It often happens that having paid for an apartment from the developer, you cannot receive ownership of it due to the company’s dishonest actions. Or you cannot enter into an inheritance and register ownership of it. This article provides detailed information about the steps to take in this case.
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Ownership
First of all, you need to decide what property rights are.
The civil legislation of the Russian Federation defines the right of ownership as the ability of a person to exercise powers regarding his property without any obstacles or restrictions. Powers usually mean possession, disposal and use of a thing.
At the moment, the theory identifies two ways of acquiring property rights: initial and derivative.
Let's talk about the original. In simple language, this means that a person independently performs certain actions and thereby acquires ownership of the resulting result of labor.
There are many examples of this method of obtaining property:
- Creating a new thing.
This method is quite simple. Suppose you owned certain materials from which you subsequently produced a certain thing. This means that since you owned the ownership of the materials, you also have the ownership of the result of labor, namely a new thing or building.
But there are also some questions. For example, what if you used someone else's materials that you didn't own? In this case, the ownership of the result of work will belong to the person whose materials you used.
- Collection of publicly available items.
If you like to go into the forest and pick mushrooms and berries there, no one will deny that you have ownership rights to the things you collect.
- Income received from the use of property.
If you own a plot of land and grow, say, apples on it, everything that grows automatically becomes yours.
- Acquisition of property rights using acquisitive prescription;
If you own and dispose of it for 15 years (for real estate) or 5 years (for movable property), then after this period you become the full owner of the thing.
Registration of land step by step instructions if the land is a draw
Below we will discuss various situations in which it is important to know step-by-step instructions for registering land as personal property.
If we are talking about land that is not registered in any way and, even moreover, does not exist at all as a legal object, then the list of actions will be different and more complex.
To register land in such cases it is necessary:
- Determine the boundaries of the site, and also make sure that legal registration of this territory is possible. To do this, you need to contact the cadastral chamber. There you can find out all the information about the object and territory - whose site this is, what category of land it belongs to and other data. All answers must be saved;
- If the site turns out to be unnecessary and ownerless, then it is necessary to draw up an application to the municipal authorities involved in the disposal of land territories within the municipality. The application must be accompanied by a response from the cadastral chamber stating that the plot is free and can become the property of the applicant;
- Next there are two scenarios. If the administration is not interested in the object, even though it is municipal property, then local self-government bodies can sell it or lease the land. This is done through the purchase and sale procedure. And if the land is not marked at all, then if the answer is positive, you will need to wait another year. After this, the administration will deal with the legal recognition of the territory and transfer it to the applicant;
- After a year has passed, the site will become administrative property. After this, it is given for sale to the applicant. But in order to obtain land, you need to survey it, and also draw up a cadastral passport through the BTI;
- After receiving the purchase and sale agreement, site plan and cadastral passport, you can proceed to registration of land ownership.
Mechanism for protecting property rights
In the Russian Federation, property rights are protected through the courts. A person has the right to go to court with a demand for the restoration of violated rights, with a vindication claim (for recovery from someone else’s possession), or with a negatory claim (for the removal of any obstacles to the ability to exercise ownership and other property rights).
Interestingly, the legislator believes that a person has the right to file a claim from the moment when he learned or should have learned about the existence of an obstacle to the exercise of property rights.
Of course, in theory, obtaining ownership is not difficult. However, in practice this can cause big problems. Next, we will consider the main types of civil cases related to the recognition of property rights through the court.
Recognition of ownership rights to unauthorized construction
If you have erected an unauthorized building on your land plot and want to legalize your rights to it, then you need to go to court.
Civil legislation, namely Article 222 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation, recognizes as unauthorized construction a structure erected on a land plot not intended for the construction of this building, or in the absence of the necessary construction permits or in violation of technical construction standards.
The same article states that the right of ownership of an unauthorized structure can be assigned to the person in whose ownership, perpetual use or inherited possession is the land plot on which the structure is erected. This means that persons using a land plot on the basis of gratuitous temporary possession, lease, sublease, as well as those who use the plot under the right of limited use, will not be able to recognize their ownership of an unauthorized construction through the court.
However, in this case, you can find a way out. First of all, you need to buy the land. If it is privately owned, then there is no problem with this. However, if the plot belongs to the state, then it can be redeemed only if there is at least one legally registered real estate object on its territory, the ownership of which is registered in accordance with the law.
After the plot has been purchased, a person who wants to recognize ownership of an illegal building has the right to go to court. In court, the plaintiff will have to independently prove, in accordance with the Code of Civil Procedure, that the preservation of the building on the site does not violate the rights of third parties or does not create a threat to their life and health.
