Housing Law

Housing law has always been the most intricate, not to say confusing, areas of Russian law. Unlike many European systems, where these relationships are regulated mainly by civil codes, housing law in Russia is a separate area of law.

The cause of major conflicts in this area is the possibility of a title to housing co-existing with a right to residence. A small quantity of high-quality housing and registration problems of those who do not own any living space result in

Russia's main statute that regulates matters of housing law is the Housing Code enacted on 1 March, 2005, replacing the 1983 Code. The Civil Code partially deals with relationships in this area as well.

Russian housing law includes several basic institutions, namely:

• social rent,
• free use,
• lease,
• perpetual maintenance,
• rental,
• participation of owners in housing cooperatives or partnerships.

Under Russian Federal Housing Code Article 48 Paragraph 5, foreign nationals have no right to enter into social rent agreements. However, a similar restriction is imposed by many other legal systems because the right to public housing is an inalienable right of the citizens.

Foreign nationals' other rights are not limited by law, but may be infringed by others exploiting their unawareness of the housing market situation. Practice has shown that the type of rental agreement that most foreigners enter into, the housing lease, is normally drawn up with the landlord's interests in mind and thus hurts the tenant's interests.

To avoid being defrauded by a landlord or real estate broker, foreign nationals should know what basic provisions a housing lease must contain pursuant to Civil Code Chapter 35.

A housing lease must be in writing only. The tenant assuming rights to the living space does not result in termination of any earlier lease for that property. The tenant must pay all utility bills, unless otherwise stipulated by the lease. The tenant has not right to move in additional tenants permanently, unless agreed to by the landlord by means of adding an appropriate provision to the lease in advance or when the need arises. The landlord must be notified in advance of any temporary additional tenants, i.e. tenants staying for up to 6 months. The maintenance of the leased property is the tenant's responsibility, unless otherwise stipulated by the agreement. The maximum housing lease term is 5 years. If the contract does not specify duration, it is considered as being 5 years. The tenant has the priority right to enter into a lease for a new period. The landlord must offer the tenant to extend the contract or warn about refusal to do so no later than 3 months before it expires. The landlord cannot terminate a housing lease, but the tenant can, with three months' notice to the landlord.

Even without mentioning every kind of trick ever used, it becomes clear that you absolutely need an experienced professional capable of correctly interpreting the provisions of a contract and preparing a new one. And if you consider that in certain cases you may well face eviction, a housing lease becomes a vital matter.

With our services, you will always be right!