

4 p. 3 art.

50 Civil Code of the Russian Federation; Part 1 Art.

135 Housing Code of the Russian Federation).

The concept of “association of real estate owners” appeared on September 1, 2014 as a new organizational and legal form of non-profit organizations (clause 4, clause 3, article 50 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation; clause “a”, clause 3, article 1, part 1, article 3 Law of 05.05.2014 N 99-FZ).

TSN is a voluntary association of owners of real estate, in particular premises in a building (including in an apartment building) or in several buildings, residential and country houses, gardening, gardening or summer cottage land plots, etc. The goals of such an association and the goals of creating an HOA are similar (clause 1 of Article 123.12 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation).

Based on the above, TSN is, in comparison with HOA, a broader concept - an association of owners of different types of real estate, while within the HOA only owners of premises in apartment buildings are united.

The charters of TSN and HOA must contain information about their name, including the words (clause 2 of article 123.12 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation; part 2 of article 135 of the Housing Code of the Russian Federation):

— “property owners’ association” for TSN;

- “homeowners association” for HOA.

At the same time, the constituent documents, as well as the names of HOAs created before 01.09.2014, must be brought into compliance with the current norms of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation (regulating the activities of TSN) when the constituent documents of such HOAs are changed for the first time. However, in this case, changing the name of the HOA does not require changes to the title and other documents of the HOA containing its previous name (Part.

7 tbsp. 3 of Law N 99-FZ).

Recently, the trend of uniting apartment owners in apartment buildings into partnerships has become increasingly popular. This suggests that residents consciously take responsibility for resolving important issues regarding the operation and repair of the house.

At the moment, there are 2 types of such associations: HOA and TSN. What are such associations and what advantages do they have? We will talk about the differences between HOAs and TSNs and what the difference is below.

Article 136 of the RF Housing Code. Creation and state registration of a homeowners' association

1. Owners of premises in one apartment building can create only one homeowners' association. The decision to create a homeowners' association is made by the owners of premises in an apartment building at their general meeting. Such a decision is considered adopted if it is voted for by the owners of premises in the corresponding apartment building, having more than fifty percent of the votes of the total number of votes of the owners of premises in such a building. 1.1. The minutes of the general meeting of owners of premises in an apartment building, at which decisions were made on the creation of a homeowners' association and the approval of its charter, are signed by all owners of premises in an apartment building who voted for the adoption of such decisions.
2. A homeowners' association can be created 1) by owners of premises in several apartment buildings, if these houses are located on land plots that, in accordance with the documents contained in the state real estate cadastre, have a common border and within which there are engineering support networks and other infrastructure elements , which are intended for joint use by the owners of premises in these houses. Decisions on the creation of a partnership, on approval of its charter, election of the board of the partnership, on vesting a citizen (including the owner of premises in one of these houses) with the authority of the applicant to apply to the authorities carrying out state registration of legal entities, and in cases provided for by the charter of the partnership, Also, the election of the chairman of the board of the partnership is adopted at general meetings of the owners of premises in each apartment building by a majority of at least two-thirds of the votes of the total number of votes of the owners of premises in the given building. The specifics of the adoption and execution of these decisions are established by the federal executive body that carries out the functions of developing state policy and legal regulation in the field of construction, architecture, urban planning (with the exception of state technical accounting and technical inventory of capital construction projects) and housing and communal services; 2) owners of several nearby residential buildings, country houses with or without personal plots, garages and other objects, if these houses are located on land plots that have a common border and within which there are utility networks and other infrastructure elements, which are designed to serve more than one residential building. Decisions on the creation of a partnership and the approval of its charter are made by agreement of all owners of these houses. Decisions on the election of the board of the partnership, on granting a citizen (including one of the owners of residential buildings) the authority of the applicant to apply to the bodies carrying out state registration of legal entities, and in cases provided for by the charter of the partnership, also on the election of the chairman of the board of the partnership are made at a general meeting owners of residential buildings by a majority of at least two-thirds of the total number of votes of owners of residential buildings.
3. State registration of a homeowners' association is carried out in accordance with the legislation on state registration of legal entities.
4. A homeowners' association created in accordance with paragraph 2 of part 2 of this article is subject to the requirements established in relation to a homeowners' association created in an apartment building or several apartment buildings, unless otherwise follows from the peculiarities of relations in a partnership created by the owners of several residential buildings .
5. When state registration of a homeowners' association, the minutes of the general meeting of owners of premises in an apartment building are submitted, at which decisions were made on the creation of the partnership and on the approval of its charter, and the charter of the partnership, as well as information about the persons who voted at the general meeting of owners of premises in an apartment building for the creation homeowners' associations, about the shares belonging to these persons in the right of common ownership of common property in an apartment building.

