Unauthorized work in co-ownership: how to get it ratified?

You have just carried out work in your property within your co-ownership, when a neighbour informs you that for this type of work, you should have sought the agreement of the general meeting of co-owners. The risk incurred is the demolition of your structure and restoration to its previous state, but you can also attempt to have your action ratified retrospectively. Here is a point on the options available to you.

What work are we talking about?

First of all, only work affecting the common areas or the external appearance of the building will fall within the scope of an authorisation request. You are of course free to carry out any alterations in your own home that have no impact on the rest of the co-ownership.

More specifically, article 25 of law no. 65-557 of 10 July 1965 sets out the cases in which decisions must be taken by a majority of the votes of co-owners present or represented. It states that among these cases is “the authorisation given to certain co-owners to carry out, at their expense, work affecting the common areas or the external appearance of the building, in accordance with its purpose.”

It does not matter whether the work consists of the conversion of a de facto private part, such as a balcony, or whether it does not impact the building’s structure. An express decision of the general meeting must be given pursuant to this public order law. Co-ownership regulations authorising in advance a co-owner to carry out such work will have no validity in the event of a challenge.

Attempt to regularise your work

If normally, authorisation must be requested and ratified before the commencement of work, case law provides for the exceptional possibility of retrospectively ratifying work undertaken. This decision must be taken under the same conditions as before: by a majority of co-owners and in accordance with the building’s purpose.

Note that if the work carried out encroaches on the common areas, not only must their implementation be authorised, but also the annexation by the co-owner of the surface area that has been privatised and therefore its transfer by operation of law.

Useful clarification: if you have acquired – or intend to acquire – a property containing a structure that has not been authorised by the co-ownership, you should know that you are not liable to any criminal sanction but could be obliged to demolish the structure. It may then be prudent for you to attempt to have the alteration ratified at the general meeting.

Let the limitation period run

Without a favourable decision from the general meeting, time works in your favour. The limitation period refers to the period at the end of which no legal action can any longer be brought against you.

Discreet work that does not raise the indignation of your neighbours may pass sufficiently unnoticed to allow you to wait during the legal limitation period. This count continues to run only insofar as no legal action has actually been brought against you (and notified by a bailiff).

As for the limitation period, it was historically 30 years, then 10 years after 2008. The ELAN Act of 2018, which amended the 1965 Act, shortened the period to 5 years. Caution: this concerns only personal actions between co-owners, or between a co-owner and the co-ownership syndicate.

Furthermore, we are speaking here of the possibility of requesting an action for restoration to the previous state following the construction of a structure. The irregular appropriation of common areas will be subject to a thirty-year limitation period.

Vigilance is required when you are considering work within a co-owned building. Do not hesitate to seek information directly from the representatives of the co-ownership council or even from the syndicate under contract. In case of doubt, you will avoid possible problems in the future, as well as disagreements between neighbours that are never pleasant to live with on a daily basis.