Comfortable conditions V modern apartment, as a rule, provides air conditioning: in the heat it creates coolness, in winter it supplies warm air. But the problem is that outdoor unit air conditioner is on external wall Houses. Which, in turn, is in common property. Therefore, permission to install an air conditioner in your own apartment you don’t need it, but for the installation of a remote unit - depending on the circumstances. We'll look at which one in the article.
When is a permit required to install an air conditioner?
Let's start with the main thing: federal laws do not directly indicate the need to obtain permission to install an air conditioner. Since it does not entail redevelopment of the apartment, it does not reduce the common property apartment building and does not make changes to the technical floor plans and other plans of the property. Arbitrage practice recent years confirms exactly this legal position. When dissatisfied “non-air-conditioned” residents of a building filed a lawsuit, the consideration of the case sometimes resulted in just such a court decision (Appeal ruling of the Moscow City Court dated July 16, 2014 in case No. 33-28388).
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But there is another side to the coin: regional legislation may have its own legislative acts/decrees in this regard. This is especially true for cities with a long historical past, where architectural monuments - buildings are protected by law. Therefore, first of all, it is necessary to study the local regulations governing the use of common property.
In addition, the installation of a remote unit is subject to numerous requirements of the Housing and Town Planning Codes of the Russian Federation on the rules for the operation of the housing stock and the provisions of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation on the operation of common property, which require the consent of all its residents to any change in the facade of the house.
Another difficulty is that the air conditioners themselves may cause objections from neighbors: too close to a neighbor’s window or balcony, noise when the system is operating, drainage pipe displayed incorrectly, etc. In this case, the court almost always takes the side of the dissatisfied applicants.
So do you need permission to install or not?
First, you need to agree on the issue with the housing maintenance organization - management company or the HOA of your apartment building. It is here that the main issue of settlement needs to be resolved controversial issues. Since the chairman of the HOA or management company can do a lot. For the rest, you need to agree with your neighbors in advance, or even better, get written consent. And then you will not need permission to install an air conditioner. Good luck in the negotiations :)
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The judicial practice of courts of general jurisdiction on the issue of “whether permission is needed to install an air conditioner”, at first glance, does not differ in uniformity. When considering one case, the court decision states that the installation of an air conditioner requires the consent of the owners and authorities; when considering another case, the court indicates that such approvals and permits are not required by law.
Are there any rules for installing an air conditioner, a law regulating this problem, with whom to coordinate, etc. - these questions are not always asked by citizens and organizations who want to install an air conditioner on the facade of a residential building. Sometimes the consequence of such frivolity is a court decision to dismantle already installed air conditioner.
Let's consider two positions on this topic
1. Permission to install an air conditioner on the facade of a building must be obtained in any case
Proponents of this point of view give the following arguments.
The facade of the building as the enclosing load-bearing structure of the house is common property in an apartment building (clause 1 of article 36 of the Housing Code of the Russian Federation, article 244 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation, clause 2 of the Government of the Russian Federation of August 13, 2006 N 491 "On approval of the Rules for the maintenance of common property in an apartment building home."
Gosstroy of the Russian Federation in clause 3.5.8 of Resolution No. 170 of September 27, 2003 “On approval of Rules and Standards technical operation housing stock" indicated the following: "housing service organizations ensure that various banners, pendants, signboards, signs (flagpoles and other devices) are not attached to the walls of buildings, and that air conditioners and satellite dishes are not installed without appropriate permission."
As stated in Article 44 of the Housing Code of the Russian Federation, decisions on reconstruction and repair, as well as on the transfer of common property in an apartment building for use, are made by a general meeting of owners of premises in an apartment building.
From the above legal norms we can conclude that to install an air conditioner it is necessary to obtain permission not only from the authorized body local government, but also from the owners of the premises of an apartment building.
This position means in practice the following.
To obtain permission from the local government to install an air conditioner on the facade of a building, it is necessary to develop a project for installing the air conditioner and coordinate the project for compliance sanitary standards and rules in Rospotrebnadzor, in management organization, in the authorities responsible for compliance appearance facade of the building after installing the air conditioner to accepted standards and others.
