Ukrainian people's deputies adopted changes to the Criminal Code, toughening responsibility for illegal redevelopment of apartments.
From now on, for redevelopment, because of which the life or health of others has suffered, or it complicates the use of the house (for example, due to the merging of apartments, the stairwell is reduced), you can “obtain” a fine from 1700 to 4250 hryvnia, or even 3 years in prison.
For the repetition of such actions - from 3 to 8 years. If, God forbid, there are casualties, or material damage is inflicted on an especially large scale (more than 17 thousand hryvnias) - a prison from 5 to 12 years.
In order to legally redevelop your living space, you need to order the appropriate project and coordinate it in different instances (SES, firefighters, thermal workers), and also collect signatures from neighbors that they are not against such actions. However, this is an expensive pleasure - the price can reach 5-6 thousand hryvnias. In addition, upholstery thresholds will take a lot of time.
That is why no one is in a hurry to inform the competent authorities that they want to combine the kitchen and the toilet or demolish the pantry. However, in this case, you cannot sell the apartment, bequeath it, deposit it in the bank as collateral to obtain a loan - you need a certificate-characteristic of the Bureau of Technical Inventory (BTI), but it will not be issued if there are alterations in the apartment - until you will not comply with the requirement of the Housing Code by returning everything to its original state.
However, in connection with the change in laws, lawyers and realtors do not expect massive campaigns of commissions from house to house in search of illegal redevelopment, since the law does not clearly spell out the concepts of “re-planning” and “reconstruction”, therefore corruption will flourish. And indeed, now the easiest way is to “agree” with the BTI inspector so that he “does not notice” changes in the plan of the apartment. The run-up of the "issue price" is very large, realtors say - from $ 500 to $ 50,000 it all depends on what exactly needs to be "not noticed."
Another semi-legitimate option is to go all the way after the fact, saying that you only want to make these changes. You can pay a symbolic fine (from 17 to 51 hryvnias) for unauthorized redevelopment and proceed again with ordering the plan and coordinating it with all authorities.
And the only legal way to legalize redevelopment is to put it into operation through the court. To do this, you must have in your hands a refusal to put your changes into operation from the district administration and appeal it in court. During the proceedings, you will have to undergo an examination, proving that the redevelopment does not pose a threat to the lives of others and does not violate building codes. However, there are elements of the apartment that should not be touched, since such redevelopment will not be legalized even for bribes.
When changing the layout of your apartment, it is forbidden to touch the load-bearing walls, ventilation and soundproofing of the floors. Also, it is impossible to increase the area of \u200b\u200bsanitary facilities and bathrooms at the expense of residential premises, transfer them to other premises. Dismantling of balcony blocks is prohibited. For example, loggias and balconies cannot be combined with other rooms by dismantling external walls (whether they are load-bearing or not). Also, it is impossible to transfer central heating batteries to loggias and balconies and combine apartments vertically with complete or even partial dismantling of interfloor ceilings.
It is forbidden to remove the soundproof base of the floors and dismantle the ventilation ducts and ducts during the repair process. It is also forbidden to dig cellars, create extensions to apartments located on the ground floor of a multi-storey building, install air conditioners and satellite dishes on the facades of buildings facing the street.
However, you can increase the area of \u200b\u200bthe bathroom by combining the bathroom and toilet, as well as attaching part of the corridor to it, in your apartment. It is also allowed to expand the area of \u200b\u200bliving rooms at the expense of corridors and auxiliary premises and arrange a kitchen-dining room from the room and the kitchen adjacent to it. You can cut openings in the walls, if they are not load-bearing, between different rooms, demolish stoves and fireplaces.
It is not forbidden by the new law to demolish mezzanines, built-in wardrobes and closets to increase living space, as well as glaze balconies and loggias.
The information is current as of February 18, 2011.
