General, Real Estate Market

Condominium administrators: the new duties and responsibilities

Law n.º 8/2022 comes into force in April and brings a real revolution to the life of condominiums. We explain on a legal basis.

22 Jan 2022 min de leitura

In April 2022, a new law will come into force, published this January, which will revolutionize the life of condominiums, also impacting the realization of real estate transactions - by requiring the inclusion in the deed of a declaration by the owner regarding the condominium. One of the points where there is more news, and which is important to know, is in the figure of condominium administrators who gain new powers and obligations. With the help of jurists, we explain in this article the duties and responsibilities of the condominium administrator, in light of the most recent legislative changes.

The role of the condominium administrator is provided for in the civil code, and their appointment is mandatory in buildings that are subject to the horizontal property regime. "On January 10, 2022, Law No. 8/2022 was published, a diploma that significantly changed the duties and functions of this mandatory legal figure and which is provided for in the Civil Code", as Belzuz Abogados recalls.

The election of the condominium administrator in light of the new law

The condominium administrator is elected and dismissed by the general meeting of joint owners, unless otherwise stated, for periods of one year, remaining in office until his successor is elected or appointed. Contrary to what is often believed, the administrator does not have to be one of the joint owners, and this function can be performed by a third party, and the administration can be remunerated.

• What if no one wants to be an administrator?

If the meeting does not elect a director, any of the joint-owners may request the appointment of a director before the courts. As long as the administrator is not judicially appointed, the corresponding functions must be performed, on a provisional basis, by the joint owner whose fraction or fraction represents the largest percentage of the invested capital, unless another joint owner has expressed a desire to exercise the position and has communicated this purpose to the other condominium owners.

What are the duties of the condominium manager

The administration of the common parts of the building is the responsibility of the joint owners' assembly and the condominium administrator. If one of the joint-owners does not agree with any act performed by the administrator, he may appeal to the meeting, which, exceptionally, may be convened by the appellant joint-owner.

Thus, the functions of the administrator, in addition to others assigned by the meeting, are:

• Convene the assembly of joint owners
• Prepare the budget of income and expenses for each year
• Verify the existence of insurance against the risk of fire, proposing to the assembly the amount of capital insured
• Collect income and make common expenses
• Require joint owners to pay their share of approved expenses
• Carry out the acts conserving the rights related to common goods
• Regulate the use of common things and the provision of services of common interest
• Execute the resolutions of the meeting
• Represent the group of joint owners before the administrative authorities
• Report to the meeting
• Ensuring the implementation of the regulation and the legal and administrative provisions relating to the condominium
• Save and maintain all documents relating to the condominium
• Judicial representation of the joint-owners against whom actions are proposed is the responsibility of the administrator or the person designated by the assembly for this purpose
• Act in court, either against any of the joint owners, or against a third party, in the performance of the functions that pertain to it or when authorized by the assembly

The new roles of the condominium administrator from April this year

With the publication of Law No. 8/2022 of January 10, 2022, as of April 10, 2022, the condominium administrator will also be responsible for:

• Verify the existence of the common reserve fund
• Require joint owners to pay their share of the approved expenses, including the legal interest due and the pecuniary sanctions established by the condominium regulations or by resolution of the assembly
• Execute the resolutions of the meeting that have not been contested, within a maximum period of 15 working days, or within the period established by the meeting, except in cases of duly justified impossibility
• Inform, in writing or by email, the joint owners whenever the condominium is summoned or notified in the context of a judicial proceeding, arbitration proceeding, injunction procedure, administrative offense proceeding or administrative proceeding
• Submit at least three budgets from different sources for the execution of extraordinary conservation works or that constitute an innovation to be carried out in the building or in the group of buildings whenever the decision of the condominium assembly is at stake
• Issue a written statement on behalf of the condominium in which the amount of all condominium charges in force relating to the fractions that are disposed of. This declaration must be issued by the condominium administrator within a maximum period of 10 days from the request of the owner of the fraction, and its presentation is mandatory so that the instruments through which rights over buildings are shared or transferred (such as, for example, , the right to property), or charges are incurred on them.

The responsibility of the condominium administrator position in light of the new law

With the recent legislative change, the condominium administrator who does not fulfill the duties assigned to him - either in legal provisions or in deliberations of the condominium assembly - will be civilly responsible for his omission, without prejudice to possible criminal liability, if applicable.
Finally, the administrator may be dismissed by the court, at the request of any joint owner, when it is shown that he has committed irregularities or acted with negligence in the exercise of his functions.

Source: idealista.pt

General, Real Estate Market