Terraced houses: roads and common spaces in the condominium

A terraced-house complex is, in every respect, a condominium when the homes, though autonomous, share internal roads, access driveways, parking or green areas. The Court of Cassation has clarified that the presence of common parts among those listed in Article 1117 of the Italian Civil Code is enough to constitute a condominium, even without a building developed in height. Roads and common spaces therefore follow condominium rules on management, maintenance and expense allocation.

Why terraced houses form a condominium

The horizontal condominium arises from the coexistence of exclusively owned units, the individual houses, and parts intended for common use. The vertical development of the building does not matter: what counts is the functional link between the homes and the shared assets. If the houses have a single gate, an access driveway, a parking area or a common garden, those assets are common parts and their management falls under condominium rules, applied insofar as they are compatible with the horizontal structure.

Not everything, however, is automatically common. The portions serving the individual house remain exclusive property: the roof of one's own unit, the non-shared perimeter walls, the fenced and assigned appurtenant garden. The boundary between what is common and what is exclusive is read in the purchase titles and, where it exists, in the contractual regulation drawn up by the developer.

What the typical common parts are

In terraced houses the elements serving all or several units of the complex are usually common.

• Internal roads and driveways giving access to the houses
• Vehicle and pedestrian gate at the entrance of the precinct
• Common parking areas and manoeuvring spaces
• Common green areas and perimeter fencing of the complex
• Sewer, water and lighting networks serving several units

Sharing the expenses of roads and driveways

Maintenance expenses of common parts are shared based on proportional values, usually according to millesimi tables. An important principle applies, however: when a common part serves only a group of houses, and not all of them, the related expenses fall solely on the owners who benefit, under Article 1123, third paragraph, of the Civil Code. Thus, if an internal road serves only some units or a gutter is shared by two adjoining houses, only the owners actually served contribute.

This criterion prevents everyone from paying for works that benefit only some. To apply it correctly it is essential to map which assets serve the entire complex and which only portions, preparing distinct tables when the situation requires.

Management and the administrator

Like every condominium, a terraced-house one is bound to the ordinary obligations. Appointing an administrator becomes mandatory when owners exceed eight, and a regulation when they exceed ten. Below these thresholds management can be handled directly by the owners, but the obligations to contribute to common expenses and the rules on decisions remain firm. The horizontal condominium must obtain a tax code and, when it manages common expenses, keep orderly accounting.

Recurring problems in villa complexes

The most frequent disputes concern precisely the classification of parts: is that fence, that stretch of road, that wall common or exclusive? And, consequently, who pays for maintenance. Another typical issue is the maintenance of assets serving only some houses, such as sections of driveway or partial systems. Clarity of titles and tables is the best prevention: where the contractual regulation and the tables are precise, conflicts are drastically reduced.

Managing a horizontal condominium with variable-geometry common parts is easier with a tool allowing dedicated tables for groups of units and differentiated allocations. With AmministraPro the administrator models the complex's common parts, sets up tables for assets serving only some houses and produces transparent allocations. The features are described on the /funzioni page and the plans on the /prezzi page.