What rights and responsibilities do members of the partnership have?

TSN is a non-profit organization, which means that TSN members can only engage in activities that are directly provided for by the charter of the partnership. The legislation does not prohibit TSN comrades from engaging in entrepreneurial activities, but subject to the following conditions:

• entrepreneurial activity is possible only for the purpose of ensuring the activities of the partnership;
• income received from the entrepreneurial activities of TSN partners is not distributed among its participants, but is used for the needs of the partnership.

This is important to know: What is the difference between residential and non-residential premises?

TSN in terms of liability is similar to the organizational and legal form of limited liability companies, i.e. TSN partners are not liable for the debts of the partnership and are liable exclusively with their property for their own obligations.

Members of TSN have the rights and obligations that are specified in the charter of the non-profit organization. In general, the list of rights and obligations in different TSNs is approximately the same. Let us give an example of the basic rights and obligations of TSN participants. So, each member of TSN has the following basic rights:

• enter into agreements for the management of common real estate, including agreements on the provision of real estate (repairs, utilities and other agreements in the common interests).
• perform work in the interests of other TSN members.
• transfer material assets as payment for contracts concluded in the interests of the partnership.
• determine the costs of maintaining the partnership’s real estate assets.
• provide property under the right of ownership for temporary use of the partnership.

The Association of Owners, on behalf of all members, if the actions do not contradict the goals of the activity, has the right to:

• enter into transactions in the interests of the partnership;
• provide real estate properties of the partnership for temporary use;
• by agreement, rebuild common property;
• acquire (receive on other grounds) real estate, including land plots on the right of shared ownership, as well as other property;
• enter into other transactions in order to ensure the interests of the partnership.

The responsibilities of each member of the partnership are limited to the following obligations:

1. Make contributions to cover general expenses (otherwise this amount may be recovered based on a court decision), i.e. making contributions, which can be annual or quarterly.
2. Ensure proper compliance with the requirements of the Charter of the Partnership.
3. Fulfill the obligations imposed on the comrade by agreements;

In turn, the partnership is responsible to its members, and therefore has obligations in the form of:

1. The need to comply with the terms of contracts, including the maintenance and sanitary provision of real estate.
2. Concluding and executing a transaction in the interests of partners.
3. Ensuring proper technical condition of real estate.
4. Ensuring that the interests of each TSN member are respected.
5. Responsibilities for representing interests in authorities and before third parties on behalf of the owner-members of TSN.

Thus, the partnership and its members have mutual rights and obligations to ensure the interests of each member and the partnership as a whole.

