Though Home Owner Associations are far less prevalent and powerful in Canada than in the United States, they’re still important to keep in mind, especially if you’re looking for homes for sale in British Columbia. Though there aren’t that many HOA’s in Canada, there are plenty of organizations that function virtually the same way, they just go by different names. We’ll go into the details of what HOA’s do, how they operate, and what they expect from you. Having a firm understanding of HOA’s will make your house hunt much easier.
What is a Home Owner Association?
A Home Owner Association is a group of elected representatives from the community the HOA is meant to serve, kind of like a community government. These elected representatives create by-laws for the community and work out by-laws and solve disputes between residents.
In Canada, you’ll find several HOA’s that don’t actually go by the name of Home Owner Association. For example, many properties in suburbs around Vancouver are governed by Strata Corporations. Strata Corporations were created to divide the ownership of large parcels of land into lots. If you own a lot of strata land, then you’re automatically part of a strata corporation. Remember, a strata corporation behaves virtually the same way as a home owner association.
Another HOA to keep in mind is Ontario’s Condominium Authority. This is another Home Owner Association, but for condos instead of single family homes. Just as with normal Home Owner Associations and strata corporations, the Condominium Authority has an elected board meant to settle disputes between community members as well as enact by-laws that will keep the community appreciating in value.
What do Home Owner Associations do?
Home Owner Associations focus on doing two things: keeping property values high and appreciating and keeping community problems within the community. Let’s say your neighbour isn’t cutting their grass, or teenagers keep driving too fast down the street and blasting their music; both of these examples can hurt the value of a community. Instead of calling the police or getting involved in legal battles, you can turn to the Home Owner Association for mediation.
Those are extreme examples, of course. Most of the time, Home Owner Associations just oversee the upkeep of community amenities like neighbourhood parks and trails. In order to maintain these communal spaces, they collect money from the neighbourhood residents. In all but name, this is a tax, but unlike other taxes, you can see at firsthand the benefits of the money you pay to the Home Owner Association: cleaner, tidier spaces and higher appreciation rates for your home.
What do Home Owner Associations expect from you?
It varies from place to place, but most of the time, you’ll pay either a monthly or annual fee to your local Home Owner Association to help fund community upkeep projects. All residents pay their share at a rate of around $.30 per square foot. So check out your home’s square footage and multiply that by rate and you’ll have a good idea of how much you’ll be spending per month. In some cases, you’ll pay a flat fee regardless of home size.
How do Home Owner Associations work?
Home Owner Associations a