Condo board of directors콘도 이사회 (보드)

What is it?

A condo building is run by a condominium corporation. The people who manage the corporation’s affairs are the board of directors, often just called "the board" (Condominium Act, section 27 (1)). There must be at least three directors, and the by-laws can set a higher number (section 27 (2)).

The owners elect the directors (section 28 (1)). The Condominium Authority of Ontario (CAO) buyers’ guide says directors typically volunteer their time.

The board is not the same as the condo manager. A manager is a professional the board hires for day-to-day work; the board makes the decisions.

What the board does

• Sets the budget every year. Owners pay the common expenses (condo fees) in the shares set out in the declaration (section 84 (1)).
• Tenders and decides on contracts, and hires and oversees professionals such as lawyers and engineers, and the condo manager (CAO guide).
• Sends the notices the law requires and keeps owners informed.
• Makes or changes rules. Rules must be reasonable (section 58 (2)), and they take effect the day after 30 days from the notice to owners if no owners’ meeting is requisitioned (section 58 (7)). Owners can change or cancel a rule at a meeting (section 58 (5)).
• Makes by-laws. But a by-law only takes effect once owners of a majority of the units vote to confirm it and it is registered (section 56 (10)).
• Reviews a reserve fund study within 120 days of receiving it and proposes a plan for future funding (section 94 (8)).
• To borrow money for spending that is not in the budget, the corporation needs a by-law that allows that borrowing (section 56 (3)).

Who can be a director?

A director must be an individual, at least 18, not bankrupt, not found incapable of managing property, and must make the required disclosures (section 29 (1)). A person must consent to become a director (section 30 (1)).

Depending on the by-laws, directors do not have to be owners (CAO guide). Each condo can add more qualifications in its by-laws, so check them.

A director loses the seat right away on: bankruptcy, being found incapable, a lien registered on their unit that is not discharged within 90 days, not finishing the required training on time, or not making the required disclosures (section 29 (2)).

Directors’ duties and required training

• Directors must act honestly and in good faith, and use the care, diligence and skill a reasonably prudent person would use in similar circumstances (section 37 (1)).
• A director with an interest in a contract with the corporation must disclose it in writing and stay out of the discussion and vote on it (section 40 (1) and (6)).
• Required training: directors must finish the courses set by the CAO within 6 months of being elected or appointed, unless they finished them within the last 7 years (O. Reg. 48/01, section 11.7 (4)). A director who does not finish loses the seat right away (section 29 (2) (e)).
• The CAO guide says this training is free on the CAO website, and anyone can take it, not only directors.

Elections, terms and removal

From December 31, 2026, the section 51 seat rules change. Instead of the 15% test: if "non-leased voting units" are fewer than half of all units, and one of those owners asks within 15 days after the preliminary notice (a notice the board sends before the notice that calls the meeting), only those owners elect and remove one director. A "non-leased" unit is a residential unit that was not rented out in the 60 days before the preliminary notice. The date is close, so confirm with your condo manager or the CAO.

Meetings and quorum

• Board meetings: a majority of directors must be present to do business (section 32 (2)). Unless the by-laws say otherwise, directors get 10 days’ written notice (section 35 (2)). The CAO guide says owners generally cannot attend board meetings.
• Annual general meeting (AGM): the first within 3 months after the declaration is registered, then within 6 months after the end of each fiscal year (section 45 (2)). The CAO guide says it usually covers the financial statements, the auditor and director elections, and any owner can raise any matter about the corporation’s affairs (section 45 (3)).
• Owners’ meeting quorum: usually owners of 25% of the units, in person or by proxy (section 50 (1)). For some meetings such as the AGM, if there is no quorum twice, it drops to 15% from the third try (section 50 (1.1)).
• If the by-laws allow, owners’ and board meetings can be held by phone or online (sections 35 (5) and 45 (6)).

Owners’ rights: records and requisitioning a meeting

• Records: an owner, a buyer or a mortgage lender (or an agent authorized in writing) can examine or get copies of the corporation’s records following the set process (section 55 (3)). These include financial records, minutes, the declaration, by-laws and rules, reserve fund studies and agreements (section 55 (1)). Employee records, litigation records and records about other units or owners are excluded (section 55 (4)).
• Requisition: owners of at least 15% of the units (listed in the record and entitled to vote) can sign a written request for an owners’ meeting (section 46 (1)). The board must add it to the next AGM (if the owners ask or agree) or hold a meeting within 35 days. If it does not, a requisitionist can call the meeting (section 46 (4)–(5)).
• Removing a director can start with a requisition. The request must name each director to be removed and give the reasons (section 46 (3)).

Section 46 changes on December 31, 2026: owners whose condo fees are 30 days or more in arrears cannot join a requisition. The board must answer in writing within 10 days (or another period set by regulation) whether it will hold the meeting. If it says yes or does not answer, it must hold the meeting within 40 days after that answer period ends. Requisitions must use the set form.

Where do you go with a problem?

Ontario’s guidance says to start by talking to the condo manager, writing to the board to ask for formal consideration, requisitioning an owners’ meeting, or raising the issue at the AGM.

The Condominium Authority Tribunal (CAT) handles disputes about records (no answer, refusal, fees, poor records), following the governing documents, pets, parking and nuisances such as noise. All three stages cost $200 in total ($25 to file, $50 for mediation, $125 for adjudication).

What the CAT cannot handle: how the board operates and its decisions, financial or budget disputes, repair and maintenance disputes, and meeting issues such as quorum, voting and notices (CAO guidance). Talk to a lawyer about these. Complaints about a condo manager or management company go to the CMRAO (the condo management regulator).

Example

This is an example for reference only. The actual process and quorum can differ under each condo’s by-laws.