In addition, a citizen who wants to install an air conditioner must initiate a general meeting of owners of the premises of the house, at which the majority must approve the installation of an air conditioner. It is clear that in buildings with several hundred apartments, this is extremely problematic.
Thus, to install a small air conditioner that will not interfere with anyone, a citizen will have to spend several weeks, or even months. By this time, the hot summer will probably end.
2. Second position: as a general rule, permission is not required to install an air conditioner on the facade of a building
In our opinion, this position is more fair and justified.
1) The above paragraph 3.5.8. Resolution of the State Construction Committee of the Russian Federation dated September 27, 2003 N 170, which states that it is inadmissible to install air conditioners without the appropriate permission, does not mention what kind of permission we are talking about: the permission of the owners of the premises of the house or the permission of the local government. But, based on the fact that the issues of use, ownership and disposal of common property in shared ownership are regulated by the norms of the Housing Code of the Russian Federation and the Civil Code of the Russian Federation, taking into account that Resolution of the State Construction Committee of the Russian Federation dated September 27, 2003 N 170 is a public act, and not private law, we can conclude that in clause 3.5.8. Regulations we're talking about on the need to obtain permission from the authorized authority.
Norms federal laws, by-laws do not directly indicate the need to obtain permission to install an air conditioner. However, it must be taken into account that housing legislation is under joint jurisdiction Russian Federation and constituent entities of the Russian Federation (regions). A subject of the Federation has the right to adopt a law regulating the installation of both air conditioners and other equipment on the facades of buildings, prescribe the procedure for obtaining permits and approvals, and name the authorities authorized to approve the air conditioner installation project.
From judicial practice it follows that not all regions have adopted such a normative act. Similar regulations were adopted, for example, in St. Petersburg, and until recently existed in Moscow, but have been canceled since 2011.
Thus, before installing an air conditioner, you should ask whether there is a regulatory act in your region, territory, or republic regulating the procedure for obtaining permits for installing equipment on a building. If there is no such act, we believe that the authorities do not have grounds to issue any permit. In order to verify this, you can contact the municipal administration with a request to clarify the procedure for installing an air conditioner on the facade of a building.
In addition, do not forget that if your home is an object cultural heritage, then you will have to obtain permission to install an air conditioner, antenna, cables, or any other equipment on the supporting structure of the building in any case.
2) Installing an air conditioner - re-equipment (refurbishment)?
According to Article 25 of the Housing Code of the Russian Federation, the reconstruction of residential premises is the installation, replacement or transfer utility networks, sanitary, electrical or other equipment requiring changes to technical certificate living space.
There are industrial, semi-industrial and household air conditioners. Installation of industrial air conditioners may require reconstruction of the premises, which will entail the need to make changes to the technical data sheet of the premises, or even reconstruction of the building. In this case, without permitting documents not enough.
However, as practice shows, the installation of an air conditioner (domestic or semi-industrial) is not always qualified by the courts as reconstruction, redevelopment or re-equipment of the premises. This means that no government permission is required for installation.
3) Is a decision of the general meeting of owners required to install an air conditioner?
As judicial practice shows, the lack of consent of the owners of the premises of the house to install an air conditioner, as a basis for satisfying the requirements for dismantling the air conditioner, is cited by the court as an additional argument in the event that an already installed air conditioner violates the rights of other owners of the premises. As a rule, such violations of citizens' rights are expressed in the following:
- the neighbors' air conditioner makes loud noise, hums, vibrates, which disturbs the peace of citizens (usually neighbors);
- the air conditioner is installed on the balcony, loggia of the plaintiff citizens or on the external wall of the building directly next to the window of the citizen’s apartment within the perimeter of their residential premises - partially blocks the view from the window; when it rains, drops from the installed air conditioner fall into the apartment window;
- The air conditioner drain pipe is installed in such a way that condensation flows onto the windows of apartments belonging to other citizens, which leads to the destruction of the wall of a residential building.
- other violations, including those committed during the installation of the air conditioner (formation of cracks on the facade of the building, failure to comply with measures fire safety posing a risk of fire, short circuit, etc.)
