About garages in apartment buildings in Poland

These days, a garage in an apartment building in Poland is almost standard. A parking space in a garage is associated primarily with the convenience and reliability of parking. At the same time, buyers of an apartment with garage space must consider the need to bear additional load and perform additional responsibilities. We will tell you about the costs and obligations of acquiring and maintaining a garage space in an apartment building.

A garage is most often a separate room, separated from the common parts of the building. Therefore, by purchasing a place in such a premises, the garage owners actually acquire a share in the joint ownership of the facility and enter into an agreement on the division of property for use. The latter ensures that this parking space cannot be used by owners of other premises.

A garage is most often a separate room, separated from the common parts of the building. Therefore, by purchasing a place in such a premises, the garage owners actually acquire a share in the joint ownership of the facility and enter into an agreement on the division of property for use. The latter ensures that this parking space cannot be used by owners of other premises.

A parking space in a garage is expensive in cities, and despite this, many of our readers want to purchase apartments with only a garage. However, when purchasing, it is worth carefully checking the legal status of the much desired garage in advance, since it is not always the property of the buyer.

Right to a parking space

A garage for several cars in an apartment building may have different legal status. Depending on this, the owners of apartments in the building will have full ownership of parking spaces or only the right to use them. It all depends on the formula for disposing of such an object that the developer will accept.

There are 3 options.

I. When purchasing an underground garage, it can be allocated as a separate non-residential premises. This means that the garage is completely independent from the building. This often happens when there are fewer garages for sale than there are residents. Therefore, in many new residential complexes, underground parking is allocated as one independent commercial premises, which is then sold for joint ownership by users.

Each such parking space in the underground garage has a separate land and mortgage book. This means that residents wishing to use it must buy a share of the shared garage, thus becoming co-owners. As a result, when selling an apartment together with a garage, you should take into account the sale of two real estate objects at once, listed in two separate land and mortgage books. This may lead to increased notary and court costs, since both documents will have to be changed.

The advantage of this solution is that the owner of a separate parking space in the garage can sell it independently of the apartment itself. Of course, in this case, the owner of the garage does not have to be the owner of the apartment in this building, and some residents can even afford to buy several garages, which are independent commercial objects.

II. When purchasing an apartment, you can also purchase a parking space, which is part of the common property (without a separate land and mortgage register). This means that the developer determines the rules by which residents will be able to use it. In this case, this right is recorded in section III of the land and mortgage book of common property. At the same time, the garage does not receive a separate land and mortgage book.

This decision means that the owner of the apartment cannot sell only the garage space without simultaneously selling the residential space with which it is connected, and also cannot buy an apartment that is not connected to this garage. However, renting such a place is not prohibited.

The rules for using a parking space in an underground garage are specified in regulations. Residents also most often sign a so-called quoad usum agreement, that is, on the division of real estate for use. There are parking spaces assigned to individual apartment owners.

III. The final option is to rent a garage parking space from a developer, who simply charges interested residents a flat monthly fee.

This is why it is so important when reviewing housing offers to consider what type of garage the developer is offering and carefully check whether the offer - and under what conditions - includes the possibility of parking a car.

What conditions must the garage meet?

The Regulation of the Minister of Infrastructure of April 12, 2002 on the technical conditions that buildings and their location must comply with also defines the aspects that garages for passenger cars must comply with. It contains technical specifications for garages, such as the height of the entrance and a detailed description of the conditions of the entrance, the width of the shunting road and the condition of underground and multi-level garages. In addition, the regulations specify what floors and ventilation in garages should be like.

1.According to this legal act, the dimensions of a parking space must be:

1) width 2.5 m and length 5 m - for passenger cars;

2) width 3.6 m and length 5 m - for cars used by disabled people;

3) width 3.5 m and length 8 m - for trucks;

4) width 4 m and length 10 m – in the case of buses.

2. Parking spaces for cars, when located along the road, must have dimensions of at least:

1) width 3.6 m with the possibility of limiting it to 2.5 m - if it is possible to use an adjacent entrance or pedestrian route and length 6 m - in the case of passenger cars;

2) width 3.6 m and length 6 m - for cars used by disabled people;

3) width 3 m and length 15 m - for trucks;

4) width 3 m and length 19 m - in the case of buses.

Tax on the purchase of a parking space in a garage

Purchasing a parking space in a garage requires paying property taxes on that space. Its size depends on the legal status of the garage. When the garage has a separate land and mortgage register, upon purchase you must pay 23% VAT and then pay property tax.

Property tax for parking space owners

In addition to the costs associated with maintaining the garage, the owner of the parking space will be charged property taxes. In this case, the amount charged to individuals depends on the size of their shares in the garage.

In 2023, for a detached garage with a separate land and mortgage book, the maximum tax rate is PLN 9.70/m2.

If there is a space in an underground garage in an apartment building and it is part of the common property (there is no separate land and mortgage register), then the maximum tax rate is 1 zloty/sq.m. The area of the underground garage in the building (this may also be a surface garage that is part of the property) is included in the total area of common premises and is subject to tax on all property managed by the housing cooperative.

