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A recent small claims court decision signals the end of condo management firms preparing, registering and discharging condominium liens in-house.

Page v. Maple Ridge Community Management Ltd., 2017 CanLII 21772 began when a unit owner at YCC 34 failed to pay a special assessment in time. YCC 34’s management firm, Maple Ridge, used its in-house paralegal employee to issue Ms. Page a Notice of Lien (Form 14) and, when no payment was made within the 10-day notice period, to register a certificate of lien against the unit.

Ms. Page discovered that the paralegal employee was administratively suspended by the Law Society at the time the lien was registered, presumably for failing to pay annual dues or file obligatory paperwork.  Ms. Page paid “under protest” the special assessment arrears of $767 and the management firm’s demanded fees of $141 to issue the Form 14 notice and $678 to prepare, register and discharge the certificate of lien. The management firm’s total charges for the lien work were $819.…
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We published a piece last May recommending that condominium corporations enact policies to collect common expenses in an orderly, systematic way. Unfortunately, we continue to see condo boards deliberately delaying the commencement of power of sale proceedings on liened units. Such delay brings added cost, wasted board time, greater hardship on unit owners in trouble and cash flow disruptions.

Aside from poorly-informed boards of self-managed condos, a major cause of problem collections is management agreements requiring the board to instruct management to commence power of sale proceedings on liened units. Whatever the reason behind such clauses, none is compelling and the concept is hopelessly flawed. We say:…
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PennypinchMany people who work with condominiums raised an eyebrow after reading a recent Toronto Star story entitled “Maintenance fees take a toll on Toronto condo owners.”

The piece highlights the divergent philosophies about the interplay between common expenses and market values and the growing trend towards gathering, tracking and comparing common expenses data from building to building. Most notably, it cites the example of a local condominium that reduced its common expenses by 30% (probably by slashing contributions to the reserve fund) and is now witnessing a boom in unit resale values compared to nearby condos.

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It is not a lawyer’s usual role to alert the public about possible crimes being perpetrated by suspected criminals at large, but we feel compelled to do so when police and government fail to take action and leave condominium corporations vulnerable to a rogue.

Boards of small condominium corporations in Halton Region should check whether they have been victimized by potential rogue condo management firm operating in Burlington and surrounding area.

No police charges have been laid and no convictions have been entered, so we cannot name suspects without fear of defamation lawsuits, but we offer this warning as a public service to help condo boards protect themselves against fraud and to take effective steps to recover losses if they have been victimized.

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IOUSome of the most uncomfortable conversations that condo directors, managers and lawyers have with unit owners take place when owners cannot afford the monthly common expenses for their unit. While it is natural to show compassion to someone in trouble, significant problems and potential liabilities arise by delaying prompt collection action.

Ontario condominium corporations have one the strongest statutory debt collection mechanisms in the world. They can collect every single penny of common expenses in priority to most other creditors so long as the required notices are properly completed, given on time and a certificate of lien is registered on title within 90 days of default. The rules are fairly simple but the slightest slip in the paperwork or missing a deadline by a single day jeopardizes the condo’s priority and ability to collect the entire debt quickly.

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To encourage people to carefully consider and protect their families, assets and affairs, the Ontario Bar Association has made April its “Make a Power of Attorney Month.”

A power of attorney (“POA”) is a legal document that gives someone else the right to act on a person’s behalf. These documents can be used to oversee personal care or to handle assets and property, and can be customized to suit the precise requirements of each person. …
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