Article 137 of the RF Housing Code. Homeowners' Association Rights

1. A homeowners' association has the right to: 1) conclude, in accordance with the law, an agreement for the management of an apartment building and other agreements ensuring the management of an apartment building, including the maintenance and repair of common property in an apartment building; 2) determine the estimate of income and expenses for the year, including the necessary expenses for the maintenance and repair of common property in an apartment building, the costs of major repairs and reconstruction of an apartment building, special contributions and deductions to the reserve fund, as well as expenses for others established by this chapter and the articles of association of the purpose partnership; 3) establish, on the basis of the accepted estimate of income and expenses for the year of the partnership, the amounts of payments and contributions for each owner of premises in an apartment building in accordance with his share in the right of common ownership of common property in the apartment building; 4) perform work for the owners of premises in an apartment building and provide them with services; 5) use loans provided by banks in the manner and under the conditions provided for by law; 6) transfer material and monetary resources under an agreement to persons performing work for the partnership and providing services to the partnership; 7) sell and transfer for temporary use, exchange property belonging to the partnership.
2. In cases where this does not violate the rights and legitimate interests of the owners of premises in an apartment building, the homeowners association has the right to: 1) provide for use or limited use part of the common property in an apartment building; 2) in accordance with the requirements of the law, in the prescribed manner, build on, rebuild part of the common property in an apartment building; 3) receive for use or receive or acquire land plots into common shared ownership of the owners of premises in an apartment building for housing construction, construction of utility and other buildings and their further operation; 4) carry out, in accordance with the requirements of the law, on behalf and at the expense of the owners of premises in an apartment building, the development of allocated land plots adjacent to such a house; 5) enter into transactions and perform other actions consistent with the goals and objectives of the partnership.
3. If the owners of premises in an apartment building fail to fulfill their obligations to participate in common expenses, the homeowners’ association has the right in court to demand forced reimbursement of mandatory payments and contributions.
4. A homeowners' association may demand in court full compensation for losses caused to it as a result of the failure of the owners of premises in an apartment building to fulfill their obligations to pay mandatory payments and contributions and pay other general expenses.

HOA. Organization and effective management Veniamin Gassul, 2011

2.2. Organizational structure of the HOA management system

Based on the stated principles for constructing organizational management systems and taking into account the peculiarities of the organization and functioning of HOAs, it can be determined that in the design of the HOA management system it is necessary to: establish a form of management; develop an organizational management structure; specify the tasks solved by each structural level; develop enterprise standards that regulate decision-making at all levels of management; identify the main blocks of the system and the tasks solved by each of them.

In relation to the management of HOAs, three of its forms can be defined: the involvement of specialized organizations in operation and maintenance, the implementation of this maintenance and operation on their own, and a mixed form, in which part of the maintenance work is transferred to a specialized organization, and part is carried out on its own. It is important to note that with all forms of management, financial resources and responsibility for the operation of apartment buildings are entirely the responsibility of the HOA.

The choice of form of management actually depends entirely on the composition of the board members: their education, work experience, ability to learn and master the specifics of HOA management, sense of responsibility, motivation to participate in management and other business and moral qualities necessary to carry out responsible, complex and largely new job.

Considering that on the board elected during the organization of the HOA, there are unlikely to be professionals who are capable of independently solving both economic and organizational, as well as technical issues related to the operation of the house, it seems advisable at the initial stage of the HOA’s functioning to use a form of management in which economic tasks management systems and organizational issues are decided by the board, and issues of technical maintenance and routine repairs are decided by a specialized organization under an agreement with the board.

To monitor the activities of this organization for the maintenance of apartment buildings, a professional technical worker with the status of, for example, the chief engineer of the HOA can be hired. Depending on his qualifications and local conditions, in order to promptly resolve individual issues, it seems advisable to unite under the leadership of this employee several workers of various specialties, for example, for cleaning the territory and caring for staircases, removing this work from the contract with the maintenance organization. Such a mixed form of management should be quite stable and long-term.

With the accumulation of certain experience and professional skills, the management of the HOA can be entirely carried out by the board. Such a decision must be made very carefully, taking into account all factors, including the number of houses and apartments in the HOA, the surrounding area, calculation of income and operating costs, and the ability to hire relevant specialists. But even under this form of management, where maintenance and repairs are the responsibility of the board, certain elements of this maintenance are likely to be carried out under contracts, such as emergency work and some of the repairs and overhauls.

In the proposed version of the organizational structure of the management system, its diagram is practically independent of the chosen form of management and is presented in Fig. 2.2.

