Venezuelan President Sets Legal Framework for Shared “Multifamily Property”

Mérida, April 8th 2011 (Venezuelanalysis.com) – On Wednesday Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez used his legislative authority to decree a new property rights framework for the pending Grand Venezuela Housing Mission, expected to be launched early next week.

Establishing “multifamily property” to classify shared property within government-provided housing, the new law stipulates the formation of elected committees of residents to collectively manage “problems that might affect the community” in shared spaces such as sport and recreation facilities and green areas.

As the government prepares for the 12 April 2011 launch of Grand Venezuela Housing Mission, Chávez’s presidential decree established a series of rights and responsibilities for residents with access to “multifamily property,” including the “social control” of these properties by a “Multifamily Management Committee.”

While Article 3 of the new law stipulates that individual owners of government-provided housing maintain their existing rights to sell or separate themselves from said property, Article 4 establishes the “multifamily property” framework for shared spaces associated with housing units granted to families as part of the upcoming Bicentennial Housing Mission.  

Article 9 guarantees each family the right to “use and enjoy” their own particular “family property (home or apartment),” while Article 10 defines shared rights to “multifamily property” as “areas of collective use and enjoyment” by the entirety of families living together. These collective “multifamily” properties include green spaces and gardens, sport and recreation facilities, meeting spaces, walkways, and stairways, among others. .  

As stipulated in Article 15, each family within a given multifamily housing unit is guaranteed one vote with which to elect representatives to a “Multifamily Management Committee.” This committee is responsible for analyzing all problems that affect the collective’s use of shared spaces, and has the legal authority to analyze and decide upon how to resolve said problems.

In addition, Article 18 of the law commits the national government to taking social programs, food distribution systems, child-care facilities, public schools and primary health care centers, among other social services, to on-site facilities within “multifamily properties” so long as the conditions permit it.  

Published on 6 April 2011 in the government’s Gaceta Oficial, the 21 article decree is one of several laws passed by the president using an enabling law granted to him by Venezuela’s outgoing national assembly in late December, 2010.

According to Venezuelan daily Correo del Orinoco, Venezuela’s executive branch intends to construct two million quality housing units during the 2011 – 2017 period as part of the Grand Venezuela Housing Mission.