CONDO OWNERS ON HOOK FOR FIXING MOISTURE AND WATER PROBLEMS IN THEIR BASEMENTS
Lawyer could determine whether there is a claim against builder for oversights
Q Several units in our condo building have had moisture or water problems in their basements over the last few years, and the board has made attempts to mitigate them. Last fall, they commissioned an engineering assessment on the problem, with an eye to fixing the issue permanently. The work was done over the past several months, and we haven’t had any water issues in our unit. Last week, we received the results of that assessment. Their opinion is that it will cost around $2 million to fix the problem. That comes to about $80,000 per unit, which may be light, given contingency and tax assumptions. The assessment includes what appears to be missteps and oversights against code by both the builder and the city inspectors. As owners, my wife and I are wondering, what are our options? A If the work was done to repair or maintain common property of the condominium corporation, and the work was required to be done, as it would appear based on your question, then the condominium corporation is entitled to implement a special levy against all owners to pay for such repairs and maintenance costs.
With respect to whether or not the work was done properly by the builder, the condominium corporation should engage a lawyer to determine whether or not there is a claim against the builder. Are you out of time to even start a lawsuit against the builder? Does the builder still exist? These are all the kinds of questions that need to be answered to determine whether or not there is a legal basis to get some money back from the developer.
Helpful Hint: Condominium corporations have a legal responsibility to maintain and repair common property. Boards are not allowed to simply ignore their legal requirements because of costs.
It is most unfortunate that if condominium corporations are not putting enough money aside for those future capital improvements or repairs then special levies will have to be issued.
Q I own a condominium unit that’s presently occupied by tenants. Recently, I received a call from the property management company stating there had been an incident which resulted in the underground parkade garage door coming down on my tenant’s vehicle. As my tenant was exiting the parkade, she met with another vehicle that was entering. That vehicle had to back up to let her go through. In the meantime, the garage door had begun to shut. My tenant tried to back up, but there was another vehicle behind her and the garage door came down on her vehicle. There was damage to the vehicle and the garage door. The video was viewed by property management, and I’m being asked to pay the $2,400 bill to repair the garage door. The property manager said they won’t deal directly with the tenants for the payment, so it’s my responsibility to collect the money from them. Based on this information, can you advise me on who is responsible for the damage to the garage door? A First, the property manager is correct to deal with the owner of the unit. Therefore, it is your
responsibility.
However, if you, as an owner, have to reimburse the condominium corporation for such damages, then you would be entitled to go after your tenant for reimbursement. Ultimately, it’s always the owner who is responsible.
Second, with respect to the charges for the repair, I would have to review your bylaws to determine whether or not the condominium corporation even had the authority to issue such a bill, and whether or not the condominium corporation has to actually prove that the tenant was negligent in the manner in which they attempted to exit the parkade.
The second part of your question requires some legal analysis and it’s impossible to give you a definitive answer on that.
Helpful Hint: When an owner is faced with a chargeback for a particular incident, it is critical for the owner to review the bylaws to determine whether or not the condominium corporation has the authority for the chargeback and what steps they must take to collect.
Q We have several units for sale in our building. One of the key safes was recently cut off from our railing, the key fob was used to enter our parking
garage, and my bike was stolen. My bike was locked to a rack in the garage, and the lock was cut off. Do I have any recourse with the realtor or condo association, or only my own insurance? A I would strongly urge you to consult your insurance and determine whether or not you have any coverage in this regard. The individual who stole your bike obviously spent a lot of time planning this particular theft.
Helpful Hint: The only way to minimize or reduce crime in your building is to ensure that all owners are the eyes and ears for everyone else. I would strongly urge you to remind owners to be vigilant with one another and with other people’s property, and to also consider implementing some sort of security program whereby you put in security cameras.
Crime will always happen, but we can take steps to reduce it significantly.