Rice. 2.2.

Organizational structure of the management system

The organizational structure of the management system determines the hierarchy of the structure of the system's management bodies, their relationship and the tasks within the competence of each level.

The organizational structure is designed with the expectation of stable and long-term work. At the same time, it must be capable of perceiving changing operating conditions that require a new approach to solving the tasks assigned to the system and localizing emerging problems. So, for example, during the transition from one form of management to another, with stability and immutability of the organizational management structure, a redistribution of responsibilities between its various levels may occur to those more appropriate to the new conditions of the system’s functioning.

The peculiarities of the activities of the HOA as a non-profit organization managed by the owners of apartments in an apartment building require clarification and explanation of the order and methods of performing the tasks facing each hierarchical level of management. Fulfillment of this requirement is especially important in connection with existing cases of inadequate reading of certain provisions of regulations and in connection with the method proposed below for solving problems by the second and third levels of management.

In the hierarchy of the organizational structure of HOA management, the highest governing body, the top link of the entire system, is the general meeting of HOA members.

The competence of the general meeting includes the issues specified in Art. 145 Housing Code of the Russian Federation. Most of them do not need comments, but the content of individual questions is often perceived inadequately and requires explanation. Thus, the Housing Code of the Russian Federation places within the competence of the general meeting the adoption and amendment of the internal regulations of the HOA in relation to employees whose responsibilities include maintaining an apartment building, and provisions on their remuneration. Very often, internal regulations are considered only as a banal definition of the start and end times of work, lunch and technological breaks, i.e., they are limited to a description of the operating mode.

The definition and content of internal regulations, or more precisely, internal labor regulations, are given in Art. 189 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation (LC RF), which considers the internal labor regulations as a local regulatory act that regulates, in accordance with federal legislation, the procedure for hiring and dismissing workers, the basic rights, duties and responsibilities of the parties to the employment contract, work hours, rest periods, applicable incentive and penalty measures for employees, as well as other issues of regulating labor relations with a given employer (in this case, with the HOA). This is what a comprehensive document should be like!

Special attention should be paid to the approach proposed by the author to the procedure for hiring and firing employees. It is based on the obligation of the board to hire and fire employees (clause 5 of Article 148 of the RF Housing Code) and provides for the board to make a decision on hiring an employee for a particular position with a certain salary, which is accompanied by a corresponding order from the chairman of the board. The dismissal of an employee and change in his salary are carried out in the same way. This scheme does not provide for the mandatory preparation of a staffing table, this atavism of the Soviet planning system; it is flexible and meets the interests and needs of the HOA for labor resources. After the general meeting approves the internal labor regulations, which includes the procedure for hiring and dismissing employees, the specified scheme becomes legitimate and mandatory for the hiring, dismissal and changes in salaries of employees. At the same time, the regulation on remuneration of workers approved by the general meeting provides for the establishment of official salaries for both engineering and technical workers, and for workers and employees. At the same time, the possibility of compiling a list of hired workers indicating their positions and salaries is not excluded. Unlike the staffing table, such a list is secondary in nature and does not require approval by either the general meeting or the board.

The regulations on remuneration should determine the form of remuneration, the establishment of wages, the procedure, place and terms of payment of wages, deductions from wages and restrictions on their size, calculation of the average wage, terms of calculation upon dismissal, issuance of wages not received by the day death of an employee, remuneration for combining professions, payment for overtime work, on weekends and non-working days.

The problem solved by the general meeting, such as the formation of special funds, requires clarification. According to paragraph 5 of Art. 145 of the RF Housing Code, the formation of such funds is within the competence of the general meeting - but only the fact of formation itself. In addition, according to paragraph 3 of Art. 151 of the Housing Code of the Russian Federation, the general meeting must approve the procedure for the formation of special funds. Based on these requirements, any special fund, for example a reserve fund, can be formed only after the general meeting, firstly, makes a decision on its formation and, secondly, approves the procedure for the formation of special funds.

