Families acquiring a property for family habitation may be interested in securing additional legal protections for it. One of the protections established by our legislation is the assignment of property as family housing. In this blog we comment on this figure.
The current Family Code allows the assignment of property as family housing in favor of the spouse or common law partner and offspring (if they are over 18, as long as they are economically dependent on the owner). The law also allows the assignment of property in favor of adults who cannot meet their basic needs by their own means, as well as compliance with other requirements established in Article 43 of the same law.
With this protection, the property cannot be alienated (i.e., transfer of ownership by sale, gift or otherwise) or encumbered (e.g., mortgaged or seized), unless there is consent of both spouses or a court order. This order must be obtained through a judicial process called utility and necessity proceedings.
The assignment of property as family housing must be constituted through a public deed, so it is necessary the intervention of a qualified Notary Public (who can also deepen in the legal scope of this figure).
At CELIG we provide specialized services to the LGBTQI+ community. For more information or to make an appointment with us, please call us at 4001-6439 or send us an email to info@celigcr.com.
We are located in San Jose, Barrio Escalante.
M.Sc. Ana Isabel Sibaja Rojas
CELIG – Center for Equal Opportunity Litigation
