Imagine the following example:
Ofélia was the owner of an apartment between April 2015 and December
2019, however, during the period she lived in the property, she never
paid the condominium fees, and so, when she left, the administration was
unable to recover the outstanding amounts. At the beginning of 2020,
the apartment was sold to the Antunes family, who paid the quotas during
the 2 years they lived there, deciding, in March 2022, to put it up for
sale. However, a problem arose: even though it did not have any debts
to the condominium, since the owners were the Antunes, the financial
institution that would finance their credit raised several questions
regarding the debts incurred by Ophelia, the first owner of the
apartment.
The
declaration of debt, or of no debt to the condominium,
thus assumes a very important role in a situation like this, having
been introduced in April 2022 with the revision of the horizontal
property regime. This is a
mandatory document, which attests to the payment situation of a condominium owner in relation to the condominium,
and in the example we give him, since the owner’s declaration of
charges was not yet mandatory at the time of the Antunes family’s
decision to put the apartment up for sale, they were penalized by the
debts of the former owner.
With the entry into force of the law
that revised the horizontal property regime and the obligation of the
condominium owner’s declaration of charges, if the Antunes family wanted
to sell the apartment today, it could excuse itself from any
obligations, because it would have, on its side, the written
declaration, by the management of the condominium, in which never
incurred in default.
What is the declaration of charges for the condominium?
Briefly, there are three situations for which the declaration of charges of the condominium is useful:
1. Inform potential buyers -
within the framework of a separate purchase and sale contract, the
declaration is essential for the buyer to be aware of any debts,
avoiding unpleasant surprises;
2. expedite real estate transactions -
the obligation to declare makes the buying and selling process more
transparent and efficient, reducing delays and unforeseen events;
3. Promote the financial management of the condominium - by
having a clear record of debts, the condominium can take more effective
measures for its recovery, ensuring the financial health of the
community.
In this way,
the declaration is issued by the
condominium administration, at the request of the condominium owner,
within a maximum period of 10 working days, and must specify the total
amount of the debts, their nature (extraordinary, ordinary quotas,
etc.)maturity and identification of the autonomous fraction concerned. Once issued, the declaration is
valid for 30 days.As we showed you in the situation of the Antunes family,
the
declaration may be necessary in the purchase and sale of autonomous
fractions and in the request for credit, but also in rental situations.
In the purchase and sale, it can be requested at the time of signing
the deed, so the seller must present it to the buyer, updated, in order
to ensure that there are no debts. In credit applications the same
happens, and banks and other financial institutions can request the
declaration as part of the analysis of a credit request for the
acquisition of a property. In the lease, the declaration can be
requested by the landlord to the tenant at the beginning of the
contract.
In general,
this is a document that attests transparency, ensures responsible financial management and avoids conflicts.
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