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View Full Version : Has anyone here ever held back on their condo fees and gotten away with it?



Redlyne_mr2
04-02-2014, 12:21 PM
I've lived in a townhouse complex for the last 6 years which is managed by montgomery ross. I have my monthly fees that cover snow removal, landscaping, property insurance etc.
This year our condo board decided to pile all of the snow in the visitor parking. In doing this all of the street parking, in front of my townhouse, is gone on a busy weekend. My truck won't fit in my garage so I parked my truck tight up along the back of my complex and woke up the next morning to a cpa ticket.

I called the condo management company with my complaint and arent' willing to do anything to help. I literally have no where to park and I find it unfair that I receive a ticket for parking on private property. I'm going to cancel my direct deposit on my condo fees, send them post dated cheques and pull out $83 from one of the cheques to cover the ticket.

Can anyone tell me what will happen from here? :)

mr2mike
04-02-2014, 12:26 PM
From what I know on condos and CPA handing out tickets is that there needs to be someone on the condo board that approves the ticket and lets cpa issue the ticket.
It works differently, if you're parked in someone's spot which they own. Then they personally can get you towed, etc. But if you're parked in the lane, it's condo property aka private property. CPA has no rights to patrol that area. They usually don't even know that. They just go in there. Not everyone can just call in to have you ticketed. It has to be the person in charge and has rights to do so.
Challenge the ticket and have them show proof that they got in writing a signatory from the condo board to have you ticketed. If they didn't, the ticket isn't valid.

TomcoPDR
04-02-2014, 12:31 PM
I think then, your unit will be shorting the complex by $83. And management's accountant will send you a letter eventually.

One of parents townhouse rentals, I didn't read increase notice so I was sending 12 post date from previous year figures. One day letter comes saying I've been shorting the complex by $4.51/ month for the past 4-5 months so I owed management like $20-30 bucks. Wrote them a cheque. Whatever here's ur money you fifthy animals. :(

benyl
04-02-2014, 12:32 PM
That isn't going to end well.

Condo board will get lawyers involved and will cost you more than $83. Eventually, they will send it to collections and even put a lein on your property. They will likely also charge interest. You won't be able to sell it until you clear that up with them.

The snow removal company cannot haul away the snow and it has to go somewhere.

Shitty situation all around.

Nitron88
04-02-2014, 12:34 PM
Originally posted by Redlyne_mr2
I've lived in a townhouse complex for the last 6 years which is managed by montgomery ross. I have my monthly fees that cover snow removal, landscaping, property insurance etc.
This year our condo board decided to pile all of the snow in the visitor parking. In doing this all of the street parking, in front of my townhouse, is gone on a busy weekend. My truck won't fit in my garage so I parked my truck tight up along the back of my complex and woke up the next morning to a cpa ticket.

I called the condo management company with my complaint and arent' willing to do anything to help. I literally have no where to park and I find it unfair that I receive a ticket for parking on private property. I'm going to cancel my direct deposit on my condo fees, send them post dated cheques and pull out $83 from one of the cheques to cover the ticket.

Can anyone tell me what will happen from here? :)

Don't consider holding back, you'll get owned by the board if you try. More cost to you down the road and it puts pressure on the board and other condo dwellers which will come back on you.

tch7
04-02-2014, 12:49 PM
Liens and encumbrances are what protect condo associations, community associations, etc. from people like you. Any failure to pay condo fees, community fees, and those sorts of things just means you'll get dinged when you try to sell your property. Arguments that your truck is too big, or that you're not willing to walk a bit further to park somewhere where there is space, are not going to get you anywhere.

At my complex, they've repeatedly said that anybody can call 311 to have a vehicle ticketed/towed that's parked on the interior roads, as they're all considered fire lanes. The board doesn't need to be involved at all.

Twin_Cam_Turbo
04-02-2014, 12:53 PM
I suspect after a few months the condo board/lawyer will put a caveat on your unit?

ercchry
04-02-2014, 12:53 PM
Originally posted by benyl
That isn't going to end well.

Condo board will get lawyers involved and will cost you more than $83. Eventually, they will send it to collections and even put a lein on your property. They will likely also charge interest. You won't be able to sell it until you clear that up with them.

The snow removal company cannot haul away the snow and it has to go somewhere.

Shitty situation all around.

cant charge more than the original amount once it goes to collections... BUT if it goes to their lawyers you will have to pay extra for their fees...

had this happen with community fees once since our tenants never checked the mail and the fees were still being sent to that address (it was fees for that property)

kenny
04-02-2014, 12:54 PM
I'm guessing that you are not actually permitted to park your truck in the visitor lot anyway according to the condo rules so your argument that it was blocked may be moot.

You don't want to mess with your condo board, they will likely issue a fine/penalty for missing condo fee and then tack on interest and register a caveat on your title. You'll then run into the headache when you're selling the place as somebody will have to take care of the outstanding fees, whether its the seller or you (more likely).

pheoxs
04-02-2014, 12:56 PM
While it is unfortunate to hear that they filled the visitor spots with snow, (this is something you should've brought to the condo board as a complaint when it happened) the condo assoc isn't responsible for you parking in a no parking area.

If I have a reserved spot and someone parks in it, I am fully within my right to have them ticketed / towed, however I cannot in the mean time park wherever I please because someone is in my spot. You should have found adequate street parking to use in the mean time.

When I lived in my townhouse people parked exactly as you said, sideways against the back of their townhouse. This also made it a bitch for the residences of the opposite townhouses to get in and out of their stalls...

It sucks but there isn't much you can do besides fight the ticket and see what happens. If you've already paid it you're basically SOL.

