· The Motion Mash-Up: They’ve crammed the decision to have an ‘end of major defects warranty’ building inspection with the decision on which company to use all into one motion. It’s like asking “Should we get pizza and should it be from Dominos?” in a single breath. They need to be separate votes!
Agreed. If they change a motion after the agenda has been sent, they need to re-send the agenda to all owners. You cannot add a new motion to a meeting without all owners seeing it beforehand.
· The Wonky Voting Paper: The voting paper only has “YES” boxes next to each quote. No “NO” option. It’s generated by their software, apparently, and we’re just supposed to accept it. Because nothing says “democracy” like being unable to formally vote against something!
Draw a box and write the word “NO” next to it. Draw a tick inside the box.
· The Missing Info: They haven’t provided the scopes of work for the quotes. So owners are being asked to choose between a $1,500 inspection and a $4,750 one with zero idea of what they’re actually getting for their money. Super informed decision-making, right?
You could call the providers yourself and find out what the works entail. It should not be your job to do it.
But wait, there’s more! The real kicker is the new habit this manager has developed. At the end of his emails, he now includes this little gem:
“Please be advised that all correspondence is being recorded on the property file, which may have a negative impact if you wish to sell your property in the future.”
If a prospective buyer sees an engaged owner and an intransigent strata manager, they might run away. They are threatening you by saying you are revealing their incompetence.