Questions / Answers - Construction and maintenance costs of condominiums

Questions  : Can co-owners or occupants of the building be authorized by the board of directors to carry out voluntary work (such as painting the corridors, washing the windows, laying out a small gravel path, etc.), in short, limiting the number of contractors for the maintenance of the building, and this to save several thousand dollars each year?  And if this is possible, what are the consequences?  When it comes to liability insurance, is this type of risk covered? In terms of occupational health and safety, does this type of activity entail risks for the syndicate?  And in the event of an accident, what are the consequences for our volunteers?

  The windows of our unit are at the end of their lives, according to a specialist who changed the thermos of a window that don't 2 windows have already cracked. Despite my express request to the syndicate to change our windows, he prefers to wait a few years to change all the windows. We have been losing the enjoyment of one of our main windows for 2 years. Its opening is a danger, because it is too heavy, weighs on the closing mechanism, and I am afraid that it falls from the 4th floor, or that the thermos breaks again. Question:  What do you think are our remedies?

A co-owner has carried out by himself work on his terrace (common portion for restricted use). Since then, the roof leaks. Question : Who must pay to repair the damage?

7 years ago, the Board of Directors retained the services of professionals to prepare a contingency fund study. After learning about it, the directors of the time found the financial contributions that the co-owners had to pay into the contingency fund too expensive. A sale of an apartment in our building failed recently, because the buyer was informed that the common expenses had not been increased significantly. We want to put our co-ownership in order by respecting the recommendations of the contingency fund study. Question: Does the contingency fund study need to be updated and, if so, should it be re-evaluated regularly?

I am a recent co-owner. The building I live in has 10 units. The contribution to contingency fund is substantial. In fact, it represents 20% of the budget of the co-ownership! That seems excessive. Question: Is there a ceiling to the amounts to be paid in the contingency fund?