Right of habitation (TCC art. 823-825)

Right of habitation; is an untransferable, non-distrainable, noninheritable regular personal servitude, which gives to the right holder authority to use an immovable property or a part of it as a residence, with the owner or alone. The right holder is a real person. The right holder can live in the residence with his family and household. The existence of a real right in our law such as usufruct that provides broader authorities weakens the practice of the right of habitation. Whereas, the right of habitation imposes less liability on the right holder than usufruct in proportion to the fewness of the authority it provides. For this reason, the right of habitation may be more advantageous than the usufruct in many cases established by contract and by law, both in terms of the owner and the right holder. This study has been prepared in order to ensure that the practice of the right of habitation becomes widespread, especially in the context of the protection of elderly parents, and to propose solutions to controversial issues regarding the right. In this context, in the first part the concept of servitude and its types; the definition of the right of habitation, its characteristics, its relationship with the right of property and its comparison with similar legal institutions; as well as the historical roots of the right of habitation are included. The second chapter aims to introduce the types and elements of the right of habitation. In addition, the legal reasons underlying the establishment of the right of habitation and the characteristics of the establishment of the right according to these legal reasons are examined. In the third part, the scope of the right is emphasized and the effects of having rights that are incompatible with the right of habitation on the subject of right as well as the rights and obligations of the parties are tried to be determined. Finally, in this section, the reasons that terminate the right and the consequences of the termination of the right according to these reasons are discussed.