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Welcome and Information Packages -Condo Community

  • wecare994
  • Nov 25, 2024
  • 3 min read

– All Condo Corporations should have a Welcome Package or Information Package that is provided to their owners, located in the building and can be provided to new buyers interested in a unit for sale.  I would be so bold as to say that if you are a new condo owner and your building has not provided such a document then that is a red flag that will tell you several things about your board:


1.      The board is not functioning well, hasn’t functioned at a very high level and does not have very high standards.

2.      The board is inexperienced;

3.      Without an Information packages and rules and policies – the board is more susceptible to abuse of power and should be avoided.


Momentum helps condo communities create welcome packages and/or information packages. We can create a very fancy document that includes neighborhood information – shops and stores, coupons or highlight special stores, detailed maps of the building and community that help owners locate the recycling area, garbage area, bike storage, gyms, pools etc. and the rules associated with those areas OR we can create a simple document that welcomes and introduces the building to the new owners. New owners should be aware before they buy that the pool is closed at a certain time for instance and if you work different hours this may not work with your schedule, and you should learn this before you buy!


The packages should contain all information that makes the condo corporation a community. It should provide information about committees or groups in the building, contact information on how to join or participate in events etc. The packages should include everything about the community such as the rules and policies, most owners don’t understand the difference between bylaws, rules or policies because many condo corporations have never created rules and policies and rely totally on builder bylaws that don’t allow a board to properly govern or manage. Rules or Policy should not only be created at the board level but also the owners should be adopting and approving new rules and policies at the AGM. This is where the board and owners propose new rules or policies and vote on them to help govern their corporation. These rules and policies are the written rules – they are an extension of the bylaws. For example, if your bylaws allow pets approved by the board of directors then you need a rule or policy to allow the board to approve that pet. How can a board approve a pet in the building if there are no criteria or rules? The rules as well as other things provide the board the criteria for approving the pet; the rules are more detailed than the bylaws and have criteria like – normal house pets are allowed – pets must be a certain size or weight or breed and then you add things like they need to have city licenses, they must be well behaved and on leashes in the common areas. The rules aren’t rules unless they are written down, approved by resolution either at a meeting or written and then provided to the owners. The best place to write these down are in a rule/policy book and included in the information package so all owners and especially buyers can determine if the rules and policies are acceptable to them and will allow them to integrate into the community. If your condo corporation does not have rules and policies, then your board is operating in an arbitrary manner. A board can’t approve a pet if there are no criteria, they aren’t approving anything they are acting as a rubber stamp and wasting everyone’s time and if there are no rules the board has no where to turn when an emergency or incident occurs.  


Owners also need to know what the rules are so they can ensure they are following them, if the rules aren’t written down and followed then you have chaos not a board of directors that is successfully governing. These types of communities are chaotic because the board then makes up the rules as they go along - there are no successful governments in history that just make up the rules as they go along, these types of communities are a disaster! So all Owners make sure you get a copy of the rules before you buy AND existing owners you need to be provided a copy of the rules to keep everyone safe. If your board doesn't have any rules or policies then you need to start making them because Rules and Policies keep condo communities safe!



 
 
 

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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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