Real Estate Law
Regulation of legal status of real estate
Several real estate in Poland have still unregulated legal status. It may be a result of possesion of real estate for 20 years (owner-like possesion) or 30 years (bad faith possesion) by a person who is not the real estate owner and lead to the adverse possesion (usacaption).
Every land and mortgage register has 4 sections and quite often some of the entries are inconsistent what influences badly on real estate value.
No matter when you obtained ownership of the real estate (yesterday, 30 years ago or by inheritance) our attorneys at law will assist you on every level of your case.
Real estate reprivatisation and expropriation
Attorney-at-law Marek Foryś has over 16 years of experience in recovery of exprioprated and nationalized real estate in Poland. He represents former owners and their succesors in administrative proceedings, before courts (including Supreme Court) and administrative courts (including Supreme Administratrive Court).
Depending on current legal status of expriopriated or nacionalised real estate you may recover it in kind (when it is owned by the State or local government unit) oraz obtain a compensation if the real estate was expriopriated or nacionalised with breach of law.
In most cases to start legal proceeding for compenastion you ought to get administrative prejudykat at first. Next you within limitation period of 3 years from the date of the final decision.
Recovering in kind may be initiated in administrative proceeding (mainly concerns expriopriated real estate). But the time left is not long as on the grounds of amendments in real estate managment act, former owners or their successors are entitled to initiate such proceding only by the 14th May 2020 if expriopration was 20 or more years ago (go more information). – odwołanie do artykułu w wersji pol/en. In other words from the 15th May 2020 the limitation period is 20 years from the date of final expriopriation decision.
Sometimes, for example on the grounds of the agriculture reform to recover in kind, it is necesarry to start civil proceeding of reconciliation of the content of the land and mortage register with the actual legal status.
What is interesting is that some administrative compensation proceedings have not been finished with the final decision. It means that every such proceeding is still pending and should be concluded with the final decision based on current law what guarantees compensation adequate to current market value of real estate.
How Can We Help?
- Compulsory Purchase of Property by the Municipality
- Decrease in Property Value
- Planning Fee
- Local Spatial Development Plans and Building Conditions
- Property Expropriations
- Nationalization
- Reprivatization
- Inheritance Cases Involving Real Estate
- Obtaining Compensation
- Termination of Co-ownership
- Analysis of the Legal Status of Land
- Resolution of Court Disputes
- Resolution of Disputes Amicably
- Price Negotiations
- Contract Terms Negotiation
- Property-related Asset Division
Additional information
Regularization of Property Legal Status
Nadal wiele nieruchomości na nieuregulowany stan prawny. Przykłady są różne.
Nieraz osoba trzecia posiada nieruchomość bez tytułu prawnego , co może po upływie 20 lub 30 lat prowadzić do zasiedzenia nieruchomości wskutek czego taki posiadacz stanie się właścicielem.
W innych przypadku właściciel musi usunąć posiadacza bez tytułu prawnego w ramach powództwa windykacyjnego. Dzieje się tak np. gdy po wypowiedzeniu umowy najmu lub dzierżawy , osoba trzecia staje się użytkownikiem bez tytułu prawnego (tzw. bezumowne użytkowanie), lecz nie chce zwrócić nieruchomości właścicielowi. Ważne by właściciel pamiętał by w odpowiednim momencie przestać wystawiać faktury, a w ich miejsce obciążać samoistnego posiadacza notami księgowymi.
Wielokrotnie w księgach wieczystych znajdują się stare, nieaktualne wpisy w dziale III (ograniczenia) lub IV (hipoteka). Osoby uprawnione na podstawie takich starych, nieaktualnych wpisów często nie żyją i do wykreślenia takich wpisów z księgi wieczystej niezbędne jest podjęcie określonych czynności prawnych, którymi sią zajmujemy.
Niezależnie czy kupiłeś nieruchomości wczoraj czy 30 lat temu lub ją odziedziczyłeś, nasi prawnicy pomogą Tobie we wszystkich tych przypadkach.
Regularization of Property Legal Status
Many properties still have an unsettled legal status. The situations vary.
Sometimes a third party occupies the property without legal title, which, after 20 or 30 years, may lead to adverse possession, resulting in that occupant becoming the owner.
In other cases, the owner must remove an unlawful occupant through a recovery lawsuit. This happens, for example, when a third party becomes a user without legal title (so-called unauthorized use) after the termination of a lease or tenancy agreement but refuses to return the property to the owner. It is important for the owner to remember to stop issuing invoices at the appropriate time and instead charge the unauthorized occupant with accounting notes.
Often, outdated entries remain in land and mortgage registers in Section III (encumbrances) or Section IV (mortgages). The persons entitled under such old, outdated entries are often deceased, and deleting these entries from the register requires specific legal actions, which we handle.
Whether you purchased the property yesterday, 30 years ago, or inherited it, our lawyers will assist you in all these cases.
Reprivatization and Expropriation
Since 2003, Attorney-at-Law Marek Foryś has been extensively involved in matters related to expropriations, nationalizations, and reprivatizations. Over this time, he has participated in more than a hundred court and administrative cases acting as a legal representative for former owners or their heirs. He has successfully recovered properties worth millions of PLN for his clients and has also secured multimillion compensation awards.
These proceedings concern compensation for properties taken unlawfully, in violation of expropriation or nationalization legal acts, as well as the restitution of expropriated properties that were not used for the intended public purpose (note: the final deadline to submit applications for the return of properties expropriated over 20 years ago expired on May 14, 2020).
Property ownership can also be restored to former owners or their heirs by declaring administrative decisions invalid or by reconciling land register entries with the actual legal status.
