Regular "Special assessment fees" from condo board - need advice

[saillias]

Since I moved in to this place in 2012 the condo board has been dinging the whole block with yearly special assessment fees.

They rise in price every year. First one was 300, 2014 was $500, this year's is nearly $800

the justification on the letter was "administrative overhead and outstanding legal fees" with no further details

I sent them an e-mail on Sunday asking for further details but haven't heard back.

What can I do? Am I hooped to just endlessly pay special assessment fees?

[Bring_Back_Shantz]

Originally Posted by saillias

Since I moved in to this place in 2012 the condo board has been dinging the whole block with yearly special assessment fees.

They rise in price every year. First one was 300, 2014 was $500, this year's is nearly $800

the justification on the letter was "administrative overhead and outstanding legal fees" with no further details

I sent them an e-mail on Sunday asking for further details but haven't heard back.

What can I do? Am I hooped to just endlessly pay special assessment fees?

As a former long time condo board member, I'm always a little miffed when I see posts like this.
First of all, I hate it when people say things like "the condo board has been dinging the whole block with special assessments".
The people on the condo board are owners too, they don't want to pay extra fees any more than anyone else.
They are also volunteers who have to deal with people who don't understand or care about what goes into properly running/maintinaing a condo complex. If ever there was a thankless job, that certainly is it. It's generally a group of people who are trying their best to make life easier for a much larger group of people, who are usually only too happy to bitch about the job those people are doing for them, for free.

It annoys me when I see people exasperated by the condo board and asking what they can do about it.
How about joint he condo board, get involved, go to the AGM, have some say in how your biggest/most important investment is being run/administered.

The fact that it's happening every year, and isn't for things like unforseen repairs, would, to me, suggest that your condo fees are too low and you've got a condo board who is for some reason opposed to raising the condo fees, and instead is using special assessments to make up for an opperating deficit.

So you have two options:
1) get involved, educate yourself, and have some say in how you want things run
2) pay your yearly special assesments and stop complaining about things you could have control over, but for some reason have chosen not to

[calgarygeologist]

You can bring forward a motion to have a thorough audit done of the expenditures. If the condo members and board feel that costs are out of line they can bring forward a motion to switch management companies.

[saillias]

Originally Posted by Bring_Back_Shantz

As a former long time condo board member, I'm always a little miffed when I see posts like this.
First of all, I hate it when people say things like "the condo board has been dinging the whole block with special assessments".
The people on the condo board are owners too, they don't want to pay extra fees any more than anyone else.
They are also volunteers who have to deal with people who don't understand or care about what goes into properly running/maintinaing a condo complex. If ever there was a thankless job, that certainly is it. It's generally a group of people who are trying their best to make life easier for a much larger group of people, who are usually only too happy to bitch about the job those people are doing for them, for free.

It annoys me when I see people exasperated by the condo board and asking what they can do about it.
How about joint he condo board, get involved, go to the AGM, have some say in how your biggest/most important investment is being run/administered.

The fact that it's happening every year, and isn't for things like unforseen repairs, would, to me, suggest that your condo fees are too low and you've got a condo board who is for some reason opposed to raising the condo fees, and instead is using special assessments to make up for an opperating deficit.

So you have two options:
1) get involved, educate yourself, and have some say in how you want things run
2) pay your yearly special assesments and stop complaining about things you could have control over, but for some reason have chosen not to

Fair enough but you could explain this to me: If I could afford one of the single detached 2-story homes a block away I'd be in one, with no condo board. Why does a condo board with volunteers have to exist in the first place? I am here for budgetary reasons, not because I want someone to shovel my driveway. What if there isn't a board, every unit owner shovels their own driveway, mows their own grass. Am I just woefully ignorant here? I didn't sign up for a condo board, it just kinda came with the purchase.

[Kavvy]

Originally Posted by saillias

Fair enough but you could explain this to me: If I could afford one of the single detached 2-story homes a block away I'd be in one, with no condo board. Why does a condo board with volunteers have to exist in the first place? I am here for budgetary reasons, not because I want someone to shovel my driveway. What if there isn't a board, every unit owner shovels their own driveway, mows their own grass. Am I just woefully ignorant here? I didn't sign up for a condo board, it just kinda came with the purchase.

