If not fully meeting the provisions of the Housing Law, the owner of a mini apartment can only have his/her name on the building’s certificate without being recognized as the owner of the apartment.

The tragic incident of a mini apartment fire that killed 56 people on Khuong Ha Street, Thanh Xuan, Hanoi, the safety of mini apartments as well as the legality of this type of housing, and the legality of mini apartment purchase contracts are of utmost concern.

In essence, current law does not have the concept of “mini apartments”, there are only the concepts of “apartment buildings” and “individual houses” into which “mini apartments” can be classified.

So, from a legal perspective, are mini apartment purchase contracts legal? And does the owner of this apartment have the right to request a Certificate of House Ownership?

Talking to a reporter from Nhip Song Doanh Nghiep about the legality of mini apartment purchase and sale contracts, lawyer Le Thi Thanh Huyen (HTH Global Law Firm LLC) said:

According to Clause 3, Article 3 of the 2014 Housing Law, “ A condominium is a building with 2 or more floors, many apartments, common walkways and stairs, private ownership, common ownership and infrastructure systems for common use by households, individuals and organizations, including condominiums built for residential purposes and condominiums built for mixed-use purposes of residential and business .”

Accordingly, an apartment building is simply understood as a house with 2 floors or more, with many apartments and a division of common ownership and private ownership for many households and individuals living there.

According to Clause 2, Article 46 of the 2014 Housing Law (Regulations on housing standards and quality of households and individuals):  “ Households and individuals in urban areas must construct and renovate houses in accordance with the provisions of the law on construction and are responsible for the quality of the houses. In cases where they are permitted to construct houses with two or more floors, each floor is designed and constructed with two or more apartments in a closed style, meeting the minimum floor area standards for each apartment according to construction standards and regulations, and having a privately owned area and a common area of ​​the apartment building according to the provisions of this Law, the State shall recognize the ownership of each apartment in that house .”

At the same time, according to Clause 2, Article 6 of Decree 99/2015/ND-CP detailing and guiding the implementation of a number of articles of the Housing Law (Issuance of Certificates to house owners):  “ For individual houses built with two or more floors and each floor is designed and built with two or more apartments in a closed style (with separate living rooms, separate kitchens, toilets, and bathrooms), with a minimum floor area of ​​each apartment of 30 m2 ^or  more and this house meets the conditions for apartment buildings specified in Clause 2, Article 46 of the Housing Law, the State shall issue a Certificate for each apartment in that house; In case the owner sells, leases, donates, or inherits an apartment in this house to another organization, household, or individual eligible to own housing in Vietnam, the right to use the land attached to this house belongs to the common use of the subjects who have purchased, leased, received the gift, or inherited the apartment .”

Thus, if a “mini apartment” meets the above conditions, it can still be transferred (by an apartment sale and purchase contract) and granted a certificate of ownership of property attached to the land.

On the contrary, if not fully meeting the provisions of the Housing Law, the owner of a mini apartment can only have his/her name on the building’s certificate without being recognized as the owner of the apartment.