Worth knowing about finances

In this section, you'll get a brief overview of how the water and heating billing system works. Every month or quarter you will receive a provisional invoice for the payment of water and heating. This is a prepayment based on an estimate of your expected consumption. When the heating and/or water accounting year ends, an assessment of your actual consumption for that period will be made. You will then receive a heating and a water bill. Depending on whether you have overpaid or underpaid during the accounting year, you will either receive a refund or be billed for the outstanding amount.

When Selling Your Property

If you sell your cooperative housing unit in the middle of a heating and water accounting year, there are some things you should be aware of. As administrators, we have the option to withhold an amount for any subsequent payment for the period you have lived in the unit during the accounting year. The withheld amount—minus any subsequent payment—will typically be released to you no later than four months after the end of the heating and water accounting year. If you are leaving the housing cooperative, it's important that we have your new address. This is so we can send you any relevant information and updates. If you have questions or need further guidance regarding the sale of your cooperative housing unit, we are here to help you. Please do not hesitate to contact us.

If you are planning to sell your cooperative housing unit, it is crucial to have all improvements in the unit properly valued. The total amount you can sell your share for consists of:

• The share value, determined at the regular general assembly

• The value of improvements in your unit

Assessment of improvements

The aim of the assessment is to ensure that each improvement actually adds value and can be charged for. This protects the buyer from overpaying and shields you from objections during the sale. Our construction technical advisors can assist you in conducting this assessment. We evaluate the unit in collaboration with representatives from the board and yourself. The assessment report describes the condition of the unit and whether the completed improvements meet the requirements set by public authorities or the cooperative housing association's bylaws. The report will also indicate if there are any deficiencies in the unit compared to an average unit in the cooperative housing association.

Sale of personal property

You may have personal property that you wish to sell to the buyer, such as carpets, curtains, furnishings, or other items. You cannot demand that the buyer takes over your personal property, but if the buyer is interested, you can make a separate agreement. This agreement can be included in the transfer agreement, but it must be explicitly stated that the price for the personal property is not part of the price for the housing share itself.

Need an Assessment?

You can request an assessment from our experienced valuation staff.

You have the option to use your cooperative housing share as collateral when borrowing money. This applies to loans for purchasing the share as well as loans for kitchen renovations, car purchases, and similar expenses. Often, the bank will actually require that the share be used as collateral. In practice, this means that your lender registers a mortgage on your share. This mortgage is recorded in the cooperative housing book. It's not just your own loans that can be registered against your share and entered into the Cooperative Housing Book. If you find yourself in a situation where you have an unpaid bill that goes to collections, the creditor can obtain permission to place a mortgage on your cooperative housing unit. This is also recorded in the Cooperative Housing Book.

Certificate of title

When a mortgage is to be registered in the Cooperative Housing Book, we are contacted by your creditor. This is because we, as administrators, must complete a 'Certificate of Title,' where we declare that you are the owner of the share. You will have to pay a fee for this certificate, even if you did not request the mortgage to be registered, for example, if it is due to an unpaid bill.

Sale of the Cooperative Housing Unit

When you sell your cooperative housing unit, you must pay off all loans registered against the share—meaning all mortgages must be removed before you can transfer the unit to the buyer. In practice, we, as administrators, will ensure that your creditors are paid from the purchase amount before any surplus is released to you.

Sale in Case of Over-Mortgaging

If your share is over-mortgaged, it's important to contact your creditors before selling your share. Your creditors will not receive full repayment of their outstanding amount, and they are therefore not obligated to remove their mortgage on your share immediately. Therefore, you must ensure that the mortgage holders agree to remove their mortgage on your share, even if the amount will not be fully repaid. You must send us written confirmation of this acceptance in connection with the sale.

As a shareholder in our cooperative housing association, it's important to pay your housing fee and other charges on time. This is necessary to maintain a good financial balance in the association and to secure the community.

If a situation arises where the payment is delayed, we will send you a friendly reminder so you have the opportunity to correct it. We understand that unforeseen circumstances can arise, and we are here to help.

If there are still outstanding payments after the reminder, we will have to contact you again to find a solution. Naturally, we want to avoid exclusion from the association and foreclosure.

For the sake of good order, an explanation of exclusion and foreclosure follows below.

Exclusion

the case of exclusion, unfortunately, this means that your share in the association's assets and your right to use the housing will cease. In other words, you must move out on short notice and hand over the housing in cleared and cleaned condition to the board.

Even though you no longer have the right to sell your share, you will still be responsible for the payment of the housing fee, etc., until the share is sold.

The board will then sell your housing in accordance with the statutes and at the best possible price. However, it may be necessary to sell the housing at a reduced price.

Any surplus from the sale will be returned to you after deducting the necessary costs associated with the sale. We will do our best to ensure that this process is carried out as fairly and transparently as possible.

Foreclosure

The board may also choose to put your share up for foreclosure. This happens in situations where your share is over-mortgaged, and the association cannot reach an agreement with your mortgage holders that the share is sold in 'free trade,' and the mortgage holders delete their mortgage/lien, even though there is no coverage.

Regardless of the approach chosen, you are obliged to move out of the cooperative apartment. If you do not do so, the bailiff's court will be involved. This means that you will be summoned to a meeting in the bailiff's court.

We understand that it is difficult to be in a situation where you cannot pay your housing fee, etc. However, it never helps to ignore the situation. Therefore, talk to the board about how your situation is best resolved. It may be that the board is willing to enter into a payment plan with you or perhaps to give you a deadline to find a buyer yourself.