Unfortunately, many property management companies surprise their condominium associations with a meeting without coordinating it with the owners in advance. They often wait until the end of the year to convene the ETV.
Some even deliberately schedule the appointment as late as possible, sometimes even in December, to make the transition to a new management more difficult. After all, there's not much time left, and the owners have other things on their calendars.
As an owner, however, you should try to attend the owners' meeting to exercise your right to have a say. Of course, you can't always be there physically, so it's advisable to look for a property management company that offers hybrid owners' meetings.
If the property management does not invite the owners to a regular meeting, this is a valid reason for termination.
Above all, make sure that the owners' meeting runs smoothly, relaxed, and informatively. This is in the interest of all parties involved in a condominium association. And to make sure it all goes smoothly, we have the top 5 tips for you to make the owners' meeting a success.
Send proxy or online meetingLink to this section
Owners are not required to attend the owners' meeting. In fact, attendance is often very low, especially in large condominium associations, and frequently even less than 30%. However, if your property is managed by a modern property management company, you generally don't need to be physically present, as some property management companies now offer so-called hybrid meetings.
Hybrid ETV
The hybrid ETV (meaning an on-site meeting and simultaneous video conference) is another option that was accepted with the amendment to the Condominium Act on December 1, 2020, and has become more common since the coronavirus pandemic. This is especially helpful if you live far away from your property or are unable to attend.
In principle, the entire owners' meeting could easily be held entirely online, but current legislation still requires management bodies to use a hybrid format. In a hybrid meeting, the manager is obligated to ensure that the video conference can be recorded and that the connection is private and secure.
Purely online meeting
Owners' meetings are already permitted to be held exclusively online, although a unanimous resolution of all owners is currently required for a purely online meeting to ensure that all owners have the necessary technical requirements for the online format. Older apartment owners, in particular, often lack the necessary equipment.
Power of attorney
If you are unable to dial in to the appointment, we recommend that you grant a power of attorney to a trusted person from the condominium association or the administrator. With Ralph, you can also conveniently submit your decisions regarding individual resolutions to the ETV online in advance. In individual cases, however, it is possible that the right to grant a power of attorney may be prevented in your declaration of division. However, this is very rare.
Creating an agendaLink to this section
Your property management should definitely have compiled the agenda in advance of the actual owners' meeting and adhere to it strictly during the meeting. This will prevent individual resolutions from becoming contestable, important points from being forgotten, or the meeting from running too long. Every owner has the right to propose an agenda item. Of course, the property management should primarily include items on the agenda that are important to the condominium association.
It is also advisable for the administrator to lead the discussion on the individual resolutions and record the results directly in the minutes so that they can be sent to the ETV on the same day. Only the results of the discussions and votes need to be recorded here, not the entire process.
Always keep the owners’ meeting privateLink to this section
Some condominium association administrators invite owners to a meeting in a restaurant open to the public. This should be avoided at all costs. An owners' meeting must be transparent, so that only the owners or their authorized representatives attend.
In some cases, especially with smaller condominium associations, meetings are still held in publicly accessible locations. The resolutions are therefore not necessarily invalid. However, this circumstance could potentially lead to legal challenges.
Record the meeting if necessaryLink to this section
Today, technology has advanced so much that recording the owners' meeting is no longer a problem. This saves the administrator from having to take notes during the actual meeting. However, this doesn't mean that the minutes aren't necessary. A legible version of the minutes must also be available, clearly presenting all resolutions and voting results, and sent to the owners no later than three weeks after the meeting. With modern tools, you should receive the minutes immediately after the meeting.
An audio or video recording can help clarify issues such as subsequent challenges to certain decisions. However, ensure that participants are informed in advance about the recording and consent to it.
Make sure you comply with all legal requirementsLink to this section
Especially in homeowners' associations that want to manage themselves, mistakes can easily occur, which then lead to decisions being contestable and potentially making you, as an advisory board member, liable. We therefore strongly recommend professional support from a management company if you are a homeowners' association with more than three parties and/or have not known and trusted each other well for several years, or simply don't have the time to deal with the organization of the homeowners' association (ETV) and the entire accounting and organization of utilities and partners.
Ralph is a modern property management company from Berlin for Berlin. Its internal processes are primarily digitalized, allowing it to spend more time on-site and provide more time for actual customer service. We combine modern technology with many years of experience and expertise. Feel free to contact us anytime for a free quote; we always follow up personally on 100% of all inquiries.