I don't mean to be a tool, but that is part of your due diligence when you purchase your place.

[troutman]

Originally Posted by saillias

Fair enough but you could explain this to me: If I could afford one of the single detached 2-story homes a block away I'd be in one, with no condo board. Why does a condo board with volunteers have to exist in the first place? I am here for budgetary reasons, not because I want someone to shovel my driveway. What if there isn't a board, every unit owner shovels their own driveway, mows their own grass. Am I just woefully ignorant here? I didn't sign up for a condo board, it just kinda came with the purchase.

This is good info:

http://www.servicealberta.gov.ab.ca/...ng_a_condo.pdf

[calf]

Originally Posted by saillias

Fair enough but you could explain this to me: If I could afford one of the single detached 2-story homes a block away I'd be in one, with no condo board. Why does a condo board with volunteers have to exist in the first place? I am here for budgetary reasons, not because I want someone to shovel my driveway. What if there isn't a board, every unit owner shovels their own driveway, mows their own grass. Am I just woefully ignorant here? I didn't sign up for a condo board, it just kinda came with the purchase.

When you bought a condo, you signed up for a condo board. The board has to exist because the complex has common property that needs to be managed - and it's best to have a small dedicated committee to manage these items than getting everyone together at once. The costs/management is more than just mowing lawns and shovelling snow. There's insurance, saving for complex-wide maintenance/replacements (like roadways/parking lots/roofs), utilities, etc.

You probably could get mowing lawns/snow shovelling cut from the budget, but good luck getting by-laws passed requiring each owner to maintain their own property, and it's even harder to enforce these new rules. A good board doesn't just look after little operating and maintenance activities, but has an overall view of the property and works hard to maintain value for all owners.

[Regular_John]

Originally Posted by saillias

Fair enough but you could explain this to me: If I could afford one of the single detached 2-story homes a block away I'd be in one, with no condo board. Why does a condo board with volunteers have to exist in the first place? I am here for budgetary reasons, not because I want someone to shovel my driveway. What if there isn't a board, every unit owner shovels their own driveway, mows their own grass. Am I just woefully ignorant here? I didn't sign up for a condo board, it just kinda came with the purchase.

As a condo owner myself, I'm shocked you have to ask such a question. Did you do any research into the differences between single family homes and condominium property before your purchased?

[bizaro86]

Originally Posted by saillias

Fair enough but you could explain this to me: If I could afford one of the single detached 2-story homes a block away I'd be in one, with no condo board. Why does a condo board with volunteers have to exist in the first place? I am here for budgetary reasons, not because I want someone to shovel my driveway. What if there isn't a board, every unit owner shovels their own driveway, mows their own grass. Am I just woefully ignorant here? I didn't sign up for a condo board, it just kinda came with the purchase.

Pretty much. Most of the costs associated with your condo fees are usually insurance, management and accounting, utilities for common areas (and units if included), and reserve fund payments to replace common area elements. Repairs and maintenance are also quite often very expensive. None of this stuff is really a situation where people can save money by doing it themselves, except maybe management. And if you don't trust the condo board members, I can't see how you'd want to push for self management. (especially if it's not you that'd be doing the work)

[dubc80]

Originally Posted by saillias

Since I moved in to this place in 2012 the condo board has been dinging the whole block with yearly special assessment fees.

They rise in price every year. First one was 300, 2014 was $500, this year's is nearly $800

the justification on the letter was "administrative overhead and outstanding legal fees" with no further details

I sent them an e-mail on Sunday asking for further details but haven't heard back.

What can I do? Am I hooped to just endlessly pay special assessment fees?

Count yourself lucky. I don't want to say that those amounts are insignificant, but those amounts are very small in comparison to complexes which have special assessments needed to fund major construction or renovation projects. Myself, I've had to pay $8K over the last 4 years in my complex for a variety of issues.

In fact, almost everyone I know who has owned a condo has been "special assessed" at some point. It's very common.

To answer your question though, the condo board should be able to provide you more detail rather than the fairly vague "administrative overhead and outstanding legal fees".