It is worth noting that there are also judicial acts where demands for the dismantling of the air conditioner are satisfied on the basis of the standards given above in position No. 1. We believe that a formal approach to resolving this type of dispute is not correct and reasonable. In our opinion, the requirement for an obligation to dismantle the air conditioner can only be satisfied if the plaintiff has proven that his right has been violated. At the same time, the argument that the wall is the common property of the owners of the premises, and therefore, in all cases, the consent of the owners for its use is necessary, must be rejected on the basis that the person who installed the air conditioner is also the owner of the premises and a co-owner of the share in the right to the common property and if this owner does not create obstacles to the exercise of the right of use and ownership by other owners of the premises, does not violate their rights to favorable and safe conditions residence, then there is no violated right subject to judicial protection.
However, the following should be noted. The owners of the premises of an apartment building have the right to make decisions on the procedure for using the common property of the house. The owners of premises are not deprived of the right to make decisions, for example, on the procedure for installing air conditioners, antennas and other equipment on the facade of a residential building. Also, the owners have the right to state that already placed on load-bearing structures Air conditioners at home violate the rights of citizens and must be dismantled, which should be reflected in the minutes of the general meeting of owners. Let us remind you that the decision of the general meeting of owners (adopted by a majority of votes and in the presence of a quorum) is mandatory for execution by all owners of the premises of a given residential building. It seems that in this case the owner of the air conditioner is obliged to obey the decision of the general meeting, or appeal this decision in court. If the owner refuses to dismantle the air conditioner, the owners have the right to go to court with a demand to remove obstacles to use (Article 304 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation), i.e. on the defendant's obligation to dismantle the installed equipment.
- Permission to install an air conditioner on the facade of a residential building and dismantle it (Judicial practice of courts of general jurisdiction, court decisions, Do I need permission from the owners of premises, authorities to install an air conditioner, antenna, cables on the facade and roof of a building? Judicial and arbitration practice)
- Installation of air conditioner, antenna on the facade and roof of the building. Is the consent of owners and authorities required? Arbitrage practice
- How to legalize a built balcony, roof, balcony canopy, balcony glazing, loggias, or combine a room with a balcony? Arbitrage practice
- Redevelopment and reconstruction of the apartment. Legalization of unauthorized redevelopment. Rules of law and practice
A good owner knows: the sleigh must be prepared in the summer. Prepare to install an air conditioner better in winter. Moreover, in some cases this will require not only the required amount, but also permits.
Are there rules for air conditioners and what are they?
There are no uniform rules for installing air conditioners in residential buildings that would apply throughout the country. Some lawyers refer to the Housing Code of the Russian Federation, according to which the facade of an apartment building is the common property of all homeowners. According to some experts, this means that to install the outdoor unit of the air conditioner on the facade it is necessary written agreement all homeowners in the house, as well as permission from the local government.
However, such rules are not directly spelled out in legislation and are almost never applied in practice.
Each subject of the Russian Federation has its own rules, which can differ significantly and change over time.
Until recently, in Moscow it was necessary to develop a project, coordinate it with the Moscow Architecture Committee, and then obtain permission to carry out work from the Moscow Housing Inspectorate. The paperwork could take three months or more. But during the 2010 summer heat wave, city officials faced a flood of complaints about bureaucratic procedures, and in 2011 restrictions on installing air conditioners were lifted.
The only exceptions are buildings included in the list of cultural heritage sites. There is a special procedure for installing air conditioners for them: usually permission can be obtained only if the apartment windows face the courtyard.
Thus, most residents of the capital do not need to obtain any special permits to install an air conditioner. However, some regulations still need to be followed.
Several norms and rules are prescribed in SNiPs. The first and basic rule: you cannot hang the external unit of the air conditioner closer than half a meter from gas pipe. Another recommendation is to place the units away from neighboring apartments, since the air conditioner is noisy and should not disturb other residents.
Yuri Rozhin
Deputy General Director of KASKAD Service
Who monitors the facades, and how can they be punished?
The State Administrative and Technical Inspectorate, whose specialists are authorized to issue fines to violators, must check the correct installation of air conditioners.
“If the owner of an apartment installed an outdoor air conditioner unit with violations and evades payment of fines, the court can force him to do this forcibly. But in practice, it rarely comes to this,” explains Rustam Arslanov, director of the sales department of the Granel Group of Companies.
