Common and private parts in a French co-ownership

Private parts: what is yours alone

The Act does not list the private parts: it is the règlement de copropriété (co-ownership rules) that designates them (service-public.gouv.fr, F31512). They are the exclusive property of the co-owner. In practice, they generally include:

• interior fittings (kitchen, bathroom fittings, individual heating);
• floor coverings, plaster, paint and wallpaper;
• interior partition walls that are not part of the structure;
• interior doors, and often the windows and shutters (F31512).

Each co-owner “has the use of the private parts included in their lot” and uses them freely, “provided they infringe neither the rights of the other co-owners nor the intended use of the building” (Act, art. 9). They can therefore live in their lot, let it, sell it or carry out works there, provided they comply with the rules (F31512).

Common parts: what the law presumes to be common

Where the rules are silent or contradictory, article 3 of the Act presumes the following, among others, to be common:

• the land, courtyards, grounds and gardens, and access roads;
• the structure of the buildings and shared equipment, including pipes that run through private premises;
• flues, ducts and chimney stacks;
• premises for shared services;
• passages and corridors.

The same article classes among the ancillary rights to the common parts the right to add storeys, to build new buildings or to excavate the ground (Act, art. 3).

The common parts belong to everyone in undivided ownership (art. 4). Each owner’s share, their tantièmes, appears in the état descriptif de division (division schedule) and determines their number of votes at the assemblée générale (owners’ general meeting) (service-public.gouv.fr, F35451).

Special common parts

Some common parts serve only several co-owners, for example one building in a co-ownership that has several. These are parties communes spéciales (special common parts), the “undivided property” of those co-owners alone (art. 6-2). Creating them goes hand in hand with special charges. Only those co-owners vote on the decisions that concern them. They exist only if the rules expressly mention them (art. 6-4).

Common parts with exclusive use

Article 6-3 defines them as “common parts allocated to the exclusive use or benefit of a lot”. The right of use is “necessarily ancillary to the lot” and “may in no case constitute the private part of a lot”. It therefore passes to the buyer with the lot.

According to service-public.gouv.fr (F31518), this right arises from the rules or from a general meeting decision:

• co-ownership created before 1 July 2022: the absence of any mention in the rules does not cancel these rights. The meeting must vote, by simple majority, on including them in the rules;
• co-ownership created on or after 1 July 2022: they must appear in the rules. To grant a new one, the meeting votes by double majority, or unanimously if it affects the intended use of the building, then amends the rules.

The person entitled may put out planters or garden furniture, but may not build, dig or raise the level without authorisation (F31518). The meeting then decides by the article 25 majority for light alterations. It decides by the article 26 majority for constructions (shed, pergola, conservatory). Without authorisation, the syndicat (the owners’ association) can demand demolition and reinstatement.

Maintenance: who does what?

• Private parts: the co-owner must maintain them. A private part that causes damage to the common parts may make the owner liable (F31512).
• Common parts: the syndicat des copropriétaires (owners’ association) is responsible for their maintenance and upkeep, through the syndic (building manager).
• Common parts with exclusive use: they remain under the control of the syndicat, which maintains them, unless the rules provide otherwise. The rules may also share this task with the person entitled (F31518).

A co-owner cannot object to works in the collective interest that have been properly voted, even on their private parts. The only limit is that “the allocation, substance or enjoyment of the private parts [is] not permanently impaired” (Act, art. 9, II). Works requiring access to private parts must be notified at least eight days before they start, except in an emergency (art. 9, I). Where there is loss, compensation is payable by the syndicat (art. 9, III).

Charges: how they are shared

Article 10 of the Act lays down two rules:

1. charges for the upkeep, maintenance and administration of the common parts are shared in proportion to the relative value of the lots;
2. charges for collective services and shared equipment (lift, communal heating) are shared according to the objective benefit they provide to each lot.

Service-public.gouv.fr (F2590) illustrates the second rule. An underground parking space does not pay for heating, which is of no use to it. A ground-floor lot pays for the lift if it serves the cellar or the car park. Charges for a common part with exclusive use are in principle borne by all, according to their share. The rules may, however, make the person entitled responsible for routine maintenance (F31518).

Which professional to consult

Before a purchase, the notaire (notary) checks what the rules and the division schedule place in your lot, including rights of exclusive use. The géomètre-expert (chartered surveyor) can draw up the proposal for a new allocation of tantièmes when a common part becomes private (service-public.gouv.fr, F35451). See also our guide on charges de copropriété (service charges).