Selling your flat in Flanders: the building manager and the asbestos certificate for the common parts

Every owners' association (vereniging van mede-eigenaars, VME) of a building from before 2001 must have an asbestos certificate for the common parts by 31 December 2026 at the latest (OVAM). From 1 January 2027, on every transfer of a flat the prospective buyer receives both the certificate of the flat itself and that of the common parts. If the certificate for the common parts is missing, the transfer is blocked.

The construction year in the cadastral register counts, even after a renovation (OVAM). If a certificate for the common parts already exists, you give that to the buyer as well.

If you sign the sale agreement (compromis) in 2026 and the deed follows in 2027, ask your notary which certificates have to be ready at the deed.

The owners' association is responsible, and in practice the building manager arranges it. If the general meeting decides not to have a certificate drawn up, that goes in the minutes and the owners' association itself bears the consequences. If there is no building manager, the co-owners arrange it together (OVAM).

As the owner of one flat, you therefore depend on the owners' association for this certificate, and Hoobler cannot make it for you either. Ask your building manager now whether the certificate exists or when it will be ready, certainly if you want to sell in 2027.

The asbestos expert sets the price themselves, based among other things on the number of buildings, the transport and the number of samples. OVAM adds a fee of € 59 on top, which the expert passes on (OVAM).

For your flat itself, the same certificates apply in Flanders as for a house, per housing unit:

• EPC (energy performance certificate): compulsory before you put the flat up for sale, with the label in your advertisement (Flemish government). Every block of flats also has an EPC for the common parts, which is used for the EPC of your flat.
• Asbestos certificate of your flat: for a building from before 2001, the buyer receives its contents at the sale agreement. Without a certificate, the buyer can claim the nullity of the sale until the deed (OVAM). Regardless of a sale, every owner of such a building must have an asbestos certificate by 2032 (Flemish government).
• Inspection of the electrical installation: before the deed. If the installation is not compliant, the buyer brings it into order within the period stated in the report (model sale agreement of the notarial profession).
• Soil certificate (bodemattest): apply before the sale agreement (OVAM).
• Planning information (vastgoedinlichtingen): no older than 1 year. The information on flood sensitivity belongs in your advertisement (Flemish government).

Before the sale agreement, the buyer receives the statutes of the building, that is the base deed and the co-ownership regulations, and the internal rules.

Request the information from the building manager in good time: the model sale agreement counts on an answer within 15 days. This is part of it (model sale agreement of the notarial profession):

• The amount of the working capital and the reserve capital.
• The arrears you still have to pay, with the costs of recovery and the costs the building manager charges for this information.
• The calls for capital contributions to the reserve capital already decided by the general meeting.
• The court proceedings pending about the co-ownership.
• The minutes of the ordinary and extraordinary general meetings of the previous 3 years.
• The statements of charges of the previous 2 years.
• The last balance sheet approved by the general meeting.

The buyer pays the ordinary common charges from the day they get the use of the flat; the building manager draws up the statement (model sale agreement of the notarial profession). If the building is insured with a collective fire insurance, the premium is part of those charges.

For extraordinary charges, what counts is when the building manager requests payment. If it was decided on and the building manager requested payment before the deed, you pay. If they only request it after the deed, the buyer pays, provided the buyer could know the amounts from the minutes or documents before the sale agreement.

Your share in the reserve capital remains with the owners' association and is not settled between you and the buyer. The owners' association also has a lien on the flat for the charges of the current and the previous year.

If you dispute the building manager's statement, the notary blocks the amount. If the building manager does not respond, the notary blocks twice what was requested last year, until there is a written agreement or a judgment (model sale agreement of the notarial profession).

If a general meeting falls between sale agreement and deed, give the buyer the invitation in time. Otherwise, decisions on extraordinary charges from that meeting can still be at your expense (model sale agreement of the notarial profession).

If someone buys your flat with label E or F, they have to renovate it to label D or better within 6 years after the deed (Flemish government, finally approved on 12 December 2025). The obligation applies per flat, not to the whole building.

Sometimes that requires works to the common parts, such as roof insulation or collective heating. The general meeting can decide on those legally required works with a simple majority of 50 % plus 1 (Flemish government).

An EPC that is ready and the minutes on planned works help your buyer to know before the offer what lies ahead for them.

Work backwards from the moment you want to sell. In your free sales dossier, Hoobler sets out which documents your flat needs; EPC, asbestos certificate and electrical inspection you order there via our partner De Immowinkel, at their rate.

• Now: ask your building manager about the asbestos certificate for the common parts and about the minutes of the last general meetings.
• Before publication: the EPC of your flat, with the label in your advertisement.
• Before the sale agreement: the asbestos certificate of your flat, from 2027 also that of the common parts, the soil certificate, the statutes and the information from the building manager.
• At the deed at the latest: the report of the inspection of the electrical installation and, if the flat is let, the tenancy agreement, the rental deposit and the inventory of fixtures.

You may sell a let flat. The buyer has to respect the current tenancy agreement and receives the rent from the deed (model sale agreement of the notarial profession).

The OVAM asbestos rules only apply in Flanders. In Brussels and Wallonia, other rules apply for certificates; ask your notary which documents your flat needs there.

Is an asbestos certificate compulsory on the sale of a flat?

Yes, in Flanders for a building from before 2001: the certificate of the flat itself since 23 November 2022, and from 1 January 2027 also the certificate for the common parts (OVAM). The cadastral construction year counts.

What if the owners' association has no asbestos certificate for the common parts?

Then the transfer of your flat is blocked from 1 January 2027 (OVAM). Ask your building manager now where things stand. If the general meeting decided not to have a certificate drawn up, that is in the minutes.

What does an asbestos certificate for the common parts cost?

The asbestos expert sets the price themselves, depending among other things on the number of buildings, the transport and the number of samples. OVAM adds a fee of € 59 on top (OVAM, checked on 28 October 2026).

Who pays the arrears to the building manager when you sell?

Arrears are for the seller. The building manager states them in their information, and if you agree, the notary pays them at the deed (model sale agreement of the notarial profession). If you dispute the amount, the notary blocks it until there is an agreement or a judgment.

Do you get your share in the reserve capital back when you sell?

No. Your share in the reserve capital remains with the owners' association and is not settled between you and the buyer (model sale agreement of the notarial profession). The buyer does see the amount in the information from the building manager.

How long does the building manager have to provide the information?

The model sale agreement of the notarial profession assumes 15 days. If the building manager does not respond, that is stated in the sale agreement and you give the buyer what you have yourself, such as the minutes.

• OVAM, Het asbestattest voor de gemene delen
• OVAM, Veelgestelde vragen over het asbestattest
• Notariaat, Modelverkoopovereenkomst Heldere Taal, Vlaams Gewest (November 2025)
• Vlaamse overheid, Een huis verkopen
• Vlaamse overheid, Renovatieverplichting voor residentiële gebouwen
• Vlaamse overheid, EPC of the common areas of a block of flats
• OVAM, Hoe vraag ik een bodemattest aan?

Last checked on 28 October 2026.