Filenews 22 January 2026 - by Vassos Vassiliou
A total of 219,635 residential units, which are located in 20,919 jointly owned buildings across Cyprus, are affected by the legislation that was promoted in August 2023 for approval by the Parliament under the general title "The Management of Shared Buildings and Related Issues Law of 2023", with the aim of solving the chronic problems that concern hundreds of thousands of citizens. The data that will be submitted today before the parliamentary committee on the Interior, come from the Land Registry Department and according to them, the picture with the communally owned buildings is as follows:
>> The registered communal buildings amount to 14,208 throughout Cyprus and concern 159,659 residential units (mainly apartments).
>> Unregistered communal buildings amount to 6,711 (nationwide) and concern 59,976 units.
The largest volume of registered communal buildings is located in Nicosia (4,927) and represents 53,553 units, while the fewest registered communal buildings (898) are located in Larnaca and represent 9,895 units.
As for the unregistered jointly owned buildings, most of them are also located in Nicosia and amount to 2,297 buildings representing 19,688 units. The fewest unregistered communal buildings are located in Larnaca (758) and represent 6,865 units.
In total, in Nicosia there are 7,224 building communities (registered and unregistered) and they represent 73,241 units. In Famagusta there are 1,832 jointly owned buildings and they represent 19,266 units.
For the EOAs, the figures are crucial in the sense that, on the basis of them, they will assess whether taking over the management of the communal buildings will not cause them harm, as it will require the recruitment of additional staff to carry out the whole project.
As it is known, at the last meeting of the Parliamentary Committee on the Interior, before which the relevant bill is being discussed, the president of the EOA of Nicosia, Constantinos Yiorkadjis, speaking on behalf of the rest of his colleagues, stated that the Ministry of the Interior did not consult with them before assigning them the responsibility of managing the jointly owned buildings.
It is noted that, after the fact, meetings were held with the participation of the competent Departments of the Ministry of Interior and the presidents of the EOAs, with the latter requesting the preparation of a study on the assumption of competence by the EOAs and the operation of a Service for the Registration and Supervision of the Operation of Management Committees of Communal Buildings in the Organizations. The relevant study was prepared by the Land Registry Department and includes a calculation of the required staff per province, as well as an estimate of the cost of employees' remuneration in relation to the contributory fees, in order to determine whether the fees are satisfactory for the operation of the Service. The fees that will arise if the proposal for their calculation based on the number of residential units is adopted were also calculated. The Land Registry recommends that the charge for the registration and appointment of a Management Committee be based on the number of units of each development.
What does the bill provide?
Based on the promoted legislation, the Provincial Self-Government Organizations undertake the Service of Registration and Supervision, Operation of Management Committees of Communal Buildings. It is noted that communally owned buildings are considered to be those with five units or more. The vast majority are apartments, but there are also mainly organized complexes of houses.
The EOAs developed their positions in a letter which they sent to the Minister of the Interior and which they also communicated to the Parliamentary Committee on the Interior. The following are also recorded in it:
Based on the bill, the NGOs assume the responsibility for the establishment and operation of the Management Committees of all commonly owned buildings. Specifically, among others, they will have the following responsibilities:
>> Registration of Management Committees and keeping a register.
>> Supervision of the operation of the Management Committees.
>> Resolving personal disputes between co-owners.
>> Imposition of an administrative fine on Management Committees and/or owners.
The original proposal for a Law provided for the establishment of a Registration Council which would handle the issues of management of communally owned buildings, which was not accepted by the Ministry of Interior and it was decided that the competence should be transferred to the local authorities. The municipalities reacted strongly to the assumption of this responsibility and consultations with the Union of Municipalities followed.
"We understand," the letter of the HOA to the Ministry of the Interior states, "that you had proceeded to consultations with the Union of Municipalities. The Provisional Coordinating Councils that were responsible for the preparation of the Provincial Organizations could have been informed and this did not happen."
Where do the EOAs' disagreements focus
With the reform of Local Government and the transfer of licensing responsibilities to the EOAs, the Ministry of the Interior decided to transfer the responsibility for the management of communal buildings to the EOAs.
The NGOs did not participate in the drafting of the bill, nor in the public consultation that took place, since it had already been prepared before their creation. The EOAs were invited to Parliament for the first time to discuss the issue on 25/11/2024. When the bill was discussed at the session of the Parliamentary Committee on the Interior on 25/09/2025, no EOA was present.
Mr. Georghadjis considers that the registration and supervision of the operation of the Management Committees does not concern related responsibilities of the EOA, and therefore should not be transferred to them. In order to carry out the work, it is necessary to create a new Service in the EOAs, which will be staffed with a large number of people, given the very large number of jointly owned buildings that exist in the capital, who will have experience in the subject, which has not been provided for in the structure of the NGOs. The fees provided for in the bill are negligible and disproportionate in relation to the operating and other costs that the EOAs will bear for the establishment of the new Service and it must be taken into account that they are self-financed Organizations. For these and other reasons, the EOAs declare that they are not ready to take over this Service.
During the last session of the Parliamentary Committee on Home Affairs, the NGOs requested an extension for consultation. At the same time, they had indicated that it is inconceivable to request the assumption of responsibilities without a study on the reciprocity of fees, structure, housing offices, software with a specific workflow and preparation for taking up duties, stressing that the NGOs cannot meet the requirements of this management as they are today. During today's session, it will become clear whether the EOAs and the Ministry of the Interior have reached an agreement so that the process of approving the bill can proceed.
