Clarify property rights when apartments expire
The issue of the term of use of apartment buildings is receiving much attention when Resolution 21 puts the orientation of regulating the term of use of apartment buildings according to the construction term into the group of contents to be studied, associated with ensuring property rights of owners.
Speaking at the seminar "Real Estate Development and Investment Strategy after Resolution 21 and Policy Updates" organized by Vietnambiz in Hanoi on the morning of September 22, Ms. Hoang Thu Hang - Deputy Director of the Department of Housing and Real Estate Market Management - said that the issue of age and term of use of apartment buildings has been regulated in the 2023 Housing Law and is not a new regulation.
According to Ms. Hang, the Ministry of Construction is institutionalizing the orientations of Resolution 21. One of the issues of concern is the legal basis and ensuring the property rights of people when apartment buildings expire.
The current Housing Law has stipulated the term of use of apartment buildings according to the construction term, construction law and design documents. However, according to Ms. Hang, current regulations do not clarify what rights the property owner has after the term of use expires, or whether the property ownership rights are lost or not.
In the current draft Housing Law, we have made it clear that after the term of use of apartment buildings expires, people's property is not lost. I repeat to reassure you completely: Property rights are not lost" - Ms. Hang emphasized.
According to the content shared by Ms. Hang, for apartment buildings built before 1994, when the project's term of use expires, the owner can receive compensation in the form of housing for resettlement; have the right to buy social housing; or receive monetary compensation for land use rights according to the allocation rate they own.
For apartment buildings built after 1994, people have the right to continue to build and renovate apartment buildings into new apartment buildings by contributing funds at the expiration date. This is done on the basis of discussion and sharing between owners.
In case the owner does not want to pay money to build a new house, they have the right to resell the land use rights and property ownership to others. The buyer then has the right to contribute funds to rebuild.
If they do not continue to contribute, the owner has the right to be compensated in cash for land use rights according to the common ownership area ratio at the time of demolition of the project.
In case the apartment building area is later planned by the state management agency and no more apartment buildings are built, according to Ms. Hang, people will still continue to be prioritized and compensated for land use rights.
Thus, the regulations introduced in this Housing Law are aimed at emphasizing the spirit of inheriting current laws, and at the same time clarifying the rights of property owners" - Ms. Hang said.
It is necessary to distinguish between design life and actual lifespan
Agreeing with this view, Dr. Phan Duc Hieu - Delegate of the 16th National Assembly, Specialized Member of the Economic and Finance Committee of the National Assembly - said that the orientation on the term of apartment buildings is not a completely new content. Previously, although the certificate of ownership of the apartment building did not state the term, the law had regulations on handling when the project no longer meets the conditions for use.
According to Mr. Hieu, Resolution 21 is a step forward in perfecting legal regulations on apartment ownership. The regulations further clarify the ownership rights of people over apartments, land rights when apartments expire their service life or are no longer usable, as well as the rights and obligations of parties in building and developing new works.
However, institutionalization, especially the method of recording the lifespan on the certificate, needs to be carefully studied.
Mr. Hieu noted that it is necessary to distinguish between two concepts: the term according to the original design of the project and the actual usage term. These two terms may not overlap, so there need to be appropriate regulations to ensure the rights and interests of apartment building owners in both cases.
When the apartment building is no longer usable and must be demolished, the rights of the owner to the apartment, land and the development of new works also need to be clearly regulated.
According to Mr. Hieu, the regulation of the service life of apartment buildings can also affect the quality of the project. When the service life and quality of the project are clearly defined, real estate developers may tend to improve the quality of apartment buildings to attract customers.
