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Stop being Polite! Speak up about issues in your condo it's your investment

  • wecare994
  • Aug 1, 2024
  • 2 min read

Updated: Aug 2, 2024



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I was speaking to another condo owner in my building the other day about why so many issues and problems in condo corporations don't get solved and the very simple answer is that people don't speak up and don't want to appear rude. If your board or property manager is mismanaging your building or they don't provide appropriate service levels speak up! Stand up and make your voice heard. Day after day we hear about condo boards and property managers who don't even know how a board of directors operates and frustrated owners who are just ignored. The board of directors and the property manager serve the owners of the building. They are supposed to be there to assist the owners in managing and governing the building so if you don't like something tell them....and tell them again and then if they don't listen call a meeting, have an election, terminate the property manager don't live in an uncomfortable situation this is your home and your investment.


Hey listen we all do it! I've sat in board meetings or AGMs and knew that is wasn't operating in the best way possible that certain things should have been done but we let it go at the time and complain about it later! Well stop it and I'll stop it too. No more, stand up and tell people this is not how voting should work or this isn't an election. Stand up and speak up because its the only way things will change. There seems to be a trend with boards hiding behind their property managers and refusing to be accountable for their actions this is the time you need to speak up. It's alot of work to be on a board of directors so if your board isn't up for the challenge its time to replace them and possibly the property manager. A board should be hands on and understand when to engage with their owners and when its ok to be silent but they should always know and understand the needs of their owners and they can't do that if they aren't available and if the owners don't speak up. I know a board of directors in Calgary that doesn't receive complaints or issues from the property manager. There are 7 board members and not one of them receive any information about the building. Isn't that unbelievable? How can you manage and govern a building if you don't know what the issues are? How can you prepare and approve a budget if you don't know what the ongoing issues are in the building? In this situation the board is not governing or managing they aren't doing anything really and they need to be replaced with a new board willing to put in the time. Don't be afraid to speak up!

 
 
 

Comments

Meetings and Events

Condo Buildings have many different types of meetings -AGMs, Special Meetings and  Extraordinary Meetings, Owners Meetings -    See below on tips for making your meeting inclusive and productive 

​Annual General Meetings are crucial to democracy, a condominium corporation in Alberta is required to have annual general meetings every year and at the latest 15 months from the last AGM. These are formal meetings where owners vote on all types of business such as new bylaws, bylaw changes, financial considerations, improvements, upgrades and elect a new board of directors. There are certain procedural rules boards must follow when organizing an AGM; notice must be provided 60 days prior to the AGM, this gives owners the ability to submit agenda items to the board. After the 60 days, formal notice with the agenda items must be sent to owners within 30-14 days prior to the meeting date. Make sure you are voting at your AGMs, you need to make sure the votes are counted - make sure your board is either holding elections through ballots or a counted hand vote. 

There are several types of other meetings a condo corporation holds - Special Meetings, Owners Meetings or Town Halls. It all depends on who is doing the organizing and the topics being put forward. Condo Owners should ensure that their meetings have at least the basic requirements for example: With the exception of Owners Meetings which are called by the owners and not formal, all meetings should include, if possible: scrutineers, agenda- ability of owners to add to agenda, accurate and properly recorded minutes, elections, voting - owners should be voting on issues at AGMs to name a few. There are many requirements to hold a duly organized meeting. For example, public companies and other corporations hire several entities when they hold AGMs. Most corporations start by hiring a law firm. a company to scrutineer and often depending on the type of meeting a solicitation agent. Unfortunately, and of course because it's impractical for the majority of Condo Corporations to assume the expense of all or even a few of those entities most Condo Corporations rely on the knowledge of the property manager and an inexperienced board to deal with meetings which affects the quality of the meetings.

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​The quality of condo meetings depend on the quality of the property manager and the knowledge of your board of directors. Most condo meetings are pretty poor which leads to very little advancement and improvements in the corporation. If your condo corporation holds proper meetings then thank goodness and let us know! We want to hear about condos that are working well together creating successful condo communities. If not then well we all know when buildings incur this type of combination of a poor manager and a poor board for too long the building starts to deteriorate very quickly. Most building come equipped with basic bylaws created by the developer included in the owners manual, some specs and basic information and little else so if you were unlucky to buy into a property with owners who knew very little about condo boards you are probably facing some difficulties after a number of years.  Call us anytime and we will audit your meetings, elections or if you assist in coordinating any type of meeting. See our simple suggestions for make your meetings even more successful. 

condo meeting

Everyone is happier with a cookie in their hand

condo meeting - AGM

                                 Make people feel welcome!         

                           

Meetings are stressful even if there are no hot topics so anything you can do to lighten the mood is helpful. You could also have a giveaway or a play a little game before you get started. Don't forget name tags for large gatherings, bring a card or provide contact information and don't forget a pen, notepad or your phone to take notes and exchange information.  

If you organized the meeting: don't forget to shake as many peoples hands and introduce yourself to as many people as you can!

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Hint: If you are organizing the meeting you should be the last to leave! This helps make sure you talk to everyone who came to talk to you!

                                             Its ALL in the Details

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We believe details are important! Set up a station with coffee, juice or water to keep people hydrated and bring along some home baked or store bought treats. Owners will feel welcome and it helps to set the tone of a meeting. Who can argue with a piece of cake in their hand or mouth! Meetings should be informative and engaging and setting the tone will make your meetings more successful.

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Hint: You'll often be able to tell the people who support you or at least like you if they take a cookie or drink some coffee. More combative individuals won't take the cookie because they feel like they would owe you something back and sometimes that's just being nice and respectful.

CONTACT US Before you buy a condo 

Working as a Trustee in the corporate debt space for over a decade has helped me build a foundation in Corporate and Securities Law. As a a Manager of Corporate Trust acting as debt Trustee, collateral agent or escrow agent, I was involved in many types of large international transaction and the biggest bought deal in Canadian history. As a trustee we were involved in, attended and scrutineered all types of meetings, extraordinary resolutions and consent solicitations. As Corporate Secretary for a large public company, I have over a decade of experience in many aspects of Corporate Law.  I worked for  several years in compliance for a capital raising investment company and worked in the prosecution department at IIROC. My degree in political science gives me a heightened sense of justice and expertise in all levels of government, democratic institutions and democratic practices.  I started this company to help other condo owners who were having similar experiences with condo boards. My corporate law and securities experience provides a great backdrop to be able to help create inclusive communities one building at a time, fighting one board at a time to bring back democracy and inclusion to Condo boards. People don't need to be fighting boards -it ruins their piece of mind and stunts community growth. Boards of Directors need to be held accountable for bad decisions and bad operating procedures and educated in best practices. 

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CONTACT
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Email: wecare@momentumcondo.com
Phone: 403.651.7403
 

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Calgary, Alberta T2R 1R8

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