JfuckinC
04-02-2014, 01:19 PM
Time to upgrade for more parking :poosie:

Weapon_R
04-02-2014, 01:30 PM
I've seen similar situations costing a homeowner several thousand dollars in court costs. Let it go and don't dwell on it.

nutella
04-02-2014, 01:48 PM
CPA issuing the ticket - it depends on what the letter of authority says that they can do on private property.

The letter of authority varies from complex to complex.

Mine basically says the following:
Privately owned or assigned stalls - resident/tenant can call in for ticket/tow at any time.
Visitor stalls - only board members, designated people and property management can call in for CPA to ticket/tow for a specific start/end time
Loading zones, fire lanes - anyone can call in for CPA to ticket/tow at any time.

For the one time amount that is withheld, you may be issued an administration fee? For such a small amount, I seriously doubt that a reasonable board will issue a lien/caveat.

jdmXSI
04-02-2014, 01:50 PM
I would check the condo bylaw and see what kind of recourse they can persue in the event someone does not pay condo fees. I know with the board I sit on, there were multiple units that were in arrears for 60-120 days and iirc, we were about to go to their mortgage company to collect.

Seems like a lot of hassel for $80 for both parties although I get its probably more principle than anything else.

Redlyne_mr2
04-02-2014, 01:57 PM
thanks guys.. I know I'm being stubborn about the $80, it was just really frustrating. I had my dad with me that night and his health isn't well, I also had his handicap tag so we would have parked in the handicap spot had it not been filled in with snow. The entire street was full, I would have had to walk 3 blocks and, not to sound lazy, I didn't buy a townhouse in the middle of suburbia to have parking problems.

Tik-Tok
04-02-2014, 03:32 PM
Originally posted by Redlyne_mr2
handicap spot... filled in with snow.

Now that you might have a legitimate complaint about. Call the city.

civic_stylez
04-02-2014, 03:41 PM
Originally posted by benyl
That isn't going to end well.

Condo board will get lawyers involved and will cost you more than $83. Eventually, they will send it to collections and even put a lein on your property. They will likely also charge interest. You won't be able to sell it until you clear that up with them.

The snow removal company cannot haul away the snow and it has to go somewhere.

Shitty situation all around.

This.

I was a stupid kid when I bought my first condo and I slacked on my condo payments. When i went to sell it I had a nightmare of a time. Dont skip out. The bank and collection agencies wont care what you think you are "owed". They will make life hard on you.

Xtrema
04-02-2014, 04:19 PM
Originally posted by Redlyne_mr2
thanks guys.. I know I'm being stubborn about the $80, it was just really frustrating. I had my dad with me that night and his health isn't well, I also had his handicap tag so we would have parked in the handicap spot had it not been filled in with snow. The entire street was full, I would have had to walk 3 blocks and, not to sound lazy, I didn't buy a townhouse in the middle of suburbia to have parking problems.

Sounds to me that you have 1 too many vehicle for the condo.

IMO, most condo/townhouse don't cater to 2 car households.

One of you should switch to a car that will fit in the garage if this prolongs.

JordanLotoski
04-02-2014, 10:04 PM
Condo fees that are not paid will show on on your estoppel certificate. You can sell but anything owing will come off your end no matter what.

Not much you can do.

Redlyne_mr2
04-03-2014, 12:56 AM
Not looking to default on months and months worth of fees. My fees are only $150/month, the ticket was $83, for the month of May they're getting a post dated cheque for $67. We'll see what happens from there.

finboy
04-03-2014, 02:46 AM
Originally posted by Redlyne_mr2
thanks guys.. I know I'm being stubborn about the $80, it was just really frustrating. I had my dad with me that night and his health isn't well, I also had his handicap tag so we would have parked in the handicap spot had it not been filled in with snow. The entire street was full, I would have had to walk 3 blocks and, not to sound lazy, I didn't buy a townhouse in the middle of suburbia to have parking problems.

If that's the use, take it to CPA and see if they will wave the ticket. :dunno:

Cos
04-03-2014, 07:01 AM
.

S-FLY
04-03-2014, 08:21 AM
Originally posted by Twin_Cam_Turbo
I suspect after a few months the condo board/lawyer will put a caveat on your unit?

this

googe
04-03-2014, 11:52 AM
Originally posted by Redlyne_mr2
Not looking to default on months and months worth of fees. My fees are only $150/month, the ticket was $83, for the month of May they're getting a post dated cheque for $67. We'll see what happens from there.

This ends with you paying more than what your condo fees were, I promise.

You need a small claims judgment to have any legal standing.

BTW, they can do more than just caveat. They can foreclose on you.

BananaFob
04-03-2014, 11:56 AM
Originally posted by googe


This ends with you paying more than what your condo fees were, I promise.

You need a small claims judgment to have any legal standing.

BTW, they can do more than just caveat. They can foreclose on you.

Correct. Condo Fees and property taxes actually have greater priority than a mortgage on title :(

dannie
04-03-2014, 01:56 PM
I sit on 7 boards of directors. I can tell you, without a shadow of a doubt, that it wont go well. We had a situation recently where a owner paid half of her monthly fee because she felt that the board didn't have the landscape company contract done properly. She expected that the snow removal guys attend before the snow stopped falling and because she had to walk thru snow one morning while it was still snowing hard, it constituted her removing half her fees.

The board gave her a reminder notice every month for 3 months to pay. At the end of the 3 months, filed a caveat on her property. When the amount wasn't paid after 6 months, the board filed a foreclosure request with the courts.

At the end, between legal fees, court fees, caveats, time spent on the situation etc, her stupidity cost her embarrassment with her bank (we garnished her wages) and a final total of $6300. The amount she held back originally? $127.00

Just pay the ticket.

VWEvo
04-03-2014, 02:52 PM
Ryan, I'm happy to help store your little red toy in my garage for the winter. :)

p.s I'm talking about the car, not the bike