Is the garage in the residential area owned by the developer or the owner?

With the continuous development of economy, the number of urban cars has increased rapidly, and the parking problem has become increasingly serious. Due to the scarcity of garages and parking spaces in residential quarters, their use value and commercial value are increasingly apparent, which leads to their ownership being concerned. Article 74 of the newly promulgated Property Law clarifies the ownership of garages and parking spaces for the first time, which will play a role in solving disputes to some extent.

First, understanding the garage parking space must first meet the needs of the owners.

Article 74 of the Property Law (1) stipulates that the parking spaces and garages planned for parking cars in a building division should first meet the needs of the owners. In practice, some developers sell parking spaces and garages to people outside the community at high prices, which infringes on the legitimate rights and interests of community owners. The promulgation of "Property Law" clarified the owner's right in the form of law.

How to operate this article needs further explanation from relevant national legislation and judicial organs.

Second, the understanding of the ownership of the underground garage

The second paragraph of Article 74 of the Property Law stipulates that the ownership of parking spaces and garages planned for parking cars within a building division shall be agreed upon by the parties through sale, gift or lease. The so-called garage refers to the affiliated building that belongs to the whole community and has independent space to store vehicles, including the above-ground garage and the underground garage. The Property Law stipulates that the ownership of the garage can be determined by agreement, first of all, considering the difficulty of parking. If it is simply stipulated that the garage belongs to the owner, then the developer will not build the garage, so there will be fewer garages, which will ultimately harm the interests of the owner; Secondly, agreed ownership is the embodiment of the principle of autonomy in private law, which is beneficial for developers and owners to realize their will through equal consultation.

The promulgation of this regulation has led many local developers to sell underground garages. Some developers believe that if they fail to reach an agreement with the owner on the ownership of the garage when selling the house after the implementation of the Property Law, they will be presumed to be owned by the owner, so they should try their best to sell the garage before the implementation of the new law. This understanding is a misunderstanding of the law. There was a provision in the Property Law (Draft) that "the ownership of the garage is presumed to be owned by the owner without agreement", but in the end, the law abandoned this view, and the law did not clearly stipulate the handling method when the parties did not agree on the ownership of the garage. The specific attribution needs to be further refined by the relevant state departments.

Third, the understanding of parking space ownership.

With regard to the ownership of parking spaces, Paragraph 2 of Article 74 of the Property Law stipulates that the ownership of parking spaces and garages planned for parking cars within a building division shall be agreed upon by the parties through sale, gift or lease. Parking spaces that occupy roads or other venues owned by the owner for parking cars shall be owned by the owner. The so-called parking space refers to a place different from the garage, which is used to park vehicles on the roadside and open space in the community. The Property Law finally adopts the combination of legal ownership and agreed ownership to determine the ownership nature of parking spaces.

Legal ownership refers to the green space, roads, open spaces on roads and parking spaces formed by other venues owned by the owners, which are legally owned by the owners. For the "legal ownership" part of the parking space, the developer cannot change its * * * nature through an agreement with the owner, even if the agreement is invalid. Just because the parking space belongs to the owner does not mean that the owner does not have to pay for the parking space. Proper charging is the fairest way to use it. Because community owners have ownership of parking spaces, the share of rights among owners is different. If * * * parking spaces are used free of charge, firstly there may be a contradiction between uneven demand and distribution, and secondly there may be unfair enjoyment of rights, which may lead to conflicts of interest and disputes among owners. For all parking spaces owned by the owner, it is not excluded that the property management company collects management fees (that is, comprehensive service fees) according to the standards stipulated in the contract and the price department.

Agreed ownership refers to the parking space outside the legal ownership, and the developer can clarify its ownership by agreeing with the owner. Parking spaces in residential areas are mainly built for the convenience of owners. If parking spaces in residential areas exist without buildings, their utility will be reduced. Therefore, it is not appropriate to simply attribute parking spaces to developers or owners. "Agreed ownership" takes into account the interests of both owners and developers.