House management and owner responsibility
The management of buildings is a specific service, because joint management of the joint property of a multi-apartment residential house is a special type of implementation of ownership rights, within the framework of which each apartment owner is not a fully independent subject, but rights can only be exercised together with other apartment owners. When purchasing an apartment in the property, not only a separate apartment is acquired in the property, but also the considered part of the house and the consumer is the owner not only of the apartment, but also of the stairwell, basement, roof, etc. of the residential house.
The right of ownership of an apartment property to the owner of an apartment not only creates a right of full power to it, but also imposes certain obligations. One of such obligations of the apartment owner is the duty laid down in Section 5, Paragraph one of Law on Administration of Residential Houses to ensure the management of the residential house, which also includes taking of decisions related to the management of the residential house and entering into transactions U. If the residential house is divided into apartment properties, decisions related to the management of the residential house shall be taken in accordance with the procedures laid down in Law on Residential Property.
One of the decisions that apartment owners may take in relation to the performance of the management activities specified in the Law is the choice of the residential house manager. When entering into a residential house management contract with the administrator, apartment owners shall, in the amount specified in the contract, assign the administrator to perform the mandatory management activity s.. Entering into a management contract with a manager is the way in which the owner of a residential house (also apartment owners) fulfils the duty laid down in Law on Administration of Residential Houses. Moreover, it is the owner of the residential house who is responsible for ensuring that the manager chosen by him or her complies with the requirements of professional qualification laid down in Law on Administration of Residential Houses.
In case the manager improperly performs the management activities assigned to him or her or other duties of the administrator specified in the law, for example, does not carry a house case, does not register in the Register of residential House Managers or does not provide any type of information, the owner of the residential house may terminate the management contract with him or her and entrust the management of the house to another person. The owner of a residential house may revoke his or her authorisation to the administrator at any time.
Similarly, Section 16, Paragraph one of Law on Administration of Residential Houses provides that the administrator is liable to the owner of the residential house for the performance of the management task assigned to him or her in accordance with the provisions of this Law, the Civil Law and the entered into management contract.
Management forms
The co-operation of apartment owners of multi-apartment residential houses (apartment owners) shall decide on the form of management, namely the manager of the residential house, which is most often a limited liability company (LLC), an association of apartment owners (AAO) or a co-operative society of apartment owners (CSAO).
- The apartment owners may decide to establish a AAO, thus transferring the management functions to the AAO.
The rights of associations and foundations shall be determined by Associations and Foundations Law, the articles of association, Law on Residential Property.
In order to deal with specific management issues, the owner of the apartments should approach the AAO as manager of the residential house. If losses have been caused to the owner of the apartment as a result of the activities of the AAO, the owner of the apartment has the right to apply to the court in the general civil legal order for the protection of his or her rights and interests.
- An association of apartment owners may decide to establish a CSAO, thus transferring management functions to the CSAO.
The CSAO and the rights of apartment owners are determined by Cooperative Societies Law and Law on Residential Property.
In order to deal with specific management issues, the owner of the apartments should approach the CSAOas manager of the residential house. If losses have been caused to the owner of the apartment as a result of the operation of the CSAO, the owner of the apartment has the right to apply to the court in the general civil legal order for the protection of his or her rights and interests.
Where to turn?
In case of a dispute with the provider of the house management service, the consumer may turn to:
- The rental board (Riga City only), which provides free consultancy and advice on the rental, maintenance, management and management of residential premises;
- The local government;
- Th Court;
- The Consumer Rights Protection Centre (CRPC), which does not view disputes between a consumer and a management service provider, but provides assistance for the receipt of a reply from a merchant.
With regard to commercial practices in the field of house management, the CRPC:
- does not deal with individual dispute situations;
- supervision shall be performed in accordance with the determined supervisory priorities, evaluating the impact of an existing or potential violation and collective interests of consumers. The CRPC shall take into account the information provided in the complaints received in the planning and performance of the monitoring work.