On December 14, 2018, substantial changes were announced for Alberta's Condominium Property Act and Condominium Property Regulation. The changes will come into effect July 1, 2019 and Jan 1, 2020. Some highlights of the new laws are:
Transparency and Record Keeping: The Corporation has to keep more documents for specified periods and any Owner can request and copy the Corporation's records.
Document Fees: Document request fees are capped at $10.00/ per document (with the exception of estoppels which can be charged at $100). There are exceptions for "rush" requests.
Annual General Meetings and Save the Date: AGM notices must include copies of all board minutes for the last year and the Board has to send a save the date notice for AGMs to owners 60 days in advance.
Reserve Fund Studies: Reserve fund studies must be completed by a certified reserve fund planner, professional architect, engineer or technologist and that person cannot be in conflict of interest with the corporation, the manager or the board. The reserve fund planner also must comply with more robust requirements in carrying out the reserve plan.
Proxies: To be valid, proxies must comply with specific requirements and they are only good for 6 months max. A proxy holder cannot be a condominium manager.
Fines: For residential units, fines have been capped at $200 for the first offense and $500 for subsequent offences. Owners will have the ability to "appeal" the fine before it sticks. For commercial units, the fines are capped at $1000 and $2500 for first and subsequent offences, respectively.
Chargebacks: The Board will not have the power to place a caveat on a unit for fines. The Board may still have the power to place a caveat for damages caused to the Corporation by an Owner.
Electronic Updates: The Corporation may use electronic voting but only if the bylaws allow for it. Owners who want notices to be sent by email will be entitled to receive them by email.
Insurance and the "Standard Unit": The Corporation can now require Owners to get insurance by bylaw. The Corporation must also pass a definition of a "unit", which will be registered at Land Titles, so Owners and Corporations can better determine what each must insure.
Rules and Regulations: a rule, regulation or policy enacted by the Board cannot prohibit "use" of a unit. "Use" of a unit can only be restricted by bylaw. The board has to notify Owners in advance before a rule, regulation or policy is effective.
Phase III will focus on an establishment of a tribunal to resolve condominium disputes but no timeline for implementation for Phase III has been provided.
For more information, please contact John McDougall, Dionne Levesque, or Kate Kozowyk of SVR Lawyers.
About Mackrell International - Canada - Scott Venturo LLP is a full service business law firm in Calgary, AB and a member of Mackrell International. Mackrell International - Canada is comprised of four independent law firms in Alberta, British Columbia, Ontario and Quebec. Each firm is regionally based and well-connected in our communities, an advantage shared with our clients. With close relations amongst our Canadian member firms, we are committed to working with clients who have legal needs in multiple jurisdictions within Canada.
This article is intended to be an overview and is for informational purposes only.
