Does the developer have to force you to purchase a parking space? Everything about underground garages

The Development Act, the provisions of which entered into force on July 1, 2022, now also covers contracts for the purchase of parking spaces and storage units.

Parking spaces are protected by the Developer’s Guarantee Fund, so the buyer can be sure that not only the funds for the purchase of the apartment, but also the parking space are protected in a special way. The protection applies from the first payment to the housing trust account belonging to the developer until the transfer of ownership of the property to the buyer – informs the RynekPierwotny.pl website.

The Constitutional Tribunal dealt with the tax on parking spaces in garages

People who purchase a parking space located outside (and not part of a building or a separate building) do not have to pay real estate tax. However, the situation is different in the case of parking spaces located in the garage.

Currently, there are two different rates of parking space tax, depending on whether the parking space in the garage is a separate property (it has its own land and mortgage register) or whether it is attached to the premises (i.e. when there is only one land and mortgage register, common to the premises and parking space). In practice, the tax amount is partly decided by the developer.

In the case of parking spaces that do not have a separate land and mortgage register, the real estate tax is the same as in the case of a residential premises. In 2022, it will be a maximum of PLN 1.15 per m2. In turn, in the case of parking spaces with a separate land and mortgage register, the rate of PLN 9.71 per m2 applies.

On October 18, 2023, the Constitutional Tribunal considered this issue and ruled that the provisions on tax rates for parking spaces are inconsistent with the Constitution. First of all, he pointed out the inconsistency with the principle of specificity of tax regulations to the extent that tax rates for a garage are justified depending on whether it is separated in a separate land and mortgage register.

Uniform tax rate from January 2025

“The Constitutional Tribunal found it unfair to impose a much higher tax, more than ten times higher, on taxpayers whose garages have a separate land and mortgage register. A garage or parking space is an element of the apartment. That is why, regardless of whether he has a separate land and mortgage register or not, he should be taxed in the same way,” we read on Freedom.pl.

The Constitutional Tribunal postponed the loss of legal force of the contested provisions until January 1, 2025. It cited the public interest, in particular related to the difficult financial situation of municipalities.

Within the scope of the legislative reform, the Constitutional Tribunal set the introduction of a new real estate tax act. New regulations regulating these rates are to enter into force from 2025. Many of its most important elements will have to change.

To sum up: From January 2025, from a tax point of view, a garage will be treated as an apartment. Their owners will pay the same tax for them as for their premises. Such changes are provided for, among others, by: amendment to the Act on Local Taxes and Fees and the Stamp Duty Act.

The new regulations will primarily apply to owners of single-family houses with garages in the building and parking spaces in apartment blocks. Due to the fact that the rate per square meter of the garage will be equal to the rate for the apartment, they will pay a single property tax for the entire amount.

Important: in 2024, the tax rate in a residential building is PLN 1.15 per 1 sq m of area, and in 2025 it will increase to PLN 1.19.

Can I buy a parking space without an apartment?

Typically, a parking space in a garage belongs to a specific premises and does not have its own land and mortgage register, which means that it is impossible to purchase such a space without purchasing an apartment. However, if a parking space, e.g. in an underground garage, has its own land and mortgage register and is treated as a separate property, purchasing such a space without purchasing an apartment is possible.

This may be a good solution, for example, for people who have already bought one apartment in a given investment, but have two cars – and therefore would like to buy an additional parking space.

People who decide to buy a place without premises should check whether the contract for the sale of a garage or parking space contains all the necessary information and data, and also whether the place has its own land and mortgage register.

Does the developer have to provide a parking space?

Pursuant to the Regulation of the Minister of Infrastructure of April 12, 2002 on the technical conditions to be met by buildings and their location, the developer should provide parking spaces for cars of permanent and periodic users, including parking spaces for cars used by people disabled. The number and method of arranging these places should be adapted to the requirements set out in the decision on the conditions of development and land development.

In the light of this provision, parking spaces must be designed and arranged on the investor’s property where the investment is to be implemented. Additionally, they must be permanent – they cannot be parking spaces only for the duration of construction or for a certain initial period of use of the building.

Can a developer impose the purchase of a parking space?

This question was answered by the Supreme Court in its judgment of November 8, 2012 (reference number I CSK 49/12). After the courts of two previous instances issued different judgments, the Supreme Court found that the developer may offer apartments for sale with the obligation to purchase a parking space.