What is established by owners community Statutes and its Internal Rules?

13 | 02 | 24
| Real Estate

This is the perfect text to read before the first Community of Owners meeting.

 In it we address three headings:

1. We show that approving the Statutes and the Internal Regulations of the Community of Owners is extremely useful.

2. We list the main points that can be included both in the Statutes and in the Internal Regulations. 

3. We unequivocally condemn violence, we provide a link to protect you from it, and finally we totally rule out the legal excuse of self-defense in the context of relations between joint owners.

 

Part One: Why does Finques Feliu recommend the approval of the Statutes and Internal Regulations of the Community of Owners?

 

Last week we wrote about the constitutive meeting of the Board of Owners in which the Articles of Incorporation are approved. In this document we have the option of including Statutes and Internal Regulations of the Community of Owners. Undoubtedly, we recommend to do it because:

a) The great majority of the co-owners do not know each other before constituting the Community of Owners.
b) Too many people do not take into account that having become a co-owner grants rights, but also entails duties.
In this scenario, having objective rules approved makes it very clear what can and cannot be done in the Community of Owners. The fact that the rules are written makes it much easier to act in case of non-compliance with them than when there are neither Statutes nor Internal Regulations.

Our Administrator Alba Valls finishes off:

 'I am aware that there are communities that only approve the Bylaws and others that do not validate any document -says Valls-. In neither case do they do anything illegal. However, approving the Bylaws and Internal Regulations makes it possible to make explicit how one will respond to a large number of acts within the Community of Owners in a legally binding manner'.

 

Part Two: The key points of the Statues and Internal Regime 

 

Main points of the Bylaws according to Article 553-11 of the Catalan Civil Code 

To approve the Statutes, the unanimity of the votes of the co-owners (100%) is required. When subsequent modifications are to be made, a slightly lesser majority is required: 4/5ths of the votes cast (80%). For the approval to be legal, the quorum required at the first call is half of the owners and participation quotas.
 

In the words of the legislator: '(the Stutes) regulate the aspects relating to its actual legal regime and may contain rules on the following matters:

 The destination, use and utilization of the private and common elements.

 

  • Limitations on the use and other burdens of the private elements
     
  • The exercise of rights and the fulfillment of obligations.
     
  • The application of expenses and income and the distribution of charges and benefits.
     

The governing bodies complementary to those established in this code and their respective competences.

The form of management and administration


2. The following statutory clauses, among others, are valid:

 

  • Those permitting operations of grouping, aggregation, segregation and division of privative elements and those of detachment of annexes with creation of new entities without consent of the owners' meeting.
     
  • The rules exempting certain owners of private elements from the obligation to pay the costs of maintenance of specific common elements, which may include those of the entrance hall, the staircase, the elevators, the gardens, the recreational areas and other similar spaces.
     
  • Those that establish the exclusive use and, if applicable, the closing of a part of the lot, or of the roofs or of any other common element or specific part thereof in favor of a private element.
     
  • Those that allow the use and enjoyment of common elements by means of the placement of advertising signs.
     
  •  Those that limit the activities that may be carried out in the private elements.
     
  • Those which provide for the resolution of conflicts by means of arbitration or mediation for any question of the condominium regime.

3. The rules of the statutes which are not registered in the Land Registry do not prejudice third parties in good faith".

   

Main points of the Internal Regulations according to article 553-12 of the Catalan Civil Code.

 

To approve the Internal Regulations, the unanimity of the votes of the co-owners (100%) is required. When subsequent modifications are to be made, a somewhat smaller majority is required: 4/5ths of the votes cast (80%).

In the words of the legislator: '(The internal rules and regulations), contain the internal rules concerning the relations of coexistence and good neighborliness among the owners and the use of the elements of common use and of the facilities'. 

It is very important for the Board of Owners to take into account that the Internal Regime cannot be opposed in the Bylaws,

This document includes:

  •  The reserves established in favor of the developer.
     
  •  Possibility of forming future sub-communities
     
  •  Descriptive plan of the building, which can be very useful when facilitating subsequent works or repairs.
     

 The final provisions: Additional clauses or information relevant to the operation of the OC can be included".

 

Part Three: Searching a Community of Owners without Violence  

At Finques Feliu we unequivocally condemn violence in any of its forms: assaulting another person is never justified.  The Real Academia Dictionary defines assault as: 'To attack someone in order to kill, hurt or harm his/her'.

According to the above conceptualization we speak of an act:

a) Intentional act by the violent person.

b) Where there is no provocation of any kind on the part of the violated person.

c) Beyond the literalness of the definition, attacking the other co-owners is not the only option either.

The three previous characteristics are the ones that delimit the Legitimate Defense. 

Discover in this link which behaviors are prosecutable and learn how to protect yourself from a harassing person.   

To see even more clearly that using violence in the Community is completely out of place we have thought of an example:

Suppose the Board has approved something that harms us. To begin with, it is deeply wrong - and undemocratic - to consider the result of a vote as a hostile act. Anyway, neither would this fact legitimize any belligerent behavior because, to safeguard our rights, we would still have the following legal alternatives: 

- Provide for arbitration and mediation in the statues.

- To challenge the agreement

In addition to personal self-control and the rules of social behavior, it is the existence of these two options that definitively outlaws violence. 

Having clarified this, any person who engages in legally typified behaviors can be denounced and, if proven guilty, convicted.

We finish with optimism: by setting clear rules and working to prevent conflicts from day one, it is possible to preserve coexistence in the Community of Owners.