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Topic
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Hello,
I’m new to being part of an Owners Corporation and am unsure about whether common property can be purchased and developed for exclusive use by an Owner.
I understand an Owner can request exclusive use of common property. But what if the Owner wants to develop the common property into a private courtyard? They already have council approval to do this? The renovation would involve converting their windows on the exterior wall into french doors leading to a private courtyard.
The Owner has also inquired about purchasing the common property for the above purchase. They have suggested that the money for the purchase could go into the sinking fund. This doesn’t make sense to me as how is this benefiting the other Owners.
Also can decisions on these matters be carried by majority vote, or would all members of the Owners Corporation need to agree.
Some input on this matter would be greatly appreciated.
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Replies
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Usually, the owners corporation would pass a by-law allowing exclusive use of the courtyard, permission which could only be withdrawn or revoked with the agreement of the owner concerned. The rights conferred by this by-law would pass to subsequent owners of the lot.
The “purchaser” would pay to have the by-law drawn up and would pay the costs of the meeting held to pass it (if it was a separate General Meeting and not just the AGM).
The by-law would state that the owner took over responsibility for the repair and maintenance of the property. It would require a special resolution (75 percent of those voting) to be passed.
The payment to the general fund of the owners corp would be calculated by getting an assessment of the additional value of the property with courtyard etc minus the costs of the work involved, including the French windows (which would also be part of the new by-law).
The benefit of the payment to other owners of a payment to the admin fund would be that this would be less money that they needed to raise through levies – they could even award themselves a levies reduction if the sums were significant enough.
The owner doesn’t need to “own” the courtyard for it to be considered part of their property. Most modern buildings’ balconies are common property but are considered part of lot property when a unit is sold.
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