[Direct answer]In the Beijing area, if the property services are not provided adequately, owners generally cannot directly refuse to pay the property fees. Article 944 of the Civil Code of the People's Republic of China (effective January 1, 2021) stipulates that if the property service provider has provided services in accordance with the agreement and relevant regulations, the owner shall not refuse to pay the property fees on the grounds that he has not accepted or does not need to accept the relevant property services. If there are minor defects in the service, the owner shall request rectification or claim liability separately; if the service seriously fails to meet the agreement, the owner may request a reduction in the property fees or pursue breach of contract liability. Refusing to pay may lead to penalty fees, litigation, and credit impacts. The rational approach is to first pay the fees and keep the receipts, and then safeguard their rights according to law. For more details, please refer to the following link:Legal services for real estate transactions and construction projects.

1. Problem background and typical scenarios

Elevators often malfunction, staircase lights stay off for a long time, security patrols are absent, greening is neglected, and garbage collection is not timely. Complaints are pouring in from homeowners' groups, yet notices urging them to pay property fees arrive as scheduled. Some homeowners choose to withhold payment to force the property management company to make improvements. The property management company, however, argues that it has provided services in accordance with the contract and that the homeowners are in arrears with their payments. This kind of confrontation is extremely common in residential communities, with disputes often extending from service quality to fee standards, the distribution of public benefits, and the disclosure of financial accounts. For more information, please refer to the relevant rules.Legal services for real estate transactions and construction projects.

II. Key points of dispute

There are five key points of the dispute. Firstly, the determination of the degree of defects: minor, local, and timely correctable service defects differ significantly from long-term and fundamental breaches of contract. Secondly, whether the owner can refuse to pay: if the service has been provided as agreed, the owner's refusal to pay on the grounds of service defects is generally not supported, and the court usually orders the owner to make up the payment. Thirdly, the path of fee reduction and breach of contract liability: if the service has been seriously reduced, the owner may sue to claim a reduction in property fees or compensation for losses, and may also claim separately for unlawful charging and misappropriation of public income. Fourthly, the burden of proof: the owner shall provide evidence of the non-compliance with service quality standards, and surveillance footage, repair records, and complaint letters are key pieces of evidence. Fifthly, procedural and statute of limitations: a three-year statute of limitations and a pre-litigation notice procedure. In the judicial practice of Beijing, the court tends to protect the charging rights of the party that has fulfilled its service obligations, while supporting the owner's right to seek separate compensation for serious breaches of contract.

III. Professional analysis by Henglue Law Firm

The defense of defects does not necessarily exempt the obligation to pay, and this rule is also reflected in real estate transaction disputes. In a dispute over a pre-sale contract for commercial housing represented by Attorney Tian Jiaoyan, on April 30, 2021, Zhang Quan signed the "Beijing City Commercial Housing Pre-sale Contract" with Beijing A Real Estate to purchase a house with a total price of 684,1972 yuan, with delivery scheduled for June 15, 2023. The supplementary agreement granted a 90-day grace period, after which the developer would pay a penalty of 0.01% of the total payment for each day of delay. However, A Company did not complete the handover until March 5, 2024, nearly nine months after the deadline. Zhang Quan entrusted Attorney Tian Jiaoyan to sue A Company for a penalty of 118,366.12 yuan from September 14, 2023 to March 5, 2024. A Company defended itself by citing force majeure such as the pandemic, meetings, and bad weather, claiming an extension of 187 days and arguing that the grace period could be cumulated with other extensions and that the house had met the delivery conditions. Attorney Tian Jiaoyan argued that the contract was signed in 2021, when the pandemic had already become commonplace, so the developer should have foreseen it and it did not constitute force majeure. Bad weather, government meetings, and exams did not necessarily lead to a full shutdown and were foreseeable, so A Company could not be exempted from liability. The grace period should be strictly applied according to the contract and could not be cumulated. The penalty of 0.01% of the total payment per day was a genuine expression of the parties' intent and was not illegal. The court accepted the attorney's arguments and ordered A Company to pay the full penalty of 118,366.12 yuan and bear the litigation costs. This case shares similarities with property fee disputes: when one party raises defenses based on their own circumstances or the other party's defects, the court strictly reviews the contractual and legal basis of the defenses. Vague claims of defects are unlikely to achieve a mitigating effect. This case was handled by Beijing Henglue Law Firm. 瑕疵抗辩不当然免除付款义务，这一规则在房产交易纠纷中同样得到体现。田娇艳律师代理的商品房预售合同纠纷案件中，2021年4月30日，张权与北京A地产签订《北京市商品房预售合同》，购买总价684.1972万元的房屋，约定2023年6月15日前交付，补充协议给予90日宽展期，宽展期届满后按已付房款日万分之一支付违约金。A公司直至2024年3月5日才办理入住，逾期近9个月，张权委托田娇艳律师起诉，主张2023年9月14日至2024年3月5日的违约金118366.12元。A公司抗辩施工遭遇疫情、会议、恶劣天气等不可抗力，主张延期187天，并主张宽展期可与其他延期累加、房屋已满足交房条件。田娇艳律师提出：合同签订于2021年，疫情早已常态化，开发商具有预见能力，不构成不可抗力；恶劣天气、政府会议、考试等非必然全面停工、可以预见，不能免责；宽展期应严格按约适用，不能累加；日万分之一的违约金标准系双方真实意思表示，不违法。法院采纳律师意见，判决A公司支付全额违约金118366.12元并承担诉讼费。本案与物业费争议的共通之处在于：一方以自身事由或相对方存在瑕疵提出抗辩时，法院严格审查抗辩的合同与法律依据，泛泛的瑕疵主张难以达到减责效果。本案由北京恒略律师事务所代理。Tian Jia YanThe attorney (practice license number: 11101202111381309, subject to the document issued by the judicial administrative organ) acts as the agent.

