We offer you a quick and simple guide on the certificate of legitimate status of the property, a very useful document to guarantee the success of a real estate sale.
Article 10 of the Simplification Decree, converted into law 120 of 2020, introduced new and peculiar measures in the field of construction and real estate.
Among these, the most important is undoubtedly the introduction of the so-called “certificate of legitimate status of the property.”
THE CONCEPT OF THE LEGITIMATE STATUS OF A PROPERTY
Pursuant to the new paragraph 1 bis of art. 9-bis of the Consolidated Law on construction matters, it means the state “established by the qualification that provided for its construction or by that which regulated the last building intervention that affected the entire property or property unit, integrated with any subsequent titles that enabled partial interventions.”
The concept of “legitimate state” of a building therefore aims to indicate the constructive result obtained following the work carried out in compliance with a building permit: both the one enabling the original construction work and the one on the basis of which subsequent construction work has been carried out with respect to the original work.
More simply, the expression legitimate status of a property refers to the authorizations that led to the legal construction of the property or to the legitimate congruence of the modifications made subsequently.
WHEN THE PROPERTY STATUS CAN BE SAID LEGITIMATE
From reading article 9-bis of the Consolidated Law on construction, it is understood that the legitimate status of a property can result:
- for properties built on the basis of a qualifying title (such as sworn notification of commencement of works, certified notification of commencement of activity, building permit), from what appears from the title under which the property itself was built, or from what it regulated the last building intervention, as well as any further and subsequent supplementary titles;
- for properties built before 1 September 1967 (a period in which there was not yet an obligation to obtain a building permit, and for which a declaration in lieu of an affidavit is required in the relevant sales deeds), from that which can be deduced from first-time cadastral information or from other probative documents, such as photographs, cartographic extracts or archive documents.
The same criterion also applies in the case in which “there is a principle of proof of the qualification“, i.e. a clue, a trace of its existence, but a copy of the relevant document is not available.
CONSTRUCTION TOLERANCES
Closely linked to the concept of the legitimate state of the property are the so-called “constructive” or “executive” tolerances.
In the event that the property does not faithfully reflect the project, the law allows these tolerances, i.e. those discrepancies in the building parameters that do not exceed certain limits compared to what is established in the building permit.
In particular:
- Failure to comply with the height, separations, volume, covered surface area and other parameter inherent to the individual real estate units, contained within the limit of 2% of the measurements provided for in the qualification.
- Geometric irregularities, minor changes to finishes, different placement of systems and internal works (unless they are buildings burdened by historical-artistic restrictions), which occurred during the works carried out for the implementation of building permits, provided that the usability of the building is not compromised.
WHO DRAFTS THE CERTIFICATE OF LEGITIMATE STATUS
Article 34 bis, paragraph 3 of the Consolidated Law on Construction 380/2001 establishes that the drafting of the certificate of legitimate state of the property is the responsibility of a qualified technician (engineer, surveyor or architect), following a regularly conducted assessment on the property subject to the sale, confirming the actual fulfillment of the rules corresponding to the building title to which it refers and the executive tolerance.
ADVANTAGES OF THE CERTIFICATE
The certificate of legitimate status represents a sort of “license” or “passport” of the property, which can be used in practice to verify its regularity and demonstrate the legitimacy of the construction in a legally certain manner.
Although it is not a mandatory document, as such, in the notarial phase, the Notary cannot demand it if it is not present – it constitutes further protection for the parties to a sale, facilitating transactions and guaranteeing greater legal security for buyers and owners.
In conclusion, thanks to the certificate of legitimate status, it is possible to have a clear and updated vision of the legal status of the property, dispelling any doubts about its construction and urban planning regularity, and consequently reducing the risks of disputes and controversies, thus ensuring a good outcome of the sale.
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