Appeal to support the draft law helping the development of condominiums

Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine V. Lytvyn

Heads of the Committees of VRU

Dear Volodymyr  Mykhaylovych!
Dear people deputies!

The Committee of the Supreme Council of Ukraine has a draft law "On Amendments to Certain Legislative Acts of Ukraine on the establishment and operation of condominiums" (№ 8474 from 05.11.2011), prepared by the Government of Ukraine to implement the instructions of the President. To the development of this paper were involved representatives of public organizations and the heads of condominiums that fully support it, and the bill received approval from all the central authorities. 

Bill number 8474 can solve the basic problems that hinder the establishment and development of a responsible owner of housing in Ukraine, namely: 

• difficulties in access of initiative group to information on the composition of co-owners of an apartment building - apartment owners; 
• requirements of state registrars to notarize signatures of all members of the condominium on the statute of the association; 
• denial of civil registrars to register the condominium, which integrates two or more owners of buildings; 
• inefficient establishment and operation of condominiums in small apartment buildings; 
• systematic unlawful refusal of local government tax offices to include condominiums in the Register of nonprofit organizations (institutions), the nomination of unreasonable requirements for statutory condominium documents; 
• optional membership in a condominium (as a consequence - the cases of unlawful refusal to accept co-owners in the condominium or, conversely, abuse of co-owners’ right not to be a member of the condominium); 
• contradictions between the provisions of a model condominium statute, the uncertainty limits of acceptable change to the statute of condominiums compared to a typical text of the statute, 
• "balance keeping" defined by  the Law of Ukraine "On association of owners of apartment house" does not meet the merits of condominiums and its purpose; 
• prevent / delay in the transmission of technical documentation for condominium building; 
• regular attempts from the enterprises-monopolists  to "convert" condominiums on the performers of utility services; 
• widespread attempts to force the condominium owners to coordinate size of contributions with local governments (to provide incentives and subsidies for housing and communal services to members of condominium); 
• lack of certainty of the status of condominium property as a legal entity; 
• unlawful coercion of condominiums by local state tax inspectorate to pay taxes that are not inherent to condominiums. 

Given the above, OPORA expresses its support for this bill and asks you to ensure its acceptance and promotion and support in the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine. 

We encourage you to take control of training national executive of explanatory letters to contradictory issues in the creation and operation of condominiums.