Repairs have been postponed for years, and debts are mounting: in Mykolaiv people are talking about a fee starting at 12 UAH per m²

The economically justified cost of managing apartment buildings in Mykolaiv should be at least 12 UAH per square meter. The current average fee is more than twice lower and mainly allows for addressing emergency situations. This was stated on August 12, 2026 during a city briefing by the head of the city’s Sustainable Development Office of the Department of Housing and Communal Services, Volodymyr Nikolaychuk.

The absence of a registered land plot does not mean that the area next to an apartment building can be left uncleaned. According to the Department of Housing and Communal Services, the average indicator in the city now is 5.278 UAH per square meter. Depending on the building, its condition and the form of management, residents pay from 3 to 9 UAH. There is no single city database with such data. Specialists collected the information from statistical reports, minutes of co-owners’ meetings, court cases and documents that residents submitted to apply for subsidies.

From 19% to 39% of the total fee is allocated for cleaning buildings and adjacent territories. The share depends on the size of the courtyard, the need to clean entrances and seasonal work. In winter, costs include snow removal and gritting walkways; in summer — grass mowing and leaf clearing. For Mykolaiv it is important to clearly define the boundaries of responsibility — where the territory that the building must maintain ends and city land begins. That is why the city needs to update the Rules of Improvement.
New rules should:

• define a clear mechanism for establishing the boundaries of the adjacent territory;
• delineate the responsibilities of OSBBs, managers and the city;
• make the calculation of cleaning costs transparent;
• help residents understand which exact territory they are paying to maintain;
• bring the city rules into compliance with current legislation.

The situation is especially difficult in buildings where the fee remains at the level of 3–4 UAH per square meter. Some private managers have not revised it since 2018, even though wages, taxes, and the prices of building materials and contractor services have risen since then.

“This is, essentially, the building’s hidden debt,” — explained Volodymyr Nikolaychuk.

According to him, with low fees the manager only responds to emergencies, while repairs of roofs, entrances and engineering networks are constantly postponed. Later residents turn to the city authorities for help, even though about 97% of the housing stock is privatized.

The official also referred to State Statistics data for 2024. Then electricity prices rose by 63.6% compared to 2023, while services for managing apartment buildings increased by only 11.2%. In other words, the cited figures refer specifically to price changes during 2024, not the last 12 months.

“If the tariff is economically justified — it is not less than 12 UAH per square meter,” — the official said.

For an apartment of 50 m², such a fee would be at least 600 UAH per month; for an apartment of 60 m² — 720 UAH. This is only an approximate calculation without taking into account the specifics of a particular building.

According to Order No. 190 of the Ministry for Regional Development, the mandatory list of expenses for building maintenance includes 14 types of works and services, in particular:

• technical maintenance of internal networks, elevators and ventilation;
• current repair of structures and communications;
• cleaning of entrances and the adjacent territory;
• snow removal and treatment of walkways against ice;
• rodent control and pest control;
• electricity for lighting common areas and operating elevators.

Basic costs are the same for management companies and for OSBB. The difference is that a company adds the manager’s fee to the estimate, while an OSBB, as a non-profit organization, directs contributions to the needs of its own building. However, due to the rising cost of materials and services, homeowners’ associations also have to raise contributions.

At the same time, the law does not provide for a single tariff for the entire city. The cost of managing a building is determined by agreement between the co-owners and the manager, and if the manager is appointed by the local authorities — by the results of a tender.

Reminder, we wrote:

• There was rain on the street, but a flood in the apartment: residents of a building in the Korabelnyi district complain about the management company
• “Are you the authorities or the collectors’ service?”: in Mykolaiv people have been unable to get rid of debts from “Misto dlia Liudei” for eight years
• “Misto dlia Liudei” is tormenting residents of the Korabelnyi district, while the authorities shrug their shoulders
• Even in summer we pay for heating: in Mykolaiv the tariff is driving people to despair