In addition, the presence of air conditioners on the facade is monitored by management companies and homeowners associations. If the owner has installed the air conditioner incorrectly, the management company issues an order to dismantle or relocate the air conditioner. “Such an order has no legal force, but if it is ignored, the management company can go to court,” says CEO Rezidential Group Sergey Ilyasaev. “After the claim is satisfied, the air conditioner may be dismantled, and the owner may be required to restore the damaged façade.”
Buyers of new buildings need not worry
However, most buyers of apartments in new buildings in the capital will no longer have to deal with the problem of placing air conditioners. In 2016, Moscow officially abandoned construction panel houses outdated series. Among mandatory requirements for new projects - the presence of special boxes on the facade or balconies that hide air conditioners.
Each region has its own rules
At the same time, in most regions, installing an air conditioner on a façade is by no means so easy, and different rules apply everywhere. For example, residents of St. Petersburg need to obtain permission from the Committee on Urban Planning and Architecture, in the Moscow region they need to agree on a design for the placement of an air conditioner with the management company, and in Kazan the installation of air conditioners on facades is generally prohibited. Therefore, before purchasing climate control equipment, it is better to clarify what rules the local administration has developed in this regard.
When it comes to creating a comfortable atmosphere in an apartment, owners believe that they have the right to install climate control systems without obtaining any permits. As a result, they face serious problems. What are the rules for installing an air conditioner in an apartment? Is prior approval required for such an event?
Legislative aspects
When someone wants to install an air conditioner in an apartment, he is firmly convinced that he has every right to do so. After all, citizens often mount climate control equipment, completely without coordinating such work with any authorities. However, not everything is as simple as it seems at first glance.
Sometimes some legal proceedings end with the tenant of an apartment building (MKD) being told that such activities cannot be carried out without obtaining the appropriate permission from the authorities and obtaining the consent of the neighbors, and it is necessary to dismantle the unit.
What does the legislation say about this? To clarify for yourself all the answers to the questions, you should familiarize yourself with a silent number of documents:
- Civil and Housing Code RF;
- Rules approved by Government Decree No. 491 dated August 13, 2006 (as amended on February 27, 2017), prescribing the conditions for maintaining common property;
- Sanitary standards.
Why do discrepancies arise? Installing an air conditioner on a loggia (balcony, facade) is considered a simple renovation of the home, which does not require permission, unlike reconstruction or redevelopment. However, there are other nuances due to which approval may still be required.
It is extremely important that installing an air conditioner on a balcony or other place does not disturb the residents of the apartment building. Because in this case they have every right to complain. Interferences include loud operation of the device, difficulties arising during installation when condensation drips onto someone else's balcony (window). If such precedents arise, those dissatisfied may go to court, and it is possible that the climate control equipment will have to be dismantled.
Another important aspect- many lawyers are convinced that permission to install an air conditioner is required when it is attached to the facade, since it is considered common property. Accordingly, all residents jointly decide how to use it. When there is a need to install an air conditioner on the facade of a house that is considered a cultural heritage, there is no doubt - it is imperative that you go through all the authorities and obtain permission.
Negotiation algorithm
If a citizen does not want to act arbitrarily, he should obtain permission from local authorities and coordinate the issue with neighbors. Practice shows that this procedure is not as fast as we would like. Sometimes it takes 2-3 months to install an air conditioner on a façade. Therefore, it is better to take care of solving the legal aspects in advance, so that in the hot summer you can already use the climate system.
Where exactly do they get permission if a citizen plans to install an air conditioner? He needs to contact local authorities. But first you should develop a project by ordering it from a specialized organization.
Many people in this document indicate important points. For example, specific locations for installing air conditioners must be indicated here, justifying their choice. Added to this are technical information about the unit: they are especially important when it comes to using the equipment in residential buildings with old wiring.
In addition, a competent project must describe the diagram for connecting the device to the electrical network and mounting it to the wall. Title documents are attached to it and with such papers they go to the officials. As for consent from other residents of the apartment building, it must be obtained in writing. There is an opportunity to raise such an issue at a general meeting of co-owners.