If the garage is not tied to the ground (for example, it is not a brick, but a tin garage), then there is no tax obligation. This applies to the situation when such a garage is used for personal purposes.

Tax when renting out a garage

The lessor of a garage or parking space, for example in a ground level underground garage or a detached underground garage, must pay tax. The tax office requires payment of rental tax. You can rent a garage in a building, a detached garage, or a parking space in a multi-space residential garage without running a business. This will be a so-called private rental.

In this case, the garage owner pays income tax as a lump sum payment and pays it on the income.

There are two tax rates:

8.5 percent – if rental income does not exceed PLN 100,000 per year,

12.5 percent – if rental income per year exceeds PLN 100,000.

Income tax from renting a parking space or garage must be paid by the 20th day of the month following the month for which the tax is calculated.

Parking space price

Buying an apartment with a parking space costs differently, depending on the location of the house itself. For example, in Warsaw or Wroclaw the rate can reach PLN 55,000 in the most prestigious areas. In small towns this amount can be 15,000–20,000 zlotys. When looking for deals, you should consider the additional costs associated with purchasing garage space. A seemingly attractive price may increase if you have to pay 23% VAT.

Garage maintenance fee

The fact that the person using the parking space is also a co-owner of the entire garage - of course, in a small share - entails certain legal consequences. The first is paying additional fees for maintaining the premises. These costs are shared only among the people who have parking spaces. Therefore, not all members of the housing community will participate.

Maintaining a garage mainly includes costs for lighting, heating and keeping it clean. You should also take into account the costs of repairs and maintenance, for example, garage doors. When an underground garage is a separate property, the costs of its maintenance are shared only by the co-owners, and not by all residents. Per co-owner, these costs are usually small. However, this depends on the size of the premises and the number of parking spaces. The greater the number of co-owners, the lower the costs will be.

Garage as property

Owners of garage parking spaces receive an additional share in the common property - after all, they are also co-owners of the premises that make up the garage. However, some garage-related issues should be resolved by them outside of community meetings. As noted, a garage is a separate property, the ownership of which is divided among the individual owners of the parking spaces.

Therefore, issues relating exclusively to garage space are beyond the competence of the housing community. Decisions regarding the management of a garage hall should be made only by its co-owners. It is important to note that garage owners cannot use the Premises Ownership Act, which contains provisions for housing associations. Management and decision-making on the above issues are based on the provisions of the Civil Code on joint ownership.

Each co-owner of the garage is obliged to cooperate in the management of common property - in this case, the garage premises. At the same time, decisions on important issues must be made unanimously by all co-owners of this property.

Current issues are resolved by majority vote. An example of an issue that goes beyond the management of common property is the installation of CCTV in a garage. In this case, all co-owners of the garage must vote on its installation. This does not apply if monitoring is installed during the construction of the building. In this case, shares of property are acquired in an object already equipped with such a monitoring system. In this case, the management of the cooperative will order maintenance or repair of garage doors or other devices installed in this premises.

Garage parking space owners should therefore consider the need for greater involvement in the management of this part of the building. Of course, nothing prevents you from entrusting the day-to-day management of the garage hall to the administration of the housing association or its board. However, this requires additional measures and costs for the administration of the premises.

Maintenance of external parking spaces

Finally, it is worth mentioning external parking spaces, which are usually located on the territory managed by the housing association. In this case, the situation may be like this. If parking spaces are not allocated under the agreement on the division of real estate, all members of the housing association will have the right to use them.

Therefore, all costs associated with the maintenance of such public parking will be shared by each member of the community. As with a garage, this will apply to the cost of maintaining it and paying property taxes.

However, if the parking lot is a separate property or part of the property intended for use, the principles discussed in describing how to manage and share the costs of maintaining a garage apply.

To summarize, before purchasing a parking space, whether in a garage or in an external parking lot, it is worth checking what legal decisions the developer has applied to this type of parking. They will determine subsequent calculations and the method of property management.

Garage outside the residence

If it is difficult to find a suitable offer for the sale of a garage in a new building, it is worth checking the secondary market. You can search for ads using the phrases “garage for sale” or “parking space for sale” in your area. It may turn out that the price will be very attractive, and the garage itself will be located not far from your new apartment. A secure parking lot located on the territory of the residential complex or outside it can also be a good alternative.

Having your own garage is a great value, especially for residents of large cities who are constantly struggling with a lack of parking spaces. It is not surprising that garages and underground parking spaces are also readily available for rent. Rent varies from approximately 200 to 600 zlotys per month. If renting such space is not a problem, then selling it may be problematic. People who buy an apartment with a garage or parking space and plan to sell it later should first check the legal status of such premises.

On our website https://okeask.com/en/ there are many apartments with underground garages. You can find them yourself when looking for an apartment. But it’s easier to contact us. Call +48 574 672 833 ( WhatsApp , Viber , Telegram , Facebook ), write to us by email: [email protected] or online chat.

Source: website rynekpierwotny.pl