In this case, without in any way encroaching on the competence of the general meeting, the board, by virtue of clause 1 of Art. 147 and paragraph 9 of Art. 148 of the Housing Code of the Russian Federation and the charter of the HOA, which determine the right of the board to make decisions on all issues of the company’s activities, except those relating to the exclusive competence of the general meeting, can and should develop and approve the corresponding regulations on a particular fund, based on the decision adopted by the general meeting on its formation in approved procedure for the formation of funds. The regulations indicate the directions and procedure for using the funds of the fund.

It is necessary to clarify such a task of the general meeting as approval of the annual financial activity plan and the report on the implementation of such a plan (Article 145 of the RF Housing Code). In Art. 151 of the RF Housing Code also mentions a financial plan, according to which the board spends funds. However, in Art. 148 states that the board submits to the general meeting an estimate of income and expenses, and Art. 150 - that the audit commission presents to the general meeting an opinion on the estimate of income and expenses. From this we can conclude that the estimate of income and expenses can be identified with the financial plan, and there will not be a big mistake in this. At the same time, closer to the existing procedure and practice of drawing up documents defining the activities of the organization is consideration of the estimate of income and expenses as a fundamental act, on the basis of which a more detailed and specific financial plan is drawn up, subject to approval by the general meeting, which must also be familiar with the basis of this plan - an estimate of income and expenses.

In this case, the income portion of the estimate represents the sum of utility bills and the cost of maintenance and technical repairs of the premises, as well as approved special contributions and income from other sources. The expenses part shows the costs of utilities and the costs of maintenance and repairs. By comparing both parts of the estimate, the excess of income over expenses is determined, which is conditionally classified as profit.

In financial terms, cash balances from the previous period (+, -) are transferred to the revenue side and the overall result is summed up, and in the expenditure side, the received conditional profit is distributed among the formed funds and the costs of specific work are specified. This takes into account payments to the budget and contributions to funds, as well as the existing percentage of late payments for utilities.

It should be noted that the proposed view on the estimate of income and expenses and the financial plan is supported by the Housing Committee of St. Petersburg, which, in Letter No. 1744/10-3 dated March 3, 2010, indicated that “an estimate is the simplest form of a financial plan.”

Thus, the list of tasks falling within the competence of the highest level of HOA management—the general meeting of HOA members—has been clarified and specified.

The second level in the hierarchy of the organizational structure of the HOA management system is the board, which is entrusted with executive functions and is accountable to the general meeting. The responsibilities of the board are defined in Art. 148 Housing Code of the Russian Federation and the HOA charter.

Considering that the board is a collegial body, all preparatory and operational work to fulfill its duties as defined in Art. 148 of the RF LC, is assigned, as a rule, to the chairman of the board, which predetermines the disclosure of the responsibilities of the board in a specific form, close to practice. This form assumes that the board reviews, adjusts, agrees and approves (or rejects) the issues presented, namely:

• considers and makes decisions on cases of non-compliance by the HOA with the legislation and the requirements of the HOA charter, as well as late payments and contributions;

• reviews and agrees, upon proposal of the chairman of the board, the estimate of income and expenses for the relevant period and reports on financial activities; submits them to the general meeting for approval;

• approves the list and amount of concluded contracts for the maintenance, operation and repair of common property in an apartment building - upon the proposal of the chairman of the board;

• systematically controls the maintenance of the list of HOA members, office work, accounting and reporting by persons entrusted with this responsibility by decision of the board;

• controls the convening and holding of the general meeting;

• when the general meeting of HOA members makes a decision on the procedure for the formation of special funds and the formation of any specific fund, approves the regulations on this fund;

• hires workers to service an apartment building (houses) and dismisses them in accordance with the internal labor regulations and regulations on the remuneration of these workers approved by the general meeting.