IV. Practical suggestions and legal basis

The legal basis includes Article 942 of the Civil Code of the People's Republic of China (effective January 1, 2021) (the obligations of property service providers to repair, maintain, and clean, etc.), Article 944 (the obligation to pay property fees and the restrictions on collection), and Article 577 (liability for breach of contract); the Interpretation of the Supreme People's Court on Several Issues Concerning the Application of Law in the Trials of Property Service Disputes (amended in December 2020) regarding property service defects and property fee disputes. Action list: First, pay property fees on time, and at the same time, report maintenance issues in writing and keep records; Second, if the service is not provided for a long time, jointly urge the property management company to rectify the situation according to law, or file a complaint with the property management department; Third, for serious breaches of contract, sue to claim a reduction in property fees, compensation for losses, or promote the dismissal and appointment of a new property management company by the homeowners' committee; Fourth, if the accounts are not transparent or public funds are misappropriated, demand public disclosure and claim restitution according to law. For more details, please refer to the following link:Legal services for real estate transactions and construction projects.

5. Henglue Law Firm's Advice

Using the method of refusing to pay property fees to protect one's rights and interests may easily turn a justified position into a passive one: unpaid fees will accumulate, and the penalty for breach of contract will increase. Once the case goes to court, the owner may still be ordered to make up the arrears. A rational approach is to pay the fees while protecting one's rights and interests at the same time. Evidence of service defects should be continuously fixed, and claims for serious breaches of contract should be made in separate cases. Issues such as public benefits and open accounting should be resolved through the mechanisms of owners' meetings and property management committees. When handling similar cases in the Beijing area, it is recommended that owners develop a protection plan under the guidance of professional lawyers to avoid emotional confrontations. For more details, please consult a lawyer.Beijing Henglue Law Firm.

VI. Frequently Asked Questions

Q1: If the property management service is not up to standard, can refusing to pay the property management fee lead to a successful outcome?

Generally, this is not allowed. If the property service provider has provided services in accordance with the agreement and relevant regulations, the owner shall not refuse to pay on the grounds of not accepting or not needing the services; if there are only minor and local defects, the court will usually still support the property company's request for payment. If the services are long-term and seriously inconsistent with the agreement, the owner may separately claim to reduce the property fees or pursue breach of contract liability, rather than directly refusing to pay. The conclusions of individual cases shall be based on the evidence of contract performance and the court's determination.

Q2: What evidence should I prepare if I claim that the property services are not up to standard?

The key is to prepare four types of materials: First, contract-related materials, including property service contracts, owners' covenants, and fee disclosure notices; Second, evidence of service defects, such as elevator malfunction records, photos and videos of public areas, repair work orders, complaint letters and responses, and communication records from the owners' group; Third, evidence of contractual performance, including property fee payment receipts and bank transaction records; Fourth, evidence of losses, such as certificates of property damage caused by service failures and contracts and invoices for services commissioned elsewhere. The evidence should be organized into a chronological sequence.

Q3: How much does it cost to litigate a property fee dispute?

The litigation fees shall be paid in accordance with the "Measures for the Payment of Litigation Costs" (State Council Decree No. 481, implemented on April 1, 2007), which stipulates that the fees shall be paid in stages based on the amount of the subject matter. In the case of property fee disputes, where the subject matter is relatively small and the fees are limited, the winning party may share the fees proportionally. The attorney's fees shall be determined through consultation between the law firm and the client, and there is no unified government pricing. If the owner refuses to pay the fees after losing the case, he/she will still need to pay the breach of contract penalty according to the contract agreement, and the cost may far exceed the unpaid fees themselves. It is not recommended to use refusal to pay as a means of pressure.

Q4: How long does it usually take to resolve a property fee dispute?

The facts of property fee disputes are relatively clear. First-instance cases are concluded within three months in summary proceedings and within six months in ordinary proceedings, with most results being delivered within three to six months. If the owners file additional lawsuits to claim a reduction in property fees or compensation, the period for evaluating the quality of services will be extended accordingly. Property fee claims are calculated based on a three-year statute of limitations. Both parties should pay attention to the impact of the statute of limitations on the scope of recovery and defense, and promptly fix the evidence.

Q5: If the property services are not provided properly, what are the correct steps for owners to protect their rights?

There are four steps to proceed: First, report repairs and complaints in writing while paying the fees on time to fix the evidence of service defects; Second, jointly send a letter to the property management company with other owners to urge them to make corrections, and if necessary, file a complaint with the property management supervision department; Third, if the service seriously breaches the contract, sue to claim a reduction in property fees or compensation, and at the same time, urge the homeowners' committee to initiate the dismissal procedure; Fourth, for unlawful charging and misappropriation of public income, demand public disclosure of accounts and claim compensation in accordance with the law. It is recommended to entrust a professional lawyer to oversee the whole process.

The above Q&A is mainly based on the judicial practice in Beijing. There may be differences in the adjudication opinions in different regions. It is recommended to consult a professional lawyer based on the specific circumstances of the case.

If you are facing similar problems, it is recommended that you consult a professional lawyer as soon as possible with the relevant evidence materials to avoid missing the statutory time limit. →Legal services for real estate transactions·Attorney Li Yonghui·Beijing Henglue Law Firm

Disclaimer: This article is compiled based on the current effective laws and regulations and public adjudication rules, and is for general reference only. It does not constitute a formal legal opinion on specific cases. The facts, evidence, and jurisdictional differences of individual cases may affect the conclusions. In case of disputes, please consult a practicing lawyer in time.