From co-ownership to condominium: when and how the shift happens

Co-ownership (comunione) and condominium are not synonyms. In co-ownership two or more people own the same asset by ideal shares, without portions of exclusive property. In a condominium, by contrast, alongside units of exclusive property belonging to distinct parties there are common parts intended to serve them. The shift from co-ownership to condominium occurs when the property is fractioned: from ownership by shares over the whole asset one moves to exclusive ownership of individual units, with common parts remaining in co-ownership. At that moment the condominium arises, without the need for any deed of constitution.

The starting difference between co-ownership and condominium

In ordinary co-ownership each participant holds an ideal share of the whole asset and may at any time request dissolution and division, without the others being able to object. A regulation and an administrator are optional. In a condominium, by contrast, common parts are as a rule indivisible, because they serve the exclusively owned units, and their division would break the functional link. The condominium also has its own bodies and obligations, such as the owners' meeting and, beyond certain thresholds, the administrator and the regulation.

The condominium can therefore be described as a particular form of co-ownership, the one in which alongside common assets there are individual exclusive properties whose enjoyment depends on the common parts. It is this coexistence that marks the boundary between the two figures.

The moment of fractioning

The shift occurs with the fractioning of ownership. As long as the property belongs by undivided shares to several people, it is co-ownership. When those same people, or a new ownership arrangement, give rise to distinct units, each of exclusive ownership, and parts intended for common use remain, co-ownership turns into condominium. This can happen through a deed of division, through the sale of individual units to different parties or through the assignment of determined portions to the former co-owners.

• Division of the co-ownership with assignment of exclusive units to the participants
• Sale of determined portions of the property to different parties
• Succession that fractions distinct units with common parts among several heirs
• Construction or fractioning that creates several autonomous units in the same building

What changes with the birth of the condominium

With the condominium the presumptions of common ownership in Article 1117 apply: land, foundations, main walls, roof, stairs, courtyards and systems up to the branching point are presumed common, unless the title states otherwise. The obligations to contribute to expenses based on millesimi, the rules on assembly majorities in Articles 1136 and following, and the ban on dividing common parts kick in. The individual can no longer request dissolution as in ordinary co-ownership, because common parts serve the exclusive units.

The need also arises for a condominium tax code, orderly accounting management and, once the legal thresholds are exceeded, appointment of the administrator when owners exceed eight and of the regulation when they exceed ten.

When it stays co-ownership and does not become condominium

Not every coexistence of owners generates a condominium. If the property remains commonly owned by shares, without exclusive portions, it is still co-ownership: think of land or a building held pro indiviso by several heirs. The decisive element is missing, namely the coexistence of exclusive units and functionally linked common parts. In these cases the rules on co-ownership apply, with each party's right to request division, and not those on the condominium.

The practical consequences of the shift

Once co-ownership has become condominium, millesimi tables expressing the proportional value of each unit must be prepared, accounting with a dedicated account set up, and meetings organised according to the legal quorums. It is also necessary to map precisely which parts have become common and which are exclusively owned, to avoid disputes over expenses. It is a delicate moment, because the informal management typical of co-ownership gives way to stricter rules.

Setting up a new condominium from scratch, with owners register, units, tables and accounting, is easier with a tool designed for this. With AmministraPro the administrator creates the newly born condominium, imports the fractioned units, generates the millesimi tables and starts orderly accounting from the very first management period. The features are described on the /funzioni page and the plans on the /prezzi page.