The preemptive right of co-owners will be practically abolished again

Prague - The pre-emption rights of co-owners will be practically abolished again in the Civil Code. The state that was in place five years ago in connection with the new civil code will be restored. Its amendment was signed today by President Miloš Zeman, the Castle informed. The proposal will also introduce new obligations for apartment owners who provide them for short-term rentals, for example through electronic platforms.

As of July, the pre-emption rights of co-owners will again be limited only to cases where co-owners could not influence their rights and obligations from the beginning. It will last for six months from the establishment of co-ownership. This time limitation will not apply to agricultural enterprises. Pre-emption rights were restored in the Civil Code about two years ago.

The government originally proposed that the pre-emption rights of owners of other apartments would not apply, for example, to parking spaces in apartment buildings. This creates problems when selling an apartment along with a parking spot. However, the Chamber amended the proposal.

According to the amendment, the apartment owner will have to notify the building manager in advance about any business or activities in the apartment that could lead to a long-term disruption of normal peace and order in the building. For the purposes of service billing, they will also have to report the number of people who use the apartment during short-term rentals, for example. Both novelties target owners who rent their apartments, for example, through Airbnb.

Additionally, the apartment owner will be obliged to notify all intended construction alterations within the dwelling according to the amendment. This obligation will also include such alterations for which the building code does not even require notification.

Upon the sale of an apartment, any debts of the original apartment owner related to the management of the building or the use of the apartment will transfer to the buyer according to the proposal. The amendment also regulates forced sales of apartments and allows for the imposition of a contractual penalty on a tenant who does not fulfill their obligations.

The proposal will standardize the form of acceptance of changes to the articles of association of the owners' association. They will not have to be carried out by notarial deed, as is the case in some instances now. The sections of the code concerning cooperatives will be expanded. Housing cooperatives, among other things, will gain the right to distribute up to one-third of the profit to their members, provided that legal conditions are met.