Q: As a regional owner, and ACMO2000 executive, what is your experience of amendments under the new Condo Act? The amendments have brought about many challenges. As with any change, this is expected until all stakeholders can get into the new regime. A year later… Managers are faced with additional reporting, deadlines/ timelines, licensing renewals, customer relation support for all owners and directors and all with next to no training. This process has been a self- taught, self-implemented adventure from networking with other firms and managers, condo law blogs, published resources, referencing the revised Act regularly, requesting legal opinions and some educational sessions hosted by ACMO/CCI.
Board members are struggling with understanding why certain things need to be done (i.e., reporting to the Condominium Authority of Ontario (CAO), and additional reporting to owners), and why they must take a course
Owners are confused about why they’re receiving additional reporting (i.e., PIC, ICU), why their fees need to increase and who the CAO is. And as we’ve read in many articles … how do you fill out the new proxy form?
Management companies struggle with having to explain the inevitable cost increases as they are being forced to hire additional staff in order to be able to comply with all the new requirements.
In addition, executives of ACMO 2000 companies are responsible to ensure that their internal administrative procedures are updated and in compliance with the new reforms in a timely fashion. Not only do they need to provide the appropriate training for all their managers and administrators, but they are also responsible to ensure that all their manuals are updated accordingly.
Q: With larger areas to manage, and often smaller corporations, what impact does this have on managing? Managers with General Licences in small communities are few and companies need to hire good potentials and spend the time to train them. Although the management fees are similar or smaller than in big cities such as around the GTA, the costs to licence, train and supervise limited licensed managers is substantially higher.
The workload for managers and administrative staff has significantly increased. Additions of Preliminary Notices for Owners’ Meetings along with the twice a year Periodic Information Certificates, New Owner Information Certificates and the occasional updates are now taking managers and administrators much more time to research, review and for data entry.
Owners’ Annual Meetings bring along changes of directors and, with each corporation, the mandated updates of the CAO registry is more time consuming. Due to the additional administrative tasks, it is hard to be onsite at the properties as often as in the past. With longer time required in the office to complete these administrative tasks, it is harder to perform the site visits/inspections of the properties and, inevitably, it requires more staff to provide the same services as before the changes. It’s about finding the right balance.
Another challenge in smaller corporations is that it is harder to find directors that are interested in running for the board especially when there is more focus on education and potential liability. Small corporations’ boards of directors do not fully understand yet the additional work required and the time that professional, ACMO2000 certified management companies require to provide the same quality services under the new Act.
In regional areas, it will require a longer time frame for residents and directors to adjust and become comfortable with the new forms and additional reports received.
Regional Perspectives
It’s one year since the first round of amendments to the Condominium Act have been in force. We asked two CEOs of ACMO 2000 certified companies located in northern Ontario and southwestern Ontario to share their experience with the amendments and describe the somewhat unique challenges they faced over the last year of implementation.
Q: What about requirements for director training in regional areas? Has this been more difficult to achieve? In many smaller communities, most residents are retirees and at a more advanced age than the average urban condo dweller, therefore computer literacy is at a much lower level. Directors are trying to understand why they need to take the education course. There are several without a computer and the clock is ticking on the six-month deadline to complete. Additional challenges are with those directors who no longer wish to become computer literate and find it cumbersome to work online.
In the regional areas of the province, there is not a lot of training coming out from the local support organizations, and what does come out is more applicable to managers than directors. CAO published some helpful tips on
their website for completing the director training and addressing some of the obstacles; however, you don’t see a lot of action being taken from these regionally.
Q: What other challenges/ difficulties have been presented by amendments to the Condominium Act that managers in more urban areas would not experience as often? Managers in urban areas typically do not manage the number of corporations that a manager would in the regional areas. Although all corporations have the same requirements under the new Act, in smaller communities, a condominium corporation is much smaller, with as little as five units and a thirty- unit corporation is closer to being the average. A manager outside of the GTA has a portfolio consisting of as many as twenty small corporations.
For example, a manager in a highrise community would only have to complete one Periodic Information Certificate (PIC) at a quarter end versus some managers of smaller corporations who are doing upwards of twenty for that same quarter. Although support staff are key, the onus falls back to the licensed manager.
Property managers should have adequate time to inspect their sites and supervise contractors performing services or repairs. With the much higher amount of administrative work required by a regional manager, the time allocated for the sites has been substantially reduced.
Gabriela Shand’s career in this industry started after completing a property management business program at George Brown College and landing in the condominium sector. For 15 years she worked in the GTA for companies like Wallace McBain and Brookfield (now Crossbridge). In 2008, after relocating to Muskoka, Gabriela started her own company, Around The Lakes Property Management, growing it to a regional portfolio of over 50 corporations across the northern region of Ontario. She gained her RCM designation in 1999 and this year she was elected to the board of directors of ACMO. around the lakes.ca
Shane Haskell, RCM, ACCI is CEO and president of Lionheart Property Management, an ACMO 2000 certified company with headquarters in London, but serving GTA, Hamilton and South- western Ontario. Shane sits on various industry Boards and committees. lionheartpm.ca
