Owners' meetings, voting majorities and proxies

Key rules

• Second call: If the first call lacks quorum, the same-day second call is valid with whoever attends.
• Absent owners: A valid decision binds you even if you did not attend.
• Proxy: A proxy must be written, signed and specific to the meeting.
• Fee debts: If you owe community fees on the meeting day, you can speak but not vote.
• Time limits: Challenge deadlines are strict, so act as soon as you are notified.

How decisions get made

Decisions pass at a formal meeting of owners, called with proper notice. If the meeting is valid and enough votes are cast, the decision binds everyone, including owners who did not come. Attending is your right, not your duty. Skipping a meeting does not exempt you from what is agreed.

How a meeting is called

The president calls the meeting. The ordinary meeting is held at least once a year to approve the budget and accounts. Owners holding 25% of the quotas can ask for an extraordinary meeting.

The notice must state:

• the agenda
• the place, date and time
• whether it is first or second call

Ordinary meetings should have at least six days' notice. Extraordinary meetings need at least three days. The notice must be delivered in a way that proves you received it. If delivery fails, a notice on the community board counts. Your statutes may also allow electronic notification, so ask the administrator for a copy.

Quorum and majorities

On first call, the meeting is valid only if a majority of owners and a majority of quotas attend. The second call is held the same day, or at the time stated in the notice. It needs no minimum attendance and is valid with whoever comes.

How many votes you need depends on the matter:

• Unanimity: changes to the statutes.
• Three-fifths: for example, restrictions on tourist rentals.
• A third: certain matters set by law.
• A simple majority of those present, with a majority of quotas: most other decisions.

Find out which majority your item needs before the meeting. The comparison below sets them out.

If a second-call agreement does not have enough votes, absent owners are notified and have 30 days to object. For decisions that need unanimity, silence for those 30 days counts as consent.

Attending, proxies and co-owners

You can go in person or send a representative. The representative does not have to be an owner.

• The proxy must be written and signed by you.
• It must be for the specific meeting.
• If your representative is not an owner, they give it to the secretary.
• If the flat belongs to several people, you must appoint one person to vote for it.
• The law sets no limit on how many proxies one person can hold, but your statutes may.

If you owe community fees

If you are not up to date with community debts on the day of the meeting, you can attend and speak but cannot vote. You can vote if you pay in full first, or deposit the amount with a court or notary. A debt you are contesting in court does not block your vote. Debtors should be named in the notice and in the minutes.

Minutes and notification

The president and secretary sign the minutes within 10 natural days of the meeting. The minutes record who attended and their quotas, the agenda, and each agreement with who voted for and against. A copy goes to all owners with the notice of the agreements, also within 10 natural days. If you were absent and have heard nothing, ask the secretary for written notice. Your deadline to react runs from that notification.

Challenging a decision

Act quickly, because these deadlines are strict. You can challenge in court within three months, or one year if the decision breaks the law or the statutes. If you were absent, you have 30 days from being notified. Owners who were present generally cannot challenge a decision they did not vote against. If you disagree, vote against it and make sure the minutes record your vote. Take legal advice before the deadline passes.

Which decisions need which majority in an owners' meeting

Most routine decisions pass with a simple majority. Changes to the building's basic rules or structure need everyone to agree. Between the two sit a few improvements that need three-fifths.

Points to watch

• Absent owners. Owners who miss the meeting are treated as agreeing to a unanimous decision if they do not object within 30 days of being notified. They can also give their consent later.
• Second call. If the first meeting does not reach the needed majority, the vote of the owners who are present can decide on second call.
• Minority challenge. A group holding one-quarter of the owners can have certain agreements reviewed.
• Tourist lets. The three-fifths rule for limiting tourist lets is set out in full on the page about tourist lets.

Several items used to need unanimity and were lowered by reforms in 2013, 2019 and 2023. Ask your community's administrator which rule applies to a specific item on the agenda.

Timeline and deadlines

• Ordinary meeting is called by the president to approve the budget and accounts: at least once a year

• Notice of an ordinary meeting is delivered with the agenda, place, date, time and first or second call: at least six days before the meeting

• Owners holding 25% of the quotas ask for an extraordinary meeting, and notice is delivered: at least three days before the meeting

• Second call takes place if the first call lacks quorum, and it is valid with whoever attends: the same day, or as set in the notice

• President and secretary sign the minutes: within 10 natural days after the meeting

Checklist

• Check that the notice states the agenda, place, date, time and whether it is first or second call.

• Check that the notice reached you by a method that proves receipt, or by a notice on the board if delivery failed.

• Ask for the community statutes to see whether they allow electronic notification or limit how many proxies one person can hold.

• Find out which majority your item needs: unanimity, three-fifths, a third, or a simple majority of those present with a majority of quotas.

• Sign a written proxy for the specific meeting if you cannot attend, naming the person who will represent you.

• Give the signed proxy to the secretary if the person representing you is not an owner.

• Agree on a single representative with your co-owners if the flat belongs to several of you.

• Ask the secretary for written notice of the agreements if you were absent and have not received it.

Frequently asked questions

Can I vote if I owe community fees?

No, you can attend and speak, but you cannot vote unless you have paid in full or deposited the amount in court or with a notary. If you are contesting that specific debt in court, you do not have to pay it first in order to vote. The minutes name owners who could not vote because of debt.

Am I bound by decisions if I skip the meeting?

Yes, you are bound by the agreements even if you were absent, and the secretary must notify you of them by a means that proves receipt. For agreements that need unanimity, staying silent for 30 days after that notice counts as consent. You can still challenge within the deadline.

What do the minutes of the meeting show?

The minutes show the place and date, whether it was first or second call, who attended or was represented, and the agenda. They also list each agreement with the owners who voted for and against and their quotas. The president and secretary sign them, and they go into the community's minute book.