Technical points
As practice shows, most often problems arise if a citizen violated the rules for installing an air conditioner, which led to complaints from other residents. When the installed unit does not interfere with anyone, in most cases it works safely, even if permission has not been obtained. What technical points need to be taken into account during installation?
First of all, you need to decide where to hang the external unit. A lot depends on this. Citizens are wondering whether it is possible to install air conditioning on the balcony. After all, this is simpler in every sense: it is easier to carry out installation without involving a team of high-altitude workers, and you do not need to worry about permits.
The rules do not prohibit installing air conditioning on the balcony at all. The exception would be when it is glazed. Because in this case the unit will not have enough air to operate. And so the balcony can be considered the best option: here the air conditioner does not bother anyone; it does its job effectively.
What problems may arise if the unit is placed inside glass loggia? Experts warn that it may overheat, since the climate system will not be able to function normally.
When it comes to an apartment in a building that is a cultural heritage, obtaining a permit is a big exception to the rule. If the authorities do not allow installation on the facade, then violating their requirements is not the only way out of the situation. You can buy an air conditioner without an external unit, or find another place for it: attach it to the attic or roof. Of course, we have to look for an individual solution.
Permission to install air conditioning in Moscow was required until recently and was introduced by Luzhkov. A person who wanted to install an air conditioner had to spend up to 6 months of time and up to 100,000 rubles to obtain a pile of pieces of paper that gave him the right to breathe cool air!
However, we are happy to please you that finally this bureaucratic barrier was recently abolished by Moscow government decree No. 85-PP dated March 22, 2011. And now approval for the installation of an air conditioner in Moscow is no longer necessary.
Now you can install an air conditioner in your apartment or office in Moscow completely calmly, knowing for sure that you no longer need any approvals for the right to breathe freely!
Permission to install an air conditioner in Moscow was required earlier and was included in the concept of redevelopment (reconstruction). The fact is that when installing an air conditioner, they usually drill a hole in the wall to lay communications between the internal and external units air conditioner (split system). These communications go metal pipes with refrigerant, electrical cables and drainage tube. And this hole must be drilled so as not to damage the heating pipes and electrical cables running inside the walls of the house. The need to obtain approval for the installation of an air conditioner in Moscow was canceled by Moscow government decree No. 85-PP dated March 22, 2011.
The original decree of the Moscow government on the cancellation of approval for the installation of air conditioning in Moscow is as follows:
THE GOVERNMENT OF MOSCOW
ON AMENDMENTS TO THE MOSCOW GOVERNMENT DECISIONS OF NOVEMBER 2, 2004 N 758-PP, OF FEBRUARY 8, 2005 N 73-PP
In order to improve the organization of work to control the reconstruction and (or) redevelopment of residential and non-residential premises in apartment buildings The Moscow government decides:
1. Amend the resolution of the Moscow Government dated November 2, 2004 N 758-PP“On approval of standards for the operation of housing stock “by deleting the words “individual air conditioners” in paragraph 3.5 of Appendix 1 to the resolution.
2. Amend the Moscow Government Decree No. 73-PP dated February 8, 2005 “On the procedure for reconstruction and (or) redevelopment of residential and non-residential premises in residential buildings on the territory of the city of Moscow” (as amended by the Moscow Government Decrees dated November 15, 2005 . N 883-PP, dated September 25, 2007 N 831-PP, dated November 2, 2010 N 993-PP):
2.1. In paragraph 18 of Section II of Appendix 1 to the resolution, the words “air conditioners” should be deleted.
2.2. Add the notes of Appendix 1 to the resolution with paragraph 3.5 in the following wording:
"3.5. Installation of air conditioners on the facades of residential buildings."
3. Establish that at cultural heritage sites and identified cultural heritage sites, the installation of air conditioners is permitted provided they are placed on courtyard facades, as well as in cases where their installation is provided for by the project of work on the preservation of cultural heritage sites and identified cultural heritage sites.
4. Control over the implementation of this resolution shall be entrusted to the Deputy Mayor of Moscow in the Moscow Government on issues housing and communal services economy and improvement Biryukova P.P.
Mayor of Moscow