House purchase - change of use
August 20, 2009 | 30,00 EUR | answered by Dr. Dr. Danjel-Philippe Newerla
Since February, I have been wanting to buy a 2-storey house located in the outskirts, which includes 2 separate apartments. Ultimately, I want to live "above" and open a naturopathic practice "below", where I might also eventually have employees. For months now, the authorities have been processing my application for change of use, and currently the issue is with the parking spaces...
The house is located directly on a 3-lane country road. I have requested 5 parking spaces and the building department would approve them... However, the road construction department is demanding that I provide 7 spaces (so that no one has to park directly on the country road - safety hazard). But the building department or the environmental protection agency will not approve 7 parking spaces, even if there is enough space available (too much sealed surface).
My last chance to get the application approved seems to be to downplay the whole situation, label myself as a sole operator (or something similar) and remove the employees from my business description - then I won't need as many parking spaces!
Now I am wondering what to do! What if I hire someone anyway? Could that somehow come out? What would be the consequence? Could they close down my practice? Could I perhaps work with freelance employees instead?
Some say that once the change of use is approved, no one will care anymore and you can do whatever you want... But I am afraid that if I unlawfully hire someone in the future, I will get into trouble...
Dear inquirer,
Thank you for your inquiry!
I would like to respond to your questions as follows, taking into account the details you provided and your commitment:
Without comprehensive knowledge of the complete circumstances, including the official notices/letters from the authorities, the zoning plan, the location, etc., a conclusive clarification of whether 5 or 7 parking spaces are justified is unfortunately not possible in the context of an initial consultation.
You may need to engage a colleague experienced in public building law to represent your legal interests locally, so that they can thoroughly review the facts and legal situation and take necessary steps (application, appeal against a rejection, etc.) if needed.
As for your final questions, if you apply for a change of use for a specific project and then fail to comply with the requirements, you may potentially be working without permission, which could result in a ban on use.
The authorities may not immediately notice this, but it is possible that this information could reach the "wrong" hands through other means, such as dissatisfied employees, patients, etc. From experience, I can only say that it is sometimes surprising how quickly and through what means certain information can come to light, even when it was not intended to be disclosed.
If you hire freelance workers, this may make things a bit more relaxed, but it could potentially lead to issues regarding false self-employment, so you may want to discuss this approach with a tax law specialist if necessary.
Your ideal point of contact would be a lawyer specializing in public building law and tax law. To find such a colleague, you can also call the local bar association and ask for a recommendation for a colleague on-site or at least nearby who meets your preferences/requirements.
I hope I have provided you with an initial legal orientation and wish you much success and all the best!
I would like to point out the following to you: The legal advice I have provided is based solely on the information you have provided. My response is only an initial legal assessment of the situation and cannot replace a comprehensive assessment. Adding or omitting relevant information could lead to a completely different legal assessment.
I hope my explanations have been helpful to you. Feel free to contact me via my email address or the follow-up option.
Wishing you a pleasant Thursday evening!
Kind regards,
Dipl.-Jur. Danjel-Philippe Newerla, Attorney
Heilsbergerstr. 16
27580 Bremerhaven
kanzlei.newerla@web.de
Tel. 0471/3088132
Fax: 0471/3088316
