This is the English version of a Turkish article. The original, with further detail and linked petition templates, is at Apartman Yönetimi: Kat Malikleri Kurulu, Aidat ve Karar İptali.
Resolutions of the owners' assembly are taken as a rule by a majority in number and in land share; some require a special threshold (Act No. 634). Works that alter the architecture of the building require unanimity. An owner who did not vote for a resolution may bring an action to annul it within one month of learning of it.
Below: the meeting and voting thresholds, the service charge obligation, and the action to annul a resolution. KMK means the Condominium Act No. 634.
Meeting and Voting Thresholds
Ordinary meeting (art. 29). The owners' assembly meets at least once a year, at the times set in the management plan. If none is set, it meets in the first month of each calendar year.
Extraordinary meeting. On an important cause arising, at the request of the manager, the auditor or one third of the owners, convened by a signed notice or registered letter to every owner at least fifteen days before the requested date.
Quorum (art. 30). The assembly meets with more than half the owners in number and in land share and decides by majority.
Where the first meeting cannot be held for want of a quorum, the second is held at the latest fifteen days later, and resolutions are then taken by an absolute majority of those attending.
The Act provides special thresholds for certain resolutions, and that distinction matters greatly.
Resolutions Requiring a Special Majority
Unanimity: adding a storey to the building, replacing a set-back storey with a full one, or creating new independent units in the ground floor or basement (art. 44) requires the unanimous vote of all owners.
Four-fifths: amending the management plan requires the votes of four fifths of all owners (art. 28), as do very costly or luxury improvements.
Majority in number and land share: under art. 42, works, repairs and installations in the common parts, and a change in the colour of the exterior paint, require a resolution by a majority in number and land share. Where a modification of the design is necessary for the life of a disabled person, a simple majority of owners suffices.
An error in the threshold is the most frequently used ground for annulment, so the vote counts and land shares recorded in the minute book should be checked.
| Resolution | Majority required |
|---|---|
| Ordinary management matters | Majority in number and land share |
| Election of the manager | Majority in number and land share |
| Amending the management plan | Four fifths of the owners |
| Useful improvements and additions to common parts | Majority in number and land share |
| Very costly and luxury improvements | Four fifths of the owners |
| Altering the architecture of the building | Unanimity |
| Adding a common part to an independent unit | Unanimity |
| Terminating condominium ownership | Unanimity |
Where the first meeting is inquorate, the second is held and resolutions are taken by an absolute majority of those attending — except where a special threshold applies.
Can Service Charges Be Refused?
Under KMK art. 20, unless the owners have agreed otherwise, each is obliged to contribute:
- equally to the costs of the caretaker, boiler operator, gardener and watchman, and to advances collected for them;
- in proportion to the land share to the insurance premiums, the maintenance, protection, strengthening and repair of all common parts, the manager's salary and other such costs, the operating costs of common installations, and advances collected for them.
The critical rule: an owner cannot avoid paying by renouncing the right to use the common parts, or by arguing that the position of their unit means they have no need of them.
So "I don't use the lift" and "the flat is empty" are not answers to a service charge demand.
Default compensation: any owner or the manager may bring an action or start enforcement against an owner who does not pay. The defaulting owner owes default compensation at five per cent a month.
A tenant is also jointly liable with the owner for common expenses, up to the amount of the rent.
Annulling a Resolution
Under KMK art. 33, the matter is decided by the civil court of peace where the building is situated, on the application of an owner, a tenant, or anyone else with a continuing right of use.
Time limits. An owner who attended the meeting must sue within one month of the date of the resolution; an owner who did not attend, within one month of learning of it and in any event within six months of the date of the resolution.
These are forfeiture periods.
Where a resolution is non-existent or void for absolute nullity, no period applies and a declaration may be sought at any time.
Grounds for annulment: defective convening, failure to meet the meeting or voting threshold, a resolution on a matter not on the agenda, breach of the Act or the management plan, and abuse of right.
A procedural point: disputes arising from condominium ownership are subject to compulsory mediation. This does not extend the one-month period — the application suspends it, so it must be made before the period expires.
An action to annul must be brought within one month — from the date of the resolution for an owner who attended, from learning of it for one who did not — and in any event within six months of the resolution. Mediation is a condition of the action and the application suspends the period, so apply before it runs out.
Frequently Asked Questions
Must I pay the service charge?
Yes. You cannot avoid it by saying you do not use the common parts.
What is the interest on late service charges?
Default compensation at five per cent a month.
Is a tenant liable for the service charge?
A tenant is jointly liable with the owner, up to the amount of the rent.
How do I challenge a resolution?
By an action in the civil court of peace where the building is. One month from the resolution if you attended, from learning of it if you did not.
What majority is needed to add a storey?
The unanimous vote of all owners, as for creating new independent units in the ground floor or basement.