Raising Issues With the Condo Board

Understanding When You Should Raise an Issue With the Condo Board

When you own a condo unit whether it’s to live in or rent out, you become part of a community, known as a condo corporation. This is where you own your individual unit but share common elements including amenities, hallways, elevators, parking garage etc.

Although many people own their unit or rent it out to tenants, there are things you can do in your unit that affect other residents. Occasionally, issues can arise when living in a condominium such as issues with your unit or in the common elements of the building. Several issues can arise, including lighting, noise complaints, odours, pets and animals, and more.

Details About Raising Issues With The Condo Board

Key Points

How Do You Raise Issues With the Condo Board?

The Condo Act and Governing Documents

1. Write a Letter to the Board

2. Requisitioning a Meeting of Owners

Steps to Requisition a Meeting of Owners

3. Raising Issues at an Annual General Meeting

4. Seeking Legal Advice

Resources For Issue Resolution

Resolving conflicts may require the assistance of your condo board or condo manager/management provider. Luckily, there are many options available to you as a condo owner and member of the condo corporation.

If your issue involves a neighbour or fellow condo corporation member, you may want to verbally take up the matter with them before going to the condo board.

It is also essential to be familiar with your condo corporation's governing documents, as some condo corporations may have specific protocols for raising issues. Every condominium owner and occupant is required to comply with the Condominium Act, 1998 (the "Condo Act") and with the condominium corporation's governing documents, including its declaration, by-laws, and rules.

Speaking to a condo manager before formally contacting the condo board may help you provide a solution. If that does not fix the problem, we suggest you take the following steps:

1

Writing a Letter to Condo Board

Writing a letter to your condo board is a formal and effective way to voice your concerns if you have a condo-related problem that you would like to make the board aware of. When writing a letter or email, we advise providing as much necessary detail as possible about the issue. We also recommend keeping a copy of the letter and noting the day you sent it.

Some valuable information you can write on the letter includes your name, address, phone number and email address at the top. Followed by the condo corporation's name, address, email, and then today's date.

You can start the letter by saying, "Please accept this letter as formal notification of an issue I would like to bring to your attention.” You can briefly describe the issue in the first paragraph and then get into more detail in the second paragraph. You can finish by providing a call-to-action (CTA), such as "Please contact me to discuss this issue" or “I can be reached at ____”. Before signing off.

The next step is to wait for a response from the condo board. If you've given the board reasonable time to address the issue, but it has not been resolved, you can send a follow-up letter to the Condominium Authority of Ontario.

If your issue requires a meeting with the condo board, then you can use the following option:

Steps for Requesting a Meeting of Condo Owners

2

Requisitioning a Meeting of Owners

Owners may be able to request a meeting to discuss specific issues. Condominium corporations hold many different types of meetings. Some of these meetings are attended only by the board of directors (i.e. board meetings), while others are open to all owners. At an owner-requisitioned meeting, the owners can discuss any topic with the board. Depending on the topic, owners may also be able to vote on those topics.

The removal and replacement of a director before the expiry of that director's term;
A proposed new rule or change or repeal of an existing rule; and
The discussion of any emerging issue (e.g., a board decision).

Owners do not have the ability to overturn a decision of the Board at an owner-requisitioned meeting unless the Act gives owners the ability to approve that decision.

If owners are unhappy with a past board decision, they can still call a meeting to discuss that decision, but they cannot overturn the decision of the Board.

While owners may not be able to overturn a board decision formally, owner-requisitioned meetings can be helpful by allowing owners to voice concerns or present ideas. At the meeting, a non-binding vote of owners in attendance can be held to ensure that the condominium corporation has heard the owner's opinions.

The unit owners in a condominium corporation can requisition a meeting. A requisition must be signed by the owners of at least 15 percent of the voting units in the condominium corporation.

Steps for Requesting a Meeting of Owners Can Go as Follows:

Step 1: Prepare a Requisition

The first step in requisitioning a meeting is to prepare the requisition. The requisition must:

Be in writing.
Describe the topics to be discussed or voted on at the meeting.
Be delivered personally or by registered mail to the corporation's president or secretary or be deposited at the corporation's address for service.

Step 2: Get Signatures

You must get at least 15 percent of the voting units signing the requisition by condo owners. The owners who sign the requisition are called "requisitionists."

Obtaining signatures can sometimes be complex, especially if many owners do not live in the condominium. One option is going door-to-door collecting signatures unless it goes against your condo rules. Another option is to look into the record of owners and mortgagees. Every condo corporation is required to maintain this record as it contains the unit owners' contact information, including:

The names of all the owners.
An identification of the unit for each owner.
The address for service for each owner.

Step 3: Deliver the requisition

The requisition must be delivered personally or by registered mail to the corporation's president or secretary or deposited at the corporation's address.

After receiving a requisition, the board is required to do one of the following:

1. Add the topics included in the requisition to the agenda for the next Annual General Meeting (AGM), but only if requested by the requisitionists.

2. Call and hold a meeting of owners within 35 days.

The Board must send a preliminary notice to all unit owners at least 15 days before issuing a final warning. Because the final notice must be sent 15 days before the meeting, the preliminary notice must be sent within 5 days of receiving the requisition.

Need More Information? That’s What We’re Here For.

3

Raising Issues at an AGM

An Annual General Meeting (AGM) allows owners to bring up issues regarding the condo corporation and condo business to the Board and other owners. As discussed in the step above, the condo board can decide whether they want to add an issue to the AGM agenda or call a meeting of owners. At the annual meetings, owners are also encouraged to raise concerns, as long as they are relevant to the affairs and business of the condo corporation.

An AGM can commence once there is assurance of a quorum. Quorum is the minimum number of owners in attendance (in person or represented by proxy) of an owners’ meeting before the meeting can begin. If there is no quorum, there can still be a discussion on a matter, but no voting can take place. Not having a sufficient number of owners at the meeting means that all decisions will be delayed until another meeting can be called.

As of November 1, 2017, the standard quorum is when owners who own 25% of the units in the condo corporation are present. If the quorum is not reached on the first two attempts to hold the meeting, the quorum is reduced to 15% on the third and on any subsequent attempts.

Let's say there is a quorum but only by one person (or unit). If this person leaves during the meeting, the quorum is lost, and the meeting must be adjourned.

Condo boards should hold AGMs annually, typically within six months after the beginning of a new fiscal year. AGMs constitute the only opportunity that owners have to gather, meet with each other, get acquainted with the Board of directors in its entirety, hear out the issues and even be able to ask questions.

Condos generally notify members weeks before the AGM to seek candidates for the Board when a vacancy or a director's term expires. This can be posted throughout the condo for everyone to see.

If the previous three steps have been exhausted and no solution has come to your issue, then it is time to consider the next step:

4

Seeking Legal Advice

A condo board should generally be able to solve many of the issues that can arrive while condo living. However, we understand that not everything goes as planned. If you require legal advice, you may wish to contact a lawyer or paralegal familiar with condo law. The names of lawyers or paralegals may be obtained from the Law Society of Ontario Referral Service. They may provide a free consultation of up to 30 minutes.

As a condo owner, it is crucial to familiarize yourself with your rights and protocols for raising an issue with the condo board. It is important to note that every condo corporation has different rules, but they must always follow the Condominium Act. With this knowledge and our step-by-step guide, you can resolve any issues or conflicts that may arise.