How Do I Change My Condo Bylaws In Alberta?
There is a popular misconception among people that buying a house and a condo is the same
thing. Well, the truth is both of them are quite different compared to each other based on the
Alberta condo act, especially in Canada.
Compared to the house owners, the condo owners have plenty of unique legal and financial
obligations that they must follow to retain ownership and enjoy all the amenities.
However, before jumping into the details, let’s understand at first what is condominium:
What Is Meant By A Condominium?
A condominium is basically a legal document signed between the condo owners, stating they are
the joint owners of the common condo property. And everyone must be held responsible for the
maintenance of the property equally. However, you have to pay a certain fee to keep the
ownership and enjoy all the facilities.
Hence, before purchasing any condo unit, make sure that you have a clear idea about what you
particularly own and what you jointly own along with other condo owners.
Any things ranging from halls, elevators, swimming pools, laundry to landscaped spaces, etc.,
can fall under condominium ownership as per the terms and conditions of the document.
How Does Condominium Corporations Governing Occurs?
Condo bylaws usually rule the entire condominium corporation. Here, the rules are pretty simple.
To simply put, both the owners and the tenants have to strictly follow and abide by all the rules
in case they don’t want to pay a fine.
The rules may vary from one condo unit to another, depending on the condo building location
and various other factors. For instance, some condo bylaws have a strict prohibition on children
of a certain age or any kind of pets residing under the compound.
Apart from these, another common bylaw ruling that you need to adhere strictly to: You must get
written approval from the condo’s board of directors for doing any kind of renovations or any
changes within the residence.
There can also be parking restrictions, visitor parking rules, amenities usages like maintenance
protocols, operating hours, bylaw modifications, board members’ elections, penalties for
breaking any rules, and many more.
Hence, before taking any step, it is more than necessary that you know your legal rights and
responsibilities as per the condo’s bylaws rulings to be on the safer side.
How Do I Change My Condo Bylaws In Alberta?
Many of us have a popular misconception that we cannot change the condo bylaws once they are
set for a whole 1 year. If you also have the same belief, you will be pleased to know you can
change it completely and make any modifications.
However, there is a “but” condition. And that condition is an election will be hosted among all
the condo owners.
If the result favors making any amendments in the terms and conditions for at least 75%, then the
condo bylaws can be reformed at any given time of the year.
All the new changes or inclusion will become effective from the day when the condo board
registers them at the Land Title Office.
What Will Happen If I Fail To Pay My Condo Charges?
If you fail to pay your condo fees, the condo corporation will reserve the full right to take some
actions against you. Have a look at the below checklist to know about them:
May ask the condo owners’ mortgage companies to pay the due amount.
May confront the tenant living in that unit to pay the monthly charges.
Give a warning to the unit owner.
Charging interest on the unpaid amount (can be up to 18% for every year).
Take legal action against the owners to pay the legal fee along with the interest amount in
full
Take away the ownership of the condo unit.
Moreover, if you fail to clear the debts to the condo corporation for 30 days or more, then you
will also lose all your access to cast any vote or take active participation in any crucial matters of
the condo building.
To Conclude
Purchasing a condo can be a pretty good deal and maybe one of the biggest purchases of your
life. Although they are fascinating to buy, at the same time, they can be quite scary for a 1 st -time
purchaser.
There are several things which you have to do properly and should have full knowledge in.
Otherwise, a simple mistake can be quite costly for you and may charge you a lot of fines.
Hence, the smarter call is to go through all the clauses before taking the final call. After all, you
will certainly not want to compromise your entire lifestyle and other basic needs for the sake of
it.