With another devastating fire impacting hundreds of condominium residents in Calgary, insurance is uppermost in the minds of many condominium owners.
Condominium insurance can be confusing, in part because some of the property insured by a condominium corporation is maintained by the individual owners. The corporation insures the common property, but also insures the units, as required by the Condominium Property Act. The corporation's coverage may exclude chattels such as appliances and window coverings, as well as betterments and improvements made by individual owners. Private insurance can be used to supplement the corporation's coverage.
In the case of a catastrophic loss at a condominium, the corporation's policy will fall short of the owners' requirements for additional living expenses. Most corporation policies provide limited coverage for living expenses if owners are displaced by a significant loss. An owner's private insurance can and should supplement the insurance provided by the corporation. Coverage for additional living expenses is coordinated with content insurance and arranged privately by individual condominium owners.
All condominium owners should carry independent coverage for the contents of the unit, and seek the advice of their insurance broker to ensure that the coverage provided also includes additional living expenses.
Thursday, July 29, 2010
Moving Toward More Effective Governance
One of the ironies of living in a condominium, with its so-called 'carefree lifestyle,' is that condominiums are governed by volunteer owners. This means that a handful of owners take on responsibility for the stewardship of multiple homes rather than relinquishing responsibility for one single family dwelling.
This also means that this handful of owners makes decisions on behalf of the other owners, a responsibility often overlooked or not given the consideration it deserves. A board of directors is designed around the relatively simple premise that, when a large group with common interests needs to make decisions, it simplifies the process by appointing representatives to do this on their behalf.
On the surface this sounds simple, but it is complicated by individual desires and preferences, and the old adage that a camel is a horse that was designed by a committee. For the most part this works surprisingly well in condominium governance, and a healthy cross-section of opinions and preferences among board members makes for reasoned and well-balanced decisions.
Much can be learned about condominium governance by studying non-profit governance in other sectors. If there is an over-riding mission or objective that should guide a condominium board of directors, it is the market resale value of the units. If every decision made by a board is weighed against this criteria, all of the owners (whether they agree with a decision or not) can understand the underlying philosophy and find little to criticize, at least with the methodology.
Very few boards stay focused on a particular mission or objective, while other types of non-profits focus on it almost exclusively. They usually start by asking about the purpose of the organization. To be fair, condominium boards deal with volatile and emotional issues, and an ever-changing sea of issues and priorities. But that doesn't mean that the underlying principle of resale value can't be applied to all of those issues and priorities. Thinking about the purpose of a condominium corporation and its organization is another way of looking at its governance.
Other objectives might break down the over-riding mission so that decisions are made using slightly different criteria. Some are financial, such as annual budgets and which landscaping contractor will yield the most bang for the buck. Others might be measured using the criteria of enhancing the lifestyle and the 'feeling' aspects of living in a particular condominium. Applying common sense to setting policies and rules means making decisions that enhance the ability of people with diverse interests and lifestyles to live in harmony with one another.
It is certainly worth pondering why decisions need to be made, and whether the right criteria for making those decisions is always at the forefront when a condominium board meets. There is a wealth of on-line information on non-profit and corporate governance. A great starting place is the Institute on Governance: www.iog.ca.
This website includes a self-evaluation for boards brave enough to respond to a quick questionnaire. As a condominium manager, one of the things I like about the questionnaire is that some of the questions focus on the relationship between a non-profit and its executive director. There are many parallels between the executive director of a non-profit and the role of a condominium manager, and the questions in the survey should be thought-provoking for boards who want to strengthen their partnership with their manager and management company.
This also means that this handful of owners makes decisions on behalf of the other owners, a responsibility often overlooked or not given the consideration it deserves. A board of directors is designed around the relatively simple premise that, when a large group with common interests needs to make decisions, it simplifies the process by appointing representatives to do this on their behalf.
On the surface this sounds simple, but it is complicated by individual desires and preferences, and the old adage that a camel is a horse that was designed by a committee. For the most part this works surprisingly well in condominium governance, and a healthy cross-section of opinions and preferences among board members makes for reasoned and well-balanced decisions.
Much can be learned about condominium governance by studying non-profit governance in other sectors. If there is an over-riding mission or objective that should guide a condominium board of directors, it is the market resale value of the units. If every decision made by a board is weighed against this criteria, all of the owners (whether they agree with a decision or not) can understand the underlying philosophy and find little to criticize, at least with the methodology.
Very few boards stay focused on a particular mission or objective, while other types of non-profits focus on it almost exclusively. They usually start by asking about the purpose of the organization. To be fair, condominium boards deal with volatile and emotional issues, and an ever-changing sea of issues and priorities. But that doesn't mean that the underlying principle of resale value can't be applied to all of those issues and priorities. Thinking about the purpose of a condominium corporation and its organization is another way of looking at its governance.
Other objectives might break down the over-riding mission so that decisions are made using slightly different criteria. Some are financial, such as annual budgets and which landscaping contractor will yield the most bang for the buck. Others might be measured using the criteria of enhancing the lifestyle and the 'feeling' aspects of living in a particular condominium. Applying common sense to setting policies and rules means making decisions that enhance the ability of people with diverse interests and lifestyles to live in harmony with one another.
It is certainly worth pondering why decisions need to be made, and whether the right criteria for making those decisions is always at the forefront when a condominium board meets. There is a wealth of on-line information on non-profit and corporate governance. A great starting place is the Institute on Governance: www.iog.ca.
This website includes a self-evaluation for boards brave enough to respond to a quick questionnaire. As a condominium manager, one of the things I like about the questionnaire is that some of the questions focus on the relationship between a non-profit and its executive director. There are many parallels between the executive director of a non-profit and the role of a condominium manager, and the questions in the survey should be thought-provoking for boards who want to strengthen their partnership with their manager and management company.
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