The board can develop and approve a regulation on the chairman of the board as the executor of its decisions (Article 149 of the Housing Code of the Russian Federation), defining in it the specific rights and responsibilities of the chairman of the board arising from the relevant articles of the Housing Code of the Russian Federation, the charter of the HOA and documents approved by the general meeting, taking into account the specifics and conditions functioning of the HOA.

The board can also develop and approve regulations on the management employees of the HOA: manager, chief engineer and chief accountant, as well as job descriptions of all employees.

The legitimacy of the development and approval of these provisions and instructions is determined by the actions of the HOA board as the highest governing body, clarifying the functions of the structures and officials subordinate to it.

Thus, the board makes decisions within its functions, and the implementation of these decisions is ensured by the chairman of the board (Article 149 of the Housing Code of the Russian Federation), who should be considered as an important link in the organizational structure of the HOA management system, following the board.

It should be emphasized that the chairman of the board acts on behalf of the HOA without a power of attorney, signs payment documents and carries out transactions and other actions provided for in clause 2 of Art. 149 of the Housing Code of the Russian Federation and the regulations on the chairman of the board approved by the board.

The competence of the chairman of the board, enshrined and specified in the mentioned provision, includes a wide range of issues covering all aspects of the functioning of the HOA, from the preparation of contracts with energy supply and service organizations to the organization of collection of payments, hiring and dismissal of employees, conducting arbitration and court cases, drawing up a financial plan and preparation for the general meeting. This brief, far from complete list of tasks within the competence of the chairman of the board predetermines the need for this work to be performed by a full-time employee on a contractual basis. Of course, you can hire an employee for the position of HOA manager, entrusting him with all the current work and leaving the chairman with the right to sign and represent the HOA in government bodies and other organizations. But this is not the best option, if only because there will be no balance between rights and obligations - for example, in the event of an accident, the manager, if necessary, will not be able to use financial resources in the absence of the chairman of the board.

It seems advisable to combine these two positions in one person, indicating in the regulations on the manager the possibility of appointing any member of the board, including its chairman, to this position. This will allow the HOA manager, while remaining the chairman of the board, to carry out activities to ensure the functioning of the HOA on a contractual, paid basis. At the same time, not only will his role and responsibility increase, but also appropriate conditions will appear for work, acquisition of the necessary knowledge and experience in managing HOAs. This combination of positions is especially necessary with a mixed form of management and the transition to management entirely by the HOA. In addition, such an employee, being a member of the HOA, will have sufficient motivation to ensure the successful functioning of the HOA.

The legitimacy of combining these positions must be ensured by appropriate instructions in the labor regulations of hired workers.

In this case, it is advisable to include in the regulations on the chairman of the board the possibility of combining with the position of HOA manager.

Combining the positions of chairman of the board and manager is the first step towards creating conditions for professional management of the HOA. It is obvious that such a combination is possible and advisable if the chairman has the necessary business qualities, ability to learn and motivation to work.

Article 138 of the Housing Code of the Russian Federation. Responsibilities of the Homeowners Association

The homeowners association is obliged to: 1) ensure compliance with the requirements of this chapter, the provisions of other federal laws, other regulatory legal acts, as well as the charter of the association; 2) manage an apartment building in the manner established by Section VIII of this Code; 3) fulfill obligations under the contract in the manner prescribed by law; 4) ensure proper sanitary and technical condition of common property in an apartment building; 5) ensure that all owners of premises in an apartment building fulfill their responsibilities for the maintenance and repair of common property in an apartment building in accordance with their shares in the right of common ownership of this property; 6) ensure compliance with the rights and legitimate interests of the owners of premises in an apartment building when establishing the conditions and procedure for ownership, use and disposal of common property; 7) take measures necessary to prevent or terminate actions of third parties that impede or interfere with the exercise of the rights of ownership, use and, within the limits established by law, of the owners of premises with common property in an apartment building; represent the legitimate interests of the owners of premises in an apartment building related to the management of common property in this building, including in relations with third parties; 9) maintain a register of members of the partnership and annually during the first quarter of the current year send a copy of this register to the executive authorities of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation specified in Part 2 of Article 20 of this Code; 10) submit to the authorized executive bodies of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation, specified in Part 2 of Article 20 of this Code, within three months from the date of state registration of changes made to the charter of the partnership, a copy of the charter of the partnership, an extract from the minutes, certified by the chairman of the partnership and the secretary of the general meeting of members of the partnership, general meeting of members of the partnership on making a decision to amend the charter of the partnership with copies of the texts of the relevant changes certified by the chairman of the partnership and the secretary of the general meeting of members of the partnership.