If your building does not pose a threat and does not violate the legal rights and interests of third parties, then you have a high chance of having your ownership rights recognized. In order to increase the chances of a positive decision, you can provide the following documents:
- proving the construction of the building at your expense;
- that the rights to the construction do not belong to third parties;
- that the construction of the building does not violate technical, environmental and sanitary-epidemiological standards.
The presence of these documents, according to practice, significantly increases the chances of a positive outcome of the case. By collaborating with a lawyer, a good outcome can be achieved in just 3 months.
Your actions, victims
So, the construction of the house has been completed, the facility has been put into operation, you want to register your ownership rights based on a court decision. What should your actions be?
Statement of claim
It is necessary to prepare it with a requirement to recognize your ownership of the apartment. (In accordance with Article 12 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation, recognition of rights is one of the ways to protect civil rights).
Of course, it is best to contact a specialist to file a claim, who, based on the specific situation, will prepare a competent application and tell you exactly what documents are needed. You should not skimp on a lawyer: a competent statement of claim is the key to success in court.
Copies of the following documents will need to be attached to the statement of claim: the agreement for participation in shared construction, all receipts, payments that confirm that you have fully fulfilled your obligations under the agreement. BTI documents, if available, will also be useful.
All these papers are submitted in several copies - according to the number of persons participating in the case.
Recognition of ownership rights to land plots
Cases in this category are very common. This is due to the fact that many citizens who received land for use during the USSR do not have documents on hand that can confirm their right to this plot. And since 1991, since the adoption of the Land Code, the right to own a plot must be documented.
The best way to secure ownership of such a plot of land is to go to court.
In accordance with the law, all citizens who received land plots at their disposal before 1991 have the right to free recognition of ownership of their land. Even if it is impossible to establish for what purpose the land was allocated, the plot can still be registered as ownership. The only exception to this rule will be the case when this particular site cannot be registered as private property due to any of its features.
In court, citizens need to provide evidence, testimony and other facts that can confirm the fact of ownership of the plot before 1991. For example, the testimony of your neighbors or the chairman of the gardening partnership. If the court finds the evidence valid, it will rule in your favor.
How to register ownership of land that was inherited: features and rules
The inheritance procedure allows you to re-register rights to property assets that belonged to a deceased citizen. In this case, the procedure for recognizing rights will differ significantly in the presence of a testamentary form or in the case of inheritance by law. Land can be the subject of inheritance under the following conditions:
- if the plot was duly registered as the property of a deceased citizen, and there are all title documents for the land (certificate of title, extract from the state register of the Unified State Register of Real Estate, etc.);
- if the plot belonged to a person not on the right of ownership, but on another perpetual right of ownership (for example, an indefinite right of use, which under certain conditions could be re-registered as property);
- if the object belonged to the deceased under the right of lifelong inheritable ownership (this form of ownership was actively used before the entry into force of the Land Code of the Russian Federation; currently, plots under such right are not allocated).
Note! Plots to which the deceased citizen had temporary rights cannot be transferred by inheritance. For example, a leased plot cannot be transferred to heirs, but family members can continue to use the land until the end of the lease, after which they can apply for its re-registration in the usual manner.
If ownership of a land property has been officially registered, following the results of inheritance proceedings in a notary's office, the heirs acquire a similar right. At the same time, if there are several heirs, the form of the right to equity may be changed. The actual division of a single allotment can occur after receiving a certificate of inheritance and registering ownership of the shares.
Registration of rights to land will occur by submitting an application to a notary office and confirming family relationships (within the framework of a testamentary disposition, the presence of family relationships does not affect the acquisition of rights). After six months, each applicant-heir will receive part of the property assets or property rights, including land plots.
- You can secure ownership of a land plot through the court by filing a claim with an arbitration court located in the region where the plot is located.
- The lawsuit states only one demand. It is not necessary to simultaneously apply for the elimination of obstacles affecting the deprivation of rights and the establishment of property rights.
- When preparing a statement, it is important to clearly formulate the essence of the conflict situation. Either you prove that the defendant has no property rights, or you ask that such rights be recognized in relation to the plaintiff.
- All evidence must be documented. These include various receipts, land survey and other acts, contracts, witness statements and other evidence of facts.
- The deadline for filing a claim is also clearly defined in the law: no later than three years from the date of discovery of information about a violation of rights. Three months are given to go to court in case of actions or inactions of the authorities that lead to a violation. You can miss the application deadline only for a good reason.
