How can I advise a condo owner who has a dispute with their board?

At its most basic, condominium ownership is a group of individual owners agreeing to work together to share common spaces, amenities, and costs. I have written other articles digging into this more, but suffice it to say that this definition helps frame our thoughts in this article, at least. Practically speaking, you can’t have a 300-unit condo complex where everyone decides what is right for them since their actions may affect other unit owners around them, so like a mini-government, the owners elect a board to make the decisions that are best for the group as a whole. Where there are people you will find problems, so undoubtedly, there will be decisions a condominium owner disagrees with, and they may choose to contact their trusted REALTOR® for some guidance, so let’s take a few minutes to think through that guidance.

E Pluribus Unum

If you know no other Latin, I suspect you know this phrase: “Out of the many, one.” I lead with that because condominium ownership is designed so that the owners and shareholders of the condominium corporation agree to work together, live together, and support the whole, even if they didn’t think about it that way when they purchased. The point of condominium bylaws, which every single condominium corporation has, is to establish the rules of engagement with which the many unit owners agree to operate as one. Because of this concept, the elected condominium board has to think first of the effect of decisions on the many, not just the one. Assuming the board is funtioning correctly, they will use the bylaws as a guide but also have an eye on the community’s long-term viability, health & safety considerations, and quiet enjoyment of the whole. Perhaps the first thing a REALTOR® can discuss with an upset unit owner is this obligation of the condo board and see if they can look past the end of their nose to see how the board is considering the decision in this light.

Let’s get practical

Now that the hand-holding love circle consideration has been presented, let’s think about the likelihood that the unit owner believes the board is not looking out for the best interests of the many but is simply not functioning correctly, choosing the easy path or unfairly targeting them. Most of the time, this is not the case, but these arguments are classically made when someone is frustrated and upset. So, the best first step to suggest to a unit owner is to attend meetings and get involved. If the unit owner believes they have better ideas or specific skills that could benefit the board in their decision-making, they need to step up and make that known. These condominium boards are typically volunteer boards and often just a coalition of the willing. They would undoubtedly appreciate new ideas, thoughtful conversation, and sober second thoughts from unit owners directly, but the owners must show up.

Grab the wheel

As I mentioned, these condominium boards are volunteers for the most part, and that means any unit owner who feels they have value to add could put their name forward to be a board member at any AGM. It is not an easy position, but it will provide an unmatched view across the vistas of condominium decision-making and the complexities they never thought of before. Best of all, they have the opportunity to steer the condominium corporation in a positive direction by adding their experience and skills to the leadership mix.

The Nuclear Option

It is always possible that a condominium unit owner believes the board is not acting appropriately, can’t or won’t join the board to help make decisions, and wants to take their grievance to the next level. First, anything criminal must be reported to law enforcement immediately, but apart from that rare scenario, the unit owner has only one avenue to pursue: civil litigation. Let’s think this through. When a unit owner owns a unit in condominium corporation, they are also a shareholder in that corporation. If they choose to sue the board, they will need to pay for their own legal costs, but the board will hire legal counsel to defend the claim using corporation funds. Those funds are the owner’s/shareholders' funds, including the unit owner doing the suing. Essentially, they are personally suing a corporation which they are also a shareholder in themselves, and at least partially paying for the defence of the parties being sued. Face Palm. Sometimes, this is necessary on principle, but those situations are magically much rare once this reality is explained to the upset unit owner. Often, they find alternate methods of conflict resolution or getting involved in the board to help advance change from within.

Condominium Dispute Tribunal

Some of my readers, who are all brilliant people for choosing this blog, will put their hand up and say wait a minute, isn’t there a condominium dispute resolution tribunal in Alberta? Sadly, at the time of writing this article, the answer to that question is a solid “not yet.” Since the Condominium Amendment Act, the government of Alberta has created the potential to have a tribunal, but several years later, it has yet to enact that potential. Although they continue slow and measured engagement on the issue, there is currently no projected timeline for a tribunal creation. The tribunal would be an alternate path to civil litigation similar to the Residential Tenancy Dispute Resolution Service (RTDRS), which has been functioning for nearly 20 years in the gap between landlords and tenants. If the upset condominium owner wants to take a positive forward step in this regard, they could talk to their MLA or write the Minister of Service Alberta and express their support for such an option to help condominium owners in dispute with their board.

One final distinction should be made at this point to clarify something. A dispute or complaint about a condominium board is different from a concern with the licensed condominium manager, who may be intimately involved with the daily operations of the condominium workings. A complaint about a condominium manager should go to the condo board for consideration since they hired them. More severe situations around professional conduct, licensing, etc., should be directed to the licensing body and provincial regulator, the Real Estate Council of Alberta.