Right to review documentation

It is the responsibility of the HOA to familiarize all owners of the premises of an apartment building with certain documents of the partnership that are relevant on the day of application. Among them:

• charter and certificate of state registration of the partnership as a legal entity;
• register of HOA members;
• financial statements;
• conclusions of the auditor (audit commission) and minutes of the meeting of this body;
• title documents for property;
• minutes of the meeting of the management bodies of the HOA, powers of attorney and ballots, which served as the basis for the preparation of minutes reflecting the voting results;
• decisions of premises owners reflecting the outcome of their absentee voting;
• technical and other documentation for the house;
• other internal documents of the HOA, which are provided for by the Housing Code, statute and decision of the highest management body of the partnership.

It is important to note that paragraph 3 of Article 143.1 refers only to the right of homeowners to familiarize themselves with the documents, the list of which is given above. However, the code does not say anything about the organization’s obligation to provide these documents in a certain order and in compliance with specific terms. That is why such a procedure and terms, as well as the obligations of the partnership, must be provided for by the statute. In order to simplify the relationship between the owners of premises (including members) and the management bodies of the organization, you can post the permissible amount of information on the Internet.

Article 140 of the Housing Code of the Russian Federation. Reorganization of a homeowners' association

1. The reorganization of a homeowners' association is carried out on the basis and in the manner established by civil law.
2. By decision of the general meeting of owners of premises in an apartment building, a homeowners' association can be transformed into a housing or housing-construction cooperative.
3. Reorganization of a homeowners' association created in two or more apartment buildings may be carried out in the form of division, subject to compliance with the requirements established by Part 1 of Article 136 of this Code. A decision on the division of a partnership may be made at a general meeting of its members by a majority vote of the members of the partnership from the number of votes of the members of the partnership present at its general meeting, subject to the consent to such division of the general meeting of owners of premises in each apartment building, the decision on which was made by a majority vote from the total number of votes of the owners of premises in each apartment building within two years from the date of the general meeting of owners of premises in the apartment building, the owners of the premises in which initiated such division.
4. Reorganization of a homeowners' association created in two or more apartment buildings may be carried out in the form of a separation, subject to compliance with the requirements established by Part 1 of Article 136 of this Code. The decision to separate a partnership can be made at a general meeting of owners of premises in an apartment building in which a partnership of homeowners will be created in the process of separation, by a majority vote of the total number of votes of owners of premises in this building.

Changes in the civil code according to Federal Law No. 99 of 05.05.2014

Federal Law No. 99 of May 5, 2014 “On Amendments to Chapter 4, Part 1 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation...”, which entered into force on September 1, replaces the term “homeowners’ association” with the more general concept of “real estate owners’ association.” It includes not only premises in apartment buildings, but also residential buildings, garden plots, collective garages, etc.

First of all, the amendments adopted to the Civil Code of the Russian Federation concern the classification of legal entities. In particular, in addition to dividing organizations into commercial and non-profit, they are now being divided into unitary, where there is no membership, but there is unity of command, and corporate, where there is membership and members of the organization themselves form governing bodies.

An exhaustive list of possible organizational and legal forms is introduced - both commercial (which was the case before) and non-commercial (which was not the case before). Joint stock companies are now divided into public ones, which must ensure transparency of the financial side of their activities, and non-public ones, which are not obliged to do this.

Another innovation is that the Charter becomes the only constituent document for all legal entities, except business partnerships. Where is the place for our HOAs and residential complexes? That's right, these are non-profit corporate organizations.

