Routine maintenance, minor repairs, and renovations in the apartment

Quick Overview

In a rental apartment, the tenant is responsible for routine maintenance and minor repairs, while the landlord is responsible for major defects. Starting in 2026, a minor repair is defined as one costing up to 1,500 CZK, with a total annual limit of 150 CZK per square meter of the apartment’s floor area. For cooperative apartments, the cooperative’s bylaws are the primary determining factor. For a privately owned apartment, you pay for repairs inside the apartment yourself, but any work on the common areas of the building must be coordinated with the homeowners’ association.

Not sure whether the tenant, landlord, housing cooperative, or homeowners’ association should pay for the repair? Have your lease agreement, the housing cooperative’s bylaws, or the homeowners’ association’s documentation reviewed before you pay for or agree to the repair. In disputed situations, we’ll help you determine who should bear the costs and how to proceed so that a minor repair doesn’t turn into an unnecessary legal dispute.

Routine Maintenance, Minor Repairs, and Renovations in a Rented Apartment

High real estate prices and unfavorable mortgage interest rates are driving more and more people to rent. Many people live in a single rental apartment for decades and want the apartment to suit their tastes and needs. That’s why many of them set about making alterations to the apartment. However, these alterations are significantly limited. After all, the apartment is still the property of its owner, even if the owner doesn’t live there. So think carefully before installing an aquarium with a shark or Louis XIV-style stucco.

Modifications in a Rented Apartment

One of the basic rules of renting is that the tenant must return the apartment to the landlord in its original condition. So what does that mean? If you received an apartment equipped with a kitchen unit and a furnished bathroom, you must return it in that same condition.

No fixtures should be missing or added, unless you’ve agreed otherwise with the landlord in advance. Similarly, if the apartment was painted white and had carpeting, it must be in the same condition when you return it.

However,the Civil Code also specifies what a tenant is allowed to change in an apartment. These include repairs and minor maintenance of the apartment, modifications intended to prevent damage, and temporary alterations—such as furnishing the apartment and hammering in nails to hang pictures.

Afterward, however, all temporary modifications must be restored to their original condition— the apartment must be vacated, holes from nails must be filled, and so on. Anything agreed upon by the tenant and the landlord in the lease agreement is also permitted. Alternatively, you can obtain the landlord’s permission for modifications to the apartment retroactively, preferably by entering into a written agreement.

We know from experience that most disputes do not arise because of the repairs themselves, but because the parties fail to specify in advance who will pay for them and what will happen when the lease ends. Tenants often invest in kitchen cabinets, flooring, or the bathroom in good faith, but upon returning the apartment, they discover that the landlord does not recognize the modifications or demands that the apartment be restored to its original condition. Therefore, we recommend always obtaining written consent for such modifications, ideally along with an agreement on who will bear the costs.

So how does this work in practice? Mr. Kocián rented an apartment from Ms. Veselá. In the lease agreement, they stipulated that Mr. Kocián would install a new kitchen at Ms. Veselá’s expense. He did so after moving in, and he also drilled holes to hang shelves. After five years, he decided to move out. He vacated the apartment, filled in the holes left by the shelves, and left the new kitchen cabinets in place. In doing so, he fulfilled all of his obligations.

Maintenance and Minor Repairs in a Rented Apartment

According to the Civil Code, the tenant is responsible for minor repairs to the apartment. The specific definition of minor repairs and routine maintenance is set forth in the government regulation defining the terms “routine maintenance” and “minor repairs” related to the use of an apartment.

Effective January 1, 2026, if a minor repair is assessed based on cost, it may not exceed 1,500 CZK per repair. At the same time, an annual limit applies: once the total cost of minor repairs in a calendar year exceeds 150 Kč per square meter of the apartment’s floor area, subsequent repairs are no longer considered minor repairs. Transportation costs are not included in this limit and are paid by the tenant.

Minor repairs typically include, for example, repairs to light switches, electrical outlets, doorbells, faucets, showers, toilet flush valves, sections of flooring, kitchen cabinets, or appliances, provided they are part of the apartment and owned by the landlord. However, it always depends on whether the issue is truly normal wear and tear related to the use of the apartment or a more significant defect that the landlord must address.

Routine Maintenance, Minor Repairs, and Renovations in a Cooperative Apartment

Housing cooperatives are a relic of the past, but they are also making a comeback. These apartments differ significantly from privately owned apartments, even when it comes to minor repairs and renovations. In the case of a cooperative apartment , you are not the owner—the housing cooperative is.

You own a share in the housing cooperative and have the right to rent the apartment. For this reason, your ability to manage a cooperative apartment is significantly more limited than with a privately owned apartment.

A common mistake made in practice regarding cooperative apartments is that a cooperative member assumes the rules for apartment owners apply. However, a cooperative apartment is not formally owned by the member, but by the cooperative. Therefore, before you begin renovations, it is not enough to simply review building codes—the cooperative’s bylaws and any internal guidelines are essential.