Read through the AGM minutes. They will provide information on any past issues, or potential future issues.

Same with the Reserve Fund study. Your condo board should have one. It will highlight any anticipated major future expenditures and the board and condo management company will use that to forecast how much is needed in the reserve fund to pay for those.

Similar to what others have stated owning a condo is owning a unit in a larger community so It's good to educate yourself and you gotta take the ups with the downs unfortunately.

[polak]

I've found that you can usually tell how anal and annoying a condo board is based on how they treat visitor parking. If you get one visitor pass that has to be displayed then you usually have a terribly annoying condo board. My theory has been proven multiple times.

God forbid you want to have more then one person over.

[I-Hate-Hulse]

Originally Posted by polak

I've found that you can usually tell how anal and annoying a condo board is based on how they treat visitor parking. If you get one visitor pass that has to be displayed then you usually have a terribly annoying condo board. My theory has been proven multiple times.

God forbid you want to have more then one person over.

So put yourself in the Board's shoes - I'd love to hear what your solution is to the below.

Polak would like his guest to park in visitor parking. However, the unit owned by Hulse has a 2nd car belonging to a roommate and permanently parks in visitor parking for days/weeks at a time. To make matters worse, since the condo is next to an LRT station, non residents park in the "visitor" parking so effectively, all the residents of the building never have access to visitor parking.

Not so easy when you have to think about solutions is it?

[polak]

Actually I would completely understand if they had a parking pass if they were located near a c-train station. The example of the most anal board I know is located on the very west edge of Bridlewood/Evergreen. I also understand that there are plenty of reasons for a board to require visitor parking passes, it still doesn't change my theory.

The strictness of visitor parking rules is directly proportionate to the analness of the board.

My theory is solid.

[troutman]

Originally Posted by polak

I've found that you can usually tell how anal and annoying a condo board is based on how they treat visitor parking. If you get one visitor pass that has to be displayed then you usually have a terribly annoying condo board. My theory has been proven multiple times.

Give people an inch, and they will take a mile.

Last condo I lived in, boyfriends and girlfriends of condo owners would park for days or weeks at a time because they had a "pass". Actual visitors could never get a spot.

[rd_aaron]

At what point are yearly special assessment fees just poor condo board management of the condo fees (i.e. not charging enough, hence the need for special assessments)?

[killer_carlson]

actually, i'd suggest that special assessments can be very effective management tools.

The problem is if there is short notice for the assessments.

[I-Hate-Hulse]

Originally Posted by killer_carlson

actually, i'd suggest that special assessments can be very effective management tools.

The problem is if there is short notice for the assessments.

This^^^. At my last condo (a 4 plex townhouse with resale minded owners) we purposely had major non recurring expense go through special assessment vs the operating budget. This was due to the fact that many future buyers focus strictly on monthly condo fees vs taking the time to look at the minutes of previous years.

Everyone knew about it, everyone was OK with payment of it, and the monthly fees stayed nice and low. And we had a nice fresh coat of paint on the exterior.

[lorenavedon]

I would prefer low condo fees with frequent special assessments over high condo fees. This would incentivize the owners of the complex to take better care and be more involved in the day to day upkeep of their common areas and be more aware of what requires maintenance/replacement, etc. I've seen too many people living in condos with the attitude, "oh don't worry about that, it's the condo boards responsibility, they'll have to pay for it." Like the money is free and comes out of thin air.

[killer_carlson]

I wouldn't say frequent special assessments, rather I would say project based special assessments.

[newts]

Originally Posted by saillias

If I could afford one of the single detached 2-story homes a block away I'd be in one, with no condo board.

As a long time single family home owner, in many ways I'm running my own condo board of which I'm the only member and owner. Over the years I've levied many of my own special assessments from time to time: new roof, new furnaces, new siding etc.

My point is that many condo owners complain about assessments, and many prospective home owners complain that they don't want to own a condo because they don't want to pay fees because they don't see the value.

Regardless of the type of ownership, money is spent in one way or another. The benefit of a condo is that you either on a forced savings plan as part of the reserve fund, or part of a cooperative that shares unexpected costs.