Administrative management

There is an administrative component in co-ownership Management that should not be neglected; its proper implementation will ensure the smooth operation of the syndicate of co-owners. The contractual agreement between the latter and the manager, may stipulate that various assignments – all equally important - allocated to the manager. If many cases, his duties will be numerous and will require not only thorough knowledge of the declaration of co-ownership, but also reasonable knowledge of the legislative framework governing this collective housing mode. A review of the range of duties that can be entrusted to co-ownership managers.

Clerical function

Insofar as clerical tasks are concerned, the manager may be required to:

• Safeguard and update the register of co-ownership;
• File and manage the co-ownership documents;
• Prepare the documents necessary to convene and hold the general meetings of co-owners, and without limitation the notices of meeting, the agenda, the proxies, the balance sheet, the income statement, the statement of debts and claims, the budget forecast, the notes on the essential terms and conditions of any proposed contract (as well as the foreseeable work resulting therefrom), the attendance sheet, the supplementary agenda and the notices resulting therefrom;
• Prepare the documents relating to the annual general meeting of the co-owners or to the special general meeting, such as PowerPoint presentations or the report of the board of directors;
• Draft the minutes the general meeting of the co-owners and their notifications;
• Prepare the documents relating to convening the meetings of the board of directors;
• Draft reports to be sent to the members of the board of directors;
• Draft the minutes of the board of directors;
• Update the syndicate’s information in the “Registre des entreprises” (the register of enterprises), namely the Annual Updating Declaration, the Current Updating Declaration and the Corrective Updating Declaration.

Communication

As part of his communication tasks, the manager may be called upon to:

• Play the role of a middle person between the administrators, co-owners, service providers and staff;
• Receive and process letters, emails, text messages and phone calls;
• Transmit a notice of loss to the insurer or the damage insurance broker of the syndicate, following a loss that could trigger one of the guarantees of the insurance policy;
• Forward the decisions of the Board of Directors to the co-owners, service providers and third parties;
• Send newsletters to the co-owners to inform them of special occurrences, such as whether the pool needs to be closed to carry out repairs, or if a general information meeting is to be held;
• Send a notice to the co-owners informing them that legal proceedings have been instituted against the syndicate of co-owners;
• Transmit the relevant information to a promisor-buyer, such as a statement of unpaid common expenses or the DRCOP [“demande de renseignements au syndicat des copropriétaires” (Request for Information to the syndicate of co-owners)];
• Greet and welcome new co-owners or tenants.

Management

As part of his managerial tasks, the manager may need to:

•  Enforce the provisions of the declaration of co-ownership, under the supervision of the board of directors;
• Manage the diverse co-owners requests, such as designating an elevator for moving in and out, or attend to having work carried out in a private portion;
• Respond to co-owners' requests for consultation of documents filed in the register of co-ownership;
• Recruit staff under the supervision of the Board of Directors;
• Follow up on staff management;
• Evaluate and train staff to optimize performance;
• Follow up on contracts, as necessary, to ensure the proper operation and preservation of the immovable;
• Follow up on the decisions taken at the general meeting of the co-owners and of the board of directors to ensure their implementation.

WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW ! Sometimes, the manager has the mandate of enforcing the provisions of the declaration of co-ownership, particularly with regard to the conditions of use of the common and private portions. Under the supervision of the Board of Directors, he ensures that the by-laws of the immovable are rigorously respected by the co-owners, occupants and lessees.

WHAT TO KEEP IN MIND : The Manager may, under the supervision of the Board of Directors, assume the administrative management of the co-ownership. This responsibility involves diverse and varied tasks.

WARNING ! The manager must have excellent communication skills, to adapt his level of speech to various groups, such co-owners, other occupants, lessees, support staff (e.g. the janitor and building security employees), building professionals, service providers and real estate brokers.

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