If that doesn’t work, get a lawyer to investigate strata corporation’s out-of-date information
Tony Gioventu
Province
Dear Condo Smarts: I don’t know who to turn to. I bought a condo in Vancouver in February, moved in with my dog on March 15, and March 20 began to receive threatening letters from the strata about my dog. It claims the strata has a “no pets” rule, and that I have to either get rid of my dog or move. Before I purchased, I requested information about the strata corporation, and my agent was given the strata website and password to access the minutes of the strata meetings, bylaws and rules of the strata corporation, as well as other information, including a maintenance and building report done in 2008. Absolutely nothing indicated on the website that pets were prohibited and that there was a no-pets rule. As the information we received was provided by the agent, doesn’t the strata have to abide by the information that individual disclosed to a buyer? I admit that since talking to my lawyer, I should have requested a copy of a Form B Information certificate before I bought. Now what am I supposed to do?
— Frankie D.
Dear Frankie: While online information may be helpful in investigating
a strata corporation, it may also be seriously misleading. The blame is not entirely yours however, as the strata corporation, through its agent, provided you with access to the strata corporation’s current records, and nothing was disclosed in those records at the time regarding the prohibition of pets.
You should have been advised to obtain an information certificate, and to obtain a registered copy of the bylaw amendments. Relying solely on the information posted to the website, you only viewed dated materials. Had you obtained a copy of the registered bylaws through the Land Title Registry, you would have immediately noticed that the strata amended its bylaws in December of 2009, adopting a bylaw that prohibits pets. Unfortunately, the website had not been updated since Nov. 15, 2009, so the information posted was inaccurate.
The other challenge for the strata is that while the manager provides the access-code information, the website is actually maintained by the strata council. The manager was not advised that the council has not been maintaining the website, and as of April 30, the same dated material is still posted on the site. If a website is only archived information, then it should provide dated signatures to identify the periods of information posted. If the website is active current information, it should have a “real person” or company you can contact to obtain written verification of the claims or data posted on a website.
The CHOA website, for example, hosts over 600 information bulletins and articles, all of which are routinely reviewed and updated for changes in legislation, contact information, access to links, changes in case law, or regulations that impact strata corporations.
Whether you are investigating a strata corporation to consider a purchase, or generally surfing the net, look for indications that the information is reliable and there is a person to contact. For Frankie, the best option now is a hearing with council to find a solution for both her and the strata, and failing that, retaining legal counsel to respond to the strata corporation’s disclosure of inaccurate information and its claim of bylaw violation.
Tony Gioventu is executive-director of the Condominium Home Owners’ Association. E-mail tony@choa. bc.ca.
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