Gouvernement du Nouveau-Brunswick

General

  1. A Director of Condominiums will be appointed to administer the new Act.
  2. Condominiums are now classified as commercial, residential, bare land (NEW), mixed use and phased development.

Declaration and Description

  1. The declaration, description, by-laws, Certificate of Registered Ownership (CRO), and a copy of building permits are now required for approvals.
  2. To receive approval, the Declarant must prepare a reserve fund study for new developments and conversions with more than 10 units.
  3. For conversions of an existing building with 10 units or less, the Declarant must have a building inspection report prepared.
  4. A declaration can allow units to be divided into two or more classes.
  5. Just like other Condominiums, new bare-land Condominiums will require a declaration and description as the land is the unit.
  6. Condominiums developed in phases will now subdivide the remaining land.  After each phase is developed, the Declarant will turn over the new buildings and a piece of the land that will be amalgamated to the existing common property, and the Corporation will expand by the number of new units approved.

Approval and Registration

  1. The Condominium Corporation’s name will now be issued by the Director.
  2. The declaration, description, by-laws, and any future amendments must now be signed by the Director and he or she will take responsibility for registering the documents.
  3. In the case of a phased development, all the details of the future phases must be disclosed up front. Any major changes from the plans may require a new approval process by the Director.
  4. Existing phased-development projects approved before Jan 1, 2010, have 10 years to complete.
  5. Two or more neighbouring Corporations may amalgamate.

The Corporation

  1. When the Declarant no longer owns a majority of the units, they must provide documents to the Corporation.

Board of Directors and Officers

  1. The Board of Directors must consist of at least 3 people for 4+ units and at least 2 people for 2-3 units.
  2. The Declarant can usually appoint a certain number of directors if he or she owns at least one unit.
  3. The President, Secretary, and Treasurer are chosen by the Board of Directors.
  4. Directors shall be owners and must have attained the age of majority.

By-Laws and Rules

  1. By-laws may be changed with at least 60% minimum vote by owners. Check your declaration.

Financial Statements

  1. Condominium Corporations must produce financial statements yearly and file them with the Director.
  2. Corporations with 11+ units must have the statements reviewed by a professional, as outlined in the regulations.

Funds Held by a Corporation

  1. Corporations must set up an operating fund and a reserve fund. A contingency fund is optional.
  2. Large Corporations with 11+ units must have a reserve fund study done every 10 years and update it every 3 years. The reserve fund must always have at least the minimum amount recommended in the study. Reserve fund studies are required for new approvals of large corporations.
  3. Small Corporations (less than 11 units) do not have to do a reserve fund study, but they must have a reserve fund account that is equal to one year of their operating budget.
  4. Existing Condominium Corporations have 5 years to complete their reserve studies and/or to get their reserve fund accounts up to the minimum required amounts. 

Operation

  1. Two or more Condominium Corporations can amalgamate if they are on neighbouring properties.
  2. Two or more adjacent units may be consolidated if at least 60% of the owners agree. Special conditions will apply to the owner of the consolidated units.
  3. The Corporation must submit proof of insurance for the common elements to the Director every year. For new developments, the Declarant may have to submit the proof of insurance.

Sale, Re-sale, and Lease of Units

  1. The first time a unit is sold by the Declarant, a 10-day cooling-off period applies.
  2. For any re-sale of a unit, the purchaser can request an Estoppel Certificate, which must contain a list of pertinent information.
  3. For tenancy agreements, the Standard Form of Lease under the Residential Tenancies Act must be used, with the Condominium by-laws and rules attached.

Arbitration

  1. Referral to arbitration is now an option in the case of a dispute.

Transition

  1. Developments currently under construction, with a valid building permit before January 1, 2010, do not need to complete a reserve fund study or pay fees to be approved.
  2. A lien under the old Act remains as a lien.
  3. Corporations existing before January 1, 2010, have 5 years to build a reserve fund, and those with more than 10 units have 5 years to produce a reserve fund study.
  4. Section 52 does not apply to agreements of purchase and sale for a Condominium unit, signed before January 1, 2010.