Renovations in a Cooperative Apartment

If you are planning major renovations to a cooperative apartment, you will need permission from the cooperative. Such permission may be stipulated in the cooperative’s bylaws, or you may need to apply for it. In any case, you should inform the cooperative about the renovation.

Similarly, with some housing cooperatives, you’ll need permission even for renovations that don’t require a building permit—for example, if you decide to replace your kitchen cabinets or install new flooring. The cooperative’s bylaws should outline the procedure for such renovations.

Just as with a rented apartment, you won’t need permission for minor repairs, such as simple floor repairs, replacing light switches and outlets, and so on.

Maintenance and Minor Repairs in a Cooperative Apartment

Even though you are essentially a tenant in a cooperative apartment, the same rules do not apply to minor repairs as they do for a rented apartment. The Civil Code allows cooperative bylaws greater leeway when it comes to cooperative apartments. Therefore, it is usually the bylaws that determine which repairs and maintenance are paid for by the cooperative member and which are handled by the cooperative. For this reason, rules may vary from one cooperative to another, and it is not possible to make a general statement about what types of repairs and maintenance are your responsibility and what, conversely, the cooperative must provide.

In practice, this might work as follows: the cooperative defines the scope of minor repairs and routine maintenance such that the cooperative member is responsible for everything except the exterior parts of the apartment and the common areas and spaces. Therefore, if Ms. Klímová, a member of the housing cooperative, were to experience a leak in her heating system, she would have to arrange for the repair herself. However, if a defect were to occur in the shared heating distribution system, the cooperative would be responsible for the repair, even if the defect affected only Ms. Klímová.

In practice, we also dealt with a tricky situation involving repairs to the patio tiles. The patio belonged to our client’s apartment, but at the same time it actually served as the roof for part of the building. Therefore, the homeowners’ association should be responsible, as discussed in the following chapter.

Routine Maintenance, Minor Repairs, and Renovations in a Privately Owned Apartment

If you own an apartment, that means you are the actual owner. However, if you live in a building with at least 5 residential units, and at least three of them are owned by three different people, that means you are also a member of the homeowners’ association. The homeowners’ association also has its own bylaws, as well as an owners’ agreement and an owner’s declaration, which set forth the rules of operation and usually also the rules for renovations and repairs.

Renovations in a Privately Owned Apartment

Of the three options, you have the least restrictions when it comes to a privately owned apartment. This means you can carry out both major and minor renovations, including construction work, without needing permission from the homeowners’ association. However, you must notify the homeowners’ association of your renovation plans, and in some cases, the association may also require you to provide construction documentation. In addition, you must grant the HOA access to the “construction site.” This is because the other residents of the apartment building have the right to verify that the construction work does not interfere with their property ( including their apartments) or the common areas.

The express consent of the homeowners’ association is required if you plan to make changes to the common areas of the building. You can find a precise definitionof these areas in the owner’s declaration. However, they typically include water and heating systems, balconies, and the sewer system.

In this example, Ms. Jelínková wants to modernize her kitchen but does not plan to make any changes to the plumbing. She therefore only needs to notify the homeowners’ association of her plans and allow them to inspect the renovation. The homeowners’ association will also request construction documentation from her. Once the documentation has been submitted, Ms. Jelínková can begin the renovation and does not need to take any further action.

Maintenance and Minor Repairs in a Privately Owned Apartment

The responsibility for repairs and maintenance of the apartment lies with its owner. The only repairs paid for by the homeowners’ association (SVJ) are those involving the common areas of the building, funded from the common repair fund to which all members contribute. As previously mentioned, the common areas are defined in the owner’s declaration.

Are you planning to renovate your apartment and aren’t sure if the work will affect the building’s common areas? We’ll review the owner’s declaration, the homeowners’ association bylaws, and the construction documents, and let you know whether you need the homeowners’ association’s approval or if simply notifying them of the renovation is sufficient. Contact us.

Summary

The rules for apartment repairs and modifications vary depending on whether you live in a rental apartment, a cooperative apartment, or an owner-occupied apartment. In a rental apartment, the tenant is responsible for routine maintenance and minor repairs; Starting in 2026, repairs assessed by price generally refer to repairs costing up to 1,500 CZK, but not exceeding an annual limit of 150 CZK per square meter of the apartment’s floor area. Major defects, such as malfunctions in utility lines, heating systems, or equipment that the landlord is responsible for maintaining, are handled by the apartment owner. For cooperative apartments, it is essential to consult the cooperative’s bylaws, as these often specify which repairs a cooperative member is responsible for and when consent is required. For privately owned apartments, the owner has the greatest freedom, but any work on common areas of the building—such as utility lines, balconies, or shared structures—must be coordinated with the homeowners’ association (SVJ). For major renovations, it is therefore always advisable to obtain written consent and clarify in advance who will bear the costs.