Re: Who pays fee for convening a General Meeting/EGM?

Many thanks scotlandx. Fingers crossed our OC will implement by-laws to have selected, common ‘minor’ renovations (e.g., split system air conditioning installation) approved by the SC, rather than via a general meeting. 

One issue raised among our OC is around fairness – in that some owners would be charged a fee and others wouldn’t, depending on luck with timing, i.e., whether a general meeting coincided with their need to undertake renovations (recognising that renovations are often triggered by need to repair or replace something, sometimes for health reasons – e.g., need to remove carpet because of asthma diagnosis). Not all renovations can wait.

Many Strata Committees only hold one general meeting per year (the AGM); an owner might be unlucky with timing (just missing an AGM) and must wait 12 months for the next AGM before their renovations are approved (especially if fee to hold an extraordinary general meeting is prohibitive – in some cases it might be more than the actual renovation). Other owners could be lucky with timing and their renovations might align perfectly with a scheduled general meeting – no need for a separate EGM, no additional fee for seeking approval.

And then there is the issue of people purchasing a unit and who plan to make some minor changes/upgrades/repairs prior to moving in – this might be a deciding factor in them buying the property. They won’t know what the timeframe for approval is and/or the associated fees for convening an EGM if that is required, as none of that information is initially available at the time of purchase.

To me it seems that this should be incorporated into the bylaws somehow. Appreciate any thoughts on this.