Disputes with the community over noise, tourist flats and common areas

Key rules

• Order of steps: Go to the administrator or president first, then the owners' meeting, then mediation, and court last.
• Tourist lets: Limiting tourist lets needs three-fifths of owners who also hold three-fifths of the quotas.
• Nuisance: For a nuisance activity, the president sends a formal requirement to stop before the meeting votes on court action.
• Challenge deadline: You have three months to challenge a decision, or one year if it breaks the law or the statutes.

The route is formal, and the order matters

Disputes in a block follow a ladder: the administrator or president, then the owners' meeting, then mediation, then court. Start at the bottom rung and move up only if it fails. Written complaints leave a record you will need later. The timeline and checklist below walk through each step.

Start with the administrator or president

Send your complaint in writing to the administrator (the professional who runs the building) or the president (the owner elected to lead the community). Say what happens, when, and how often. Most noise and common-area problems end here.

Put it on the meeting agenda

If nothing changes, ask for the issue to be added to the agenda of the next owners' meeting. The owners can then discuss it and decide what to do.

Nuisance and unlawful activities

Owners and occupiers cannot carry out activities that are forbidden by the community's statutes, harm the building, or are a nuisance, unhealthy, noxious, dangerous or unlawful. Here the process is set:

1. The president sends the owner a formal requirement to stop, with a warning of legal action.
2. If the activity continues, the meeting votes by majority to start a court action to stop it.
3. The case goes through ordinary civil court, with the community's authorisation.

If the court agrees, it can order the activity to stop and award compensation for damage. If the activity persists, it can take away the owner's right to use the property for up to three years. A tenant can lose the right to occupy the flat.

Tourist flats

A community can limit or put conditions on tourist lets, or add extra fees of up to 20% for those flats. It needs a vote of three-fifths of the owners who also hold three-fifths of the quotas (each flat's share of the building). This applies since April 2019.

A ban is not retroactive. It does not reach a flat that was already operating as a tourist let, and the Supreme Court has held that a ban cannot be imposed on an owner who did not agree to it. Tourist lets also need registration in the national single registry, required from July 2025. Regional rules can add conditions, so check with your region and ask the administrator whether the community has approved a limit, and when.

Mediation before court

Mediation or conciliation is voluntary in principle. Under the 2025 efficiency law it is usually required before most civil claims, so try it before you file. Rules on this are recent, so confirm the current requirement with a lawyer or the court office before filing.

Challenging a meeting decision

You can challenge a decision in court if you voted against it or were absent. You must also be up to date with your community payments. The deadline is three months, or one year if the decision breaks the law or the community's statutes. The "What if you disagree" section below covers this situation.

If you are a buyer or tenant and these rules matter to your choice, ask the administrator for the statutes and recent meeting minutes before you sign.

Timeline and deadlines

• Complain directly to the administrator or the president: first step, as soon as the problem starts

• Ask for the issue to be added to the agenda of the next owners' meeting: if the complaint does not solve it

• For a nuisance or unlawful activity, the president sends a formal requirement to stop, with a warning of legal action: before any court action

• Try mediation or conciliation: if the issue is still unresolved and before filing most civil claims

• The meeting votes by majority to start a court action to stop the activity: if the activity continues after the formal requirement

• Go to court: last step, after the earlier steps have failed

• Challenge a meeting decision in court: within three months, or one year if it breaks the law or the statutes; absent owners have 30 days from being notified

Checklist

• For a nuisance, unlawful or dangerous activity, ask the president to send the owner a formal requirement to stop, with a warning of legal action.

• If the activity continues, ask the meeting to vote by majority on a court action to stop it.

• Before challenging a meeting decision, make sure you are up to date with your payments and that you voted against it or were absent.

What if you disagree with an owners' decision?

You can challenge an owners' decision in court, but the deadlines are short, there are conditions, and you usually still have to pay while the case runs.

The deadline

You have three months to challenge a decision, or one year if it breaks the law or the community's statutes. If you were absent from the meeting, you have 30 days from being notified of the decision. These are strict limits. A late challenge is rejected, so see a lawyer as soon as you decide to act.

Who can challenge

You can challenge if you:

• voted against the decision,
• were wrongly stopped from voting, or
• were absent from the meeting.

If you voted in favour, you cannot challenge.

What you must do first

You must be up to date with your community fees and other debts, or deposit the amount you owe with the court. Without this, the court will not hear your case. A lawyer can tell you whether an exception to this condition applies to your decision.

The claim is brought against the community, represented by its president.

Keep paying while you wait

Voting against a levy does not excuse you from paying it. A valid decision binds every owner, including those who disagreed or were absent. Starting a challenge does not pause the decision either. Only a judge can suspend it, and only if you ask.

If you stop paying, the community can use a fast court procedure to recover the money. You would also risk failing the "up to date" condition above. In most cases, pay the levy and challenge in parallel.

Frequently asked questions

Does a community ban on tourist lets apply to my flat if it already operates as one?

No, a community ban on tourist lets does not apply to a flat that was already operating, because the decision is not retroactive. What happens to an existing flat also depends on when the ban was approved and on your region's rules, so ask your administrator for the date of the vote.

What can the court do if a neighbour keeps causing a nuisance after a warning?

The court can order the neighbour to stop the activity and pay compensation for the damage. If the activity continues, it can also take away their right to use the property for up to three years, and a tenant can lose the right to stay in the flat.

Do I have to try mediation before taking a neighbour or the community to court?

Yes, for most civil claims you usually have to try mediation or conciliation first, even though both are voluntary in themselves. This is a recent requirement, so ask the court or a lawyer whether your claim is covered.

Can I challenge a meeting decision if I owe community fees?

No, you can only challenge a meeting decision if you are up to date with your payments.