Eierseksjoner

An eierseksjon (condominium section) is an ownership share in a sectioned property with the exclusive right to use a specific use unit, typically a flat or a business premises. Once the sectioning is complete, each section is a separate legal object and can be sold and mortgaged independently of the rest of the joint ownership body. Together with the borettslag share, the eierseksjon is the dominant form of flat ownership in Norway, and it is the preferred structure in newer residential buildings and mixed residential/commercial buildings.

The legal basis is eierseksjonsloven (the Condominium Act) from 2017, which replaced the 1997 act. Each section is classified as a residential section or a business section and is tied to a notional ownership fraction of the common areas. The petition for sectioning is sent to the kommune, which has a 12 week processing deadline under eierseksjonsloven § 14 (if the deadline is exceeded, the sectioning fee is reduced by 25% for each week started) before the decision is registered in Grunnboken at Kartverket. Each section gets its own seksjonsnummer (snr.) in the matrikkel.

The joint ownership body is an independent legal entity that manages the common areas and sets the shared costs. The costs are shared according to the ownership fraction unless the annual meeting decides otherwise. Decisions require:

• A simple majority for ordinary operational matters.
• A two thirds majority for material changes to the joint ownership body (structural changes, changes to the articles).
• Consent from all section owners for changes to ownership fractions or removal of the exclusive right to a use unit.

The act contains some important practical limits:

• The acquisition limit (§ 23) prevents anyone from owning more than two residential sections in the same joint ownership body. The tightening came in 2020 after the Airbnb trend.
• Short term letting of your own section for less than 30 days is limited to 90 days per year under § 24.
• A statutory lien for unpaid shared costs under § 31: the joint ownership body has a lien set by law without registration, capped at 2G (folketrygdens grunnbeløp, the National Insurance basic amount) per section.

It is important to distinguish an eierseksjon from a share flat in a borettslag. In a borettslag you own a share with a right of use under borettslagslova, not the home itself, and the borettslag board can set residence and ownership requirements that are not possible in a condominium joint ownership body. Older residential joint ownerships that are not sectioned are governed by sameieloven and have fewer formal requirements, but also weaker legal protection in disputes between the owners. When a transfer of legal title for an eierseksjon is registered, a document duty of 2.5% applies (while a borettslag share is exempt).

In commercial property, condominium sectioning is used to split a building into saleable units, typically for shopping centres, office buildings with mixed tenants or mixed buildings with housing above and retail below. The business section structure gives each tenant or owner individual legal title and the option to mortgage.

In Placepoint you can see the sectioning of a property in the property panel. Each section is shown with its own seksjonsnummer, and you can look up the owner and encumbrances per section.

How it looks in Placepoint

In Placepoint you find this in the Property panel:

From Placepoint's glossary: Eierseksjoner

More information: Lovdata: Eierseksjonsloven, Kartverket: Seksjonere eiendom, Store norske leksikon: eierseksjon

English: Condominium sections (eierseksjoner, Norwegian-specific freehold model).

Frequently asked questions

What is an eierseksjon?

An eierseksjon is an ownership share in a sectioned property with the exclusive right to use a specific use unit. After sectioning, each section is an independent legal object that can be sold and mortgaged freely.

What is the difference between an eierseksjon and a borettslag flat?

With an eierseksjon you own the flat itself. In a borettslag you own a share with a right of use, and the building itself is owned by the borettslag. Eierseksjoner have fewer purchase restrictions than borettslag shares.

Who can section a property?

The owner of the property can petition for sectioning. The application is sent to the kommune, which checks that the requirements in eierseksjonsloven are met, and then the sectioning is registered at Kartverket.

What is the joint ownership body responsible for in a condominium?

The joint ownership body is responsible for maintaining common areas and shared parts of the building. The section owners pay shared costs according to their ownership fraction. Decisions are made at the owners' meeting under eierseksjonsloven.

What is a sameiebrøk?

The sameiebrøk (ownership fraction) states each section owner's share of the joint ownership body, and is used to allocate shared costs and voting rights. It is set during sectioning and appears in the sectioning petition.