Why many Russians can end up without a usable apartment

Registration at an address doesn't make someone the owner of an apartment, but in certain cases it grants a lifetime right to live there - one that survives the sale to a new owner and can't be revoked without that person's own consent. Here's who falls into this category and how to spot the risk before any money changes hands.

Why registration isn't always just a formality

Most buyers assume: there's one owner, and everyone else registered at the address is just a resident with no rights to the property. That's partly true - registration alone doesn't make someone a co-owner or entitle them to a share. But it can establish a right of use - the right to live in the apartment - and in certain cases that right survives a change of ownership.

Declining to privatize: a lifetime right to live there

If a person had an equal right to the apartment at the time it was privatized, alongside other family members, but voluntarily chose not to take part, they retain an indefinite right to use that home - this is set out directly in Article 19 of Federal Law No. 189-FZ of December 29, 2004, "On the Enactment of the Housing Code of the Russian Federation." Such a person doesn't become an owner, but they also can't be evicted, even after the apartment is later sold to a new owner - not even through court.

Why this category is hard to spot

There's no official register of people who declined to take part in privatization, and archival privatization records aren't always available for a buyer to request. An indirect clue is comparing the date the current owner's title was registered with the registration dates of everyone at the address: if someone was registered at the apartment earlier than the current owner's title was recorded, that's a reason to ask whether they once declined to take part in the privatization.

This right of residence can't be sidestepped with a technicality

There are attempts to temporarily deregister someone before a deal and then re-register them afterward, banking on the apartment being sold in the meantime. Case law on this doesn't favor the buyer: a lifetime right of residence, once it has arisen by law, survives a temporary deregistration unless it was accompanied by a genuine waiver of the right itself.

A similar risk in housing co-ops

A separate situation involves apartments in housing construction cooperatives. If the share was paid off during a marriage, the right to the apartment can extend not just to the official owner but to the spouse - even a former one - and to any children who were registered there at the time. Before buying such an apartment, it's worth checking whether the share was paid during the marriage and whether the property was formally divided after the divorce.

What to check before buying an apartment with registered residents

• Compare the date the current owner's title was registered with the registration date of every person listed at the address, using the residency register or an extract from it.
• Ask the seller whether the apartment was privatized and who had a right to take part at the time but declined.
• Require every resident to be deregistered before the final payment is made, not after.
• Don't accept a plan where residents "will deregister and re-register elsewhere after the sale" without a real alternative address.
• For housing co-op apartments, check whether the share was paid during a marriage and whether the property was divided between the spouses.

Want to check who is registered at a property you're considering

Send us the property address by phone - we will help identify residents with a lifetime right of residence and tell you what to request from the seller.

8 909 440-80-80

All articles