Majority must support age-restriction bylaw

Condo act makes it illegal to bar owners from renting units

Q: Our condominium’s common area is abused and worn, and rental units make up a third of our 150-unit property. Pride of ownership is slipping. How can we increase the owner/tenant age restriction from 21 to 30? How can we reduce the rental unit numbers?

A: If you would like to have an age restriction in your condominium project, you will need to amend your bylaws. The Alberta courts have upheld age restrictions in bylaws, and to amend them, you will require support from 75 per cent of the owners and unit factors.

With respect to reducing

the number of rental units, unfortunately, the Condominium Property Act states, among other things, that you cannot prevent an owner from renting his or her unit.

Helpful hint: Beforeembarking on any bylaw amendment, determine whether or not there is support among the owners to change the bylaws. With respect to renters, I have always found that making them feel part of the condominium project in some meaningful way does bring pride.

Q: I am on the board of a 20-storey condo complex. We have a Card/FOB building electronic security access system. In 2005, the owners passed a resolution at the AGM that limited the security access to the tower to one card or one FOB per resident and specified that non-residents will not have access to the building other than through an owner. Does the resolution have the same binding power on the board as our bylaws or can the board vote to ignore the resolution and give a card/ FOB to a non-resident? A: Under the Condominium Property Act, owners have the ability to provide direction to the board on various issues. The board is then bound to follow the direction of the owners pursuant to a validly passed resolution. In this case, if the board wants to change the policy, then it should go back to the owners and amend the resolution accordingly. Helpful hint: Your question is odd because I cannot understand why any board would want to issue cards/FOBs to non-residents. If owners are concerned about their security and safety, that is a legitimate reason to limit the number of cards and FOBs. Q: Can the bylaws of a condominium corporation include a provision for removing a board member through a majority vote at a regular board meeting? A: Yes, you can develop your own process under your bylaw store move a board member prior to the expiry of his or her term. This is actually a fairly common provision. Helpful hint: Keep in mind that attempts to remove a board member without a valid reason will limit potential owners from coming forward to sit on the board. People may not want to subject themselves to a popularity contest and expose themselves to being removed for no apparent reason, other than not being liked by the board. Q: When a property management company provides the disclosure information on a request statement to the real estate agent working on behalf of their clients, and there is an error in the information, who is liable for the incorrect or misleading information? A: Generally, the property manager is an agent of the condominium corporation. Therefore, if the property manager makes a mistake with the information, the condominium corporation or the property manager, or both, would more than likely be liable for that misinformation. I am aware of an example where the condominium corporation failed to advise a potential purchaser that there was a special assessment. When the purchaser obtained possession of the unit, he was then advised that there was a special assessment. Unfortunately, the condominium corporation could no longer pursue that special assessment for that particular year because the purchaser had relied upon the incorrect information. Q: I have heard that something called the Alberta Condo Owners Association has recently been established. What do you know about it, and what does it hope to accomplish? Do you know if similar associations have been helpful in other provinces? A: I am aware that a new association was created to provide a voice and visible presence for condominium owners. I understand that there is an annual fee to be a member, and it is open to any condominium owner in Alberta. Any attempt to bring people together to support or advocate on behalf of condominium owners is a positive step. The Canadian Condominium Institute in both Edmonton and Calgary also advocates on behalf of condominium corporations. Helpful hint: The Canadian Condominium Institute often puts on information sessions that condominium board members, property managers and owners may attend.