HOA governing bodies

Outsiders cannot take part in the management of the apartment building. Therefore, only the owners can control activities aimed at its maintenance.

The homeowners' association must operate under management, the forms of which are established by several regulations. Outsiders cannot take part in the management of an apartment building. Therefore, direct control over activities aimed at maintaining the building can only be exercised by the owners.

Determination of the management bodies of the partnership

By law, a homeowners' association is a legal entity, which means it is obliged to carry out its activities with the help of governing bodies. As in most organizations, members of such governing bodies are members of the HOA. In this case, the appointment procedure is regulated by the constituent documents of the partnership.

The governing bodies of the homeowners' association are the board and the general meeting.

They are necessary in order to resolve all the most important issues that may arise in the partnership. Based on this, there is a certain division of powers between these bodies.

The highest body is considered to be the meeting of all participants of the HOA, while the board headed by the chairman is the executive body. In this case, the chairman also performs a representative function.

Board of the Partnership

The selection of board members is carried out by voting. Each of them has the right to hold his position for two years, no more. The number of board members is established by the HOA charter. Once all board members have been elected, they independently select a representative.

The Board is primarily intended to monitor the timely payment of various payments and contributions.

In addition, his responsibilities include managing an apartment building. The board must hire workers for repairs and other maintenance of the building and surrounding area, enter into an agreement to provide a variety of services to residents, and convene and hold meetings.

The responsibilities of the HOA board also include the need to resolve those issues that, according to the charter, are not within the competence of the audit commission and the general meeting. These questions most often include:

• management of HOA activities;
• drawing up estimates and reports that relate to the financial activities of the partnership;
• disposal of all assets of the HOA in the prescribed manner;
• choosing the necessary method to protect the property of the HOA;
• direct maintenance of the register of members of the organization;
• preparation of draft amendments to the constituent charter, etc.

Persons admitted to the board of an HOA to manage an apartment building are prohibited from:

• combine work in the HOA under an employment contract and in another position;
• combine the position of a board member with other positions in the management bodies of the HOA;
• combine his activities with the activities of the auditor of the partnership.

General meeting of HOA members

Direct management of the partnership is carried out by the general meeting. This collegial governing body of the HOA has a fairly broad scope of activity. After all, managing an apartment building involves solving a large number of issues that concern all residents. Only the owner of the premises can be a member of this management body.

The law requires that all HOA members receive notice of the upcoming meeting on time. As for the method of transmitting the notice, this choice can be made by the members of the HOA board. All this is necessary for the full management of an apartment building.

If a partner in a partnership does not receive this information, one can safely claim that his rights have been infringed. The notice must contain the agenda, which cannot be changed during the meeting.

At the same time, there are different forms of holding a meeting - in person and in absentia. The choice of how to conduct a meeting depends on the agenda and other reasons. The general meeting is considered valid if more than half of the homeowners are present. This condition can be tightened using the organization’s charter. To determine eligibility, participants present are registered before the meeting opens.

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The general meeting is chaired by the chairman of the board. During his absence, this responsibility passes to the deputy. If there is also no deputy, then the choice of manager falls on one of the board members.

Decisions at the general meeting are made by voting. The number of votes required to make a decision differs on each individual issue. The most important issues are decided by a majority vote, but for some, two-thirds of the total number of participants is enough. Moreover, the choice of issues is determined by the charter.

All meetings must be documented in minutes. In addition, the general meeting has the right:

• establish the amount of mandatory contributions;
• create reserve funds for HOAs;
• use the income of the partnership;
• consider various complaints, including those against the HOA board;
• adopt internal regulations for hired employees.

The competence of the general meeting also includes resolving issues related to obtaining credit funds (agreement with banks), liquidation or reorganization of the HOA, use of profits, remuneration of partnership participants, approval of new participants, etc. The general meeting adopts the charter and determines the direct direction of the organization’s activities .