On the face of it, it would appear that the new legislation makes matters much easier for strata corporations. Under the new legislation, such legal costs can be funded from the CRF because they obviously are expenses that occur less often than once per year or that usually do not occur. For example the cost of repair of a leaking building could be funded from the CRF but the legal costs incurred with respect to review of engineering and remediation contracts or recovery lawsuits could not be so funded. Under the old Act, any CRF expense had to be for repair, maintenance or replacement of common property, common facilities or other assets of the strata corporation. Reviewing these definitions is important. “To meet its expenses the strata corporation must establish, and the owners must contribute, by means of strata fees, to a contingency reserve fund for common expenses that usually occur less often than once per year or that do not usually occur.” ” … means a fund for common expenses that usually occur less often than once per year or that do not usually occur, as set out in section 92(b).” The Strata Property Act defines the CRF as follows: ” … means a fund for the expenditures, other than annual, of the strata corporation for repair, maintenance and replacement of the common property, common facilities and other assets of the strata corporation, including, if applicable, without limiting this definition, the roof, exterior of the buildings, roads, sidewalks, sewers, heating, electrical and plumbing systems, elevators, laundry and recreational facilities (emphasis added).” The Condominium Act defined the CRF as follows: A classic illustration of that immediate change is the Contingency Reserve Fund, affectionately called the “CRF”. While we know that the current bylaws under which a strata corporation operates will remain in force until Januunless amended, there are many other provisions of the Strata Property Act that are not only enforceable now, but also dramatically change the way strata corporations must operate. As I am sure all readers are by now aware, the Strata Property Act became the law Jin British Columbia, replacing the Condominium Act.
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