Recovering the property in its original form is not always possible. In such cases, former owners or their heirs are entitled to compensation claims. These claims are pursued both in administrative and administrative-court proceedings, as well as before common courts (district, regional, appellate courts) and the Supreme Court. Sometimes a mixed procedure applies, meaning that after a prior declaration of a decision issued unlawfully or a decision denying compensation based on Article 160 of the Code of Administrative Procedure (KPA) — which, despite being repealed in 2004, still applies in certain situations — a claim for compensation is submitted to a common court.
There are cases where compensation has not been determined for several decades (despite the property being taken over by the State Treasury) or where owners’ appeals were not reviewed. In such cases, compensation can still be obtained based on currently binding regulations (though we have experience with cases where the appeal is decided under a pre-war 1928 administrative procedure regulation). We handle cases based on, among others, the following legal acts:
Act on the Principles and Procedure of Property Expropriation
Decree on Ownership and Use of Land in the Capital City of Warsaw (Bierut Decree)
Decree on Expropriation of Properties Taken for Public Utility Purposes During the 1939–1945 War Period
Decree on Acquisition and Transfer of Properties Necessary for the Implementation of National Economic Plans
Act on Single-Family Housing Areas in Cities and Settlements
Act on Building Areas in Rural Areas
Act on Land Management in Cities and Settlements
Act on Single-Family and Farmstead Housing Areas and on Property Division in Cities and Settlements
Decree on the Implementation of Agrarian Reform
Forest Decree
Act on Real Estate Management
Code of Administrative Procedure (Article 160 KPA)
Compensation
Compensations are strongly connected with real estate. We verify the proposals of compensations and assist you to obtain proper compensation, becouse the amount of the compensation should be adequate to it’s value. Unfortunetaly often it’s not even if the state treasury is your debtor.
Cancelation of co-ownership
Every real estate can be owned by several persons (co-ownership), as a result for exampe of inheritance. With lapse of time co-owners may have differents plans for the real estate. In result each co-owner is entitled to demand co-ownership cancelation. It may be cancelled in 3 different ways: by real estate division, by awardness to one of the co-owners with the obligation to pay off the other co-owners or by sell. It can be done in court proceeding or by notary with the consent of all the co-owners.
Due dilligance
To make sure the real estate is a good choice to obtain, we verify it’s legal status. Not only the consistency of the entries in the land and mortage register but also possible claims to the real estate or it’s owner. We also verify designation of the real estate in master plan or in decision on building conditions.
Spatial Planning
Real estate with no master plan can be furnished under decision on building conditions. To obtain such decision you have to fulfill 5 conditions of the article of the spatial planning act of the 23rd march 2003. These conditions are recognitiable and that is why it is so important to know what you are really entitled to and what is the case law of the administrative courts.
We also assist our clients in proceedings on master plans to guarantee the best development possibilites of your real estate.
If your real estate is planned for public purposes we will assist you in negotiations with the state treasury or local goverment unit.
Your real estate may also lose it’s value after passing or amending master plan. Then you are entitled to compensation or convertible real estate. Limitation period is 6 years from the day of passing or amending master plan. You are also entitled to compenastion or convertible real estate after purchasing real estate which lost it’s value under conditions of the master plan.
Court Disputes
Some cases just cannot be solved by reaching a settlement. In all these situations we assist you before courts and Supreme Court to fullfil the requirements of the court proceeding. Remember that ignorantia iuris neminen excusat and every single proceeding error may lead to lost.
Price Negotiations
Very popular among foreigners in Poland and Polish who live abroad (mainly in The United States and Australia) is negotiating real estate prices with our assist. With the knowledge of the legal matters we can advise you to purchase or not to purchase, to obtain or not to obtain.
With our assist you can save plenty of money. You can also save plenty of time, becouse we can act on behalf of you with the power of attorney
Lease and Tenancy
For your safety and proper perfomence of the contract we draft tenancy and lease agreements for certain puproses. We also draft bilingual polish-english contracts.
The Investment Process
We support investors on every stage of the investment process. From early stage of due dilligance, real estate purchase, through decision on buliding conditions and building permit by the end of investition with use permit. We assist you on the proceeding on master plan plan and all the necessary decisions and permissions.
Succession
Most estates contain real estate. When necessary we search for the heir. We also represent you before court to obtain declaration of succession or before notary to obtain notarial certification of succession. We assist you also in the proceeding for the estate partition and when you are entitled to legitim or you are a debtor of legitim.
Taxes in real estate
In Poland we used to say you can be certain of only two things in a life. These are death and taxes. Taxes influence on our decisions whenever you make a decision on real estate.
With right tax decision you are able to save a lot of money so we can lead you through such decisions.
Housing Communities
As attorney-at-law Marek Foryś is a member of management board of the housing, he can serve you with his personal and practical experience in full scope.
Real Estate Agents
We cooperate with real estate agents in everyday practise when our clients are interested in real estate purchasing. But not only becouse we support real estate agents practises to guarantee proper activity of their businees and to make sure it is legal in every aspect.
Surveyors
We cooperate with real estate agents in everyday practise when our clients are interested in real estate purchasing. But not only becouse we support real estate agents practises to guarantee proper activity of their businees and to make sure it is legal in every aspect.
Real estate valuers
We cooperate with real estate valuers whenever opinion on real estate value is needed. Attorney-at-law Marek Foryś graduated from post graduate studies of real estate valuation on Technical University in Szczecin.
Property managers We support also proper
We support also property managers and their clients in everyday practice.
Payment Security in Real Estate Transactions
Special law acts
Special law acts entitle state treasury and self government units to acquire real estate for public purposes such as roads, railways or airports in simplified procedure. In all these proceedings we assist you to ensure the proper amount of the compenastion.
Seeking for real estate owners or successors
In some cases real estate owners or their successors are unknown. Whenever it is necessary to seek for them we can do it on behalf of you in person or with the assist of the detective.
