Court Orders Removal of Unauthorized Balconies Built Without Neighbor Consent

An Israeli couple has been ordered by the Haifa District Court to remove two balconies and awnings they constructed without the consent of their neighbors or a building permit. The court rejected their appeal against a previous ruling by the Registrar of Real Estate, upholding the decision that the couple failed to provide any evidence of neighborly agreement for the construction.

In contrast, the neighbors presented objections from 12 out of the 32 apartment owners in the building. The couple had created openings in the external walls of their apartment in a "train-style" building to build the balconies. Although the local planning committee later approved a request related to one balcony, the couple proceeded to build two balconies on the building's facade and side.

Five apartment owners, represented by attorney Yechiel Charlaf, filed a complaint with the Registrar of Real Estate, demanding the removal of the unauthorized structures. During the proceedings, the couple completed the construction of both balconies. The Registrar ruled in favor of the complainants, ordering the removal of the balconies and awnings and the restoration of the external walls to their original state.

The couple appealed, arguing that other apartments in the building also had balconies, and that singling them out violated the principle of equality. They attempted to rely on a past consent for a balcony in their apartment when it was owned by others, which had since been removed. However, the neighbors countered that their consent was never sought for the new construction and that the existence of other balconies did not legitimize the couple's actions.

The district court judges agreed with the Registrar's finding that explicit consent from 75% of the apartment owners (24 out of 32) was required. They dismissed the argument that other balconies constituted "similar expansion" granting consent, as their legality and proper approval were unproven. The court noted that even if all nine mentioned balconies were considered, the couple still lacked consent from an additional 15 apartment owners. The old consent for the removed balcony was also deemed irrelevant due to the new balconies' different size and location.

The appeal was dismissed, and the couple was ordered to pay 15,000 shekels in legal costs to their neighbors. However, the court granted a 90-day stay of the removal order to allow the couple to seek the necessary consents from their neighbors. If they can present the required approvals within this period, the Registrar will make a supplementary decision.