Condo Management Committee Meetings

[Tammi]

More condo questions for co-owners:

Is your condo's Management Committee (MC) Meetings open to co-owners where they can, in the first half hour or so, express their concerns to the MC?

Can co-owners stay and listen to MC deliberations? If not, why not? What reasons have MC given for not allowing co-owners to be present.

Do you receive Minutes of Meeting?

How often does MC meet?

Are any MC meetings closed to co-owners because it is discussing "internal matters"?

Is it necessary to speak Thai to get on MC?

Does MC meet in Pattaya/Jomthien or in Bangkok?

If MC meets in Bangkok do members travelling from Pattaya/Jomthien get travel and meal reimbursed?

If you, as a co-owner, are not allowed to attend MC meetings how do you communicate with your MC to express any concerns you have regarding upkeep and running of the condo?

If one is really interested in the common good and would like to be a MC member how does one go about it? Is it 'kosher' here in Thailand to send curriculum vitae to all the other co-owners?

Will look forward to your replies. Many thanks.

[think_too_mut]

More condo questions for co-owners:

Is your condo's Management Committee (MC) Meetings open to co-owners where they can, in the first half hour or so, express their concerns to the MC?

Can co-owners stay and listen to MC deliberations? If not, why not? What reasons have MC given for not allowing co-owners to be present.

Do you receive Minutes of Meeting?

How often does MC meet?

Are any MC meetings closed to co-owners because it is discussing "internal matters"?

Is it necessary to speak Thai to get on MC?

Does MC meet in Pattaya/Jomthien or in Bangkok?

If MC meets in Bangkok do members travelling from Pattaya/Jomthien get travel and meal reimbursed?

If you, as a co-owner, are not allowed to attend MC meetings how do you communicate with your MC to express any concerns you have regarding upkeep and running of the condo?

If one is really interested in the common good and would like to be a MC member how does one go about it? Is it 'kosher' here in Thailand to send curriculum vitae to all the other co-owners?

Will look forward to your replies. Many thanks.

I was a guest at my friend's condo at View Talay in Pattaya.

One day, a letter more formal, in fact, very formal, was slipped under the door, airing the same concerns. If not more. From a farang resident in the building.

The letter said - the building committee has been mismanaging the money from the levies, had no accountability and prevents anyone to come close to any decision making.

The building is, according to the letter, mainly occupied and owned (now appears through illegal ownership - my comment) by farangs. And they have no say.

[Tammi]

More condo questions for co-owners:

Is your condo's Management Committee (MC) Meetings open to co-owners where they can, in the first half hour or so, express their concerns to the MC?

Can co-owners stay and listen to MC deliberations? If not, why not? What reasons have MC given for not allowing co-owners to be present.

Do you receive Minutes of Meeting?

How often does MC meet?

Are any MC meetings closed to co-owners because it is discussing "internal matters"?

Is it necessary to speak Thai to get on MC?

Does MC meet in Pattaya/Jomthien or in Bangkok?

If MC meets in Bangkok do members travelling from Pattaya/Jomthien get travel and meal reimbursed?

If you, as a co-owner, are not allowed to attend MC meetings how do you communicate with your MC to express any concerns you have regarding upkeep and running of the condo?

If one is really interested in the common good and would like to be a MC member how does one go about it? Is it 'kosher' here in Thailand to send curriculum vitae to all the other co-owners?

Will look forward to your replies. Many thanks.

I was a guest at my friend's condo at View Talay in Pattaya.

One day, a letter more formal, in fact, very formal, was slipped under the door, airing the same concerns. If not more. From a farang resident in the building.

The letter said - the building committee has been mismanaging the money from the levies, had no accountability and prevents anyone to come close to any decision making.

The building is, according to the letter, mainly occupied and owned (now appears through illegal ownership - my comment) by farangs. And they have no say.

I have heard - and it could be wrong information - that the View Talays keep control for 5 years. That is: VT collects the management fees from the co-owners and does what VT thinks needs to be done for 5 years before handing over to a committee made up of co-owners.

I know of condos where the developer has apparently not handed over various infrastructures, e.g. the roads. Why would the developer want to keep them? Would developer do repairs if co-owners asked him to?

[jbaldwin]

More condo questions for co-owners:

Is your condo's Management Committee (MC) Meetings open to co-owners where they can, in the first half hour or so, express their concerns to the MC?

Can co-owners stay and listen to MC deliberations? If not, why not? What reasons have MC given for not allowing co-owners to be present.

Do you receive Minutes of Meeting?

How often does MC meet?

Are any MC meetings closed to co-owners because it is discussing "internal matters"?

Is it necessary to speak Thai to get on MC?

Does MC meet in Pattaya/Jomthien or in Bangkok?

If MC meets in Bangkok do members travelling from Pattaya/Jomthien get travel and meal reimbursed?

If you, as a co-owner, are not allowed to attend MC meetings how do you communicate with your MC to express any concerns you have regarding upkeep and running of the condo?

If one is really interested in the common good and would like to be a MC member how does one go about it? Is it 'kosher' here in Thailand to send curriculum vitae to all the other co-owners?

Will look forward to your replies. Many thanks.

I am on the Commitee of Thabali, the development in front of Chateau Dale

We have Committee meeting once a month (although likely to be reduced one every other month shortly). Committee meetings are conducted in English. Of our nine Committee members only one is Thai and five are native English speakers. They take place in Jomtien.

Co-owners are not generally invited to attend but if any co-owner has an issue they wish to raise with the Committee they can ask to attend (and no request has every been refused)

Minutes (only produced in English) are available to any co-owner on request. We have recently started a e-mail list so that co-owners who choose to sign up, will receive minutes for each meeting authomatically by e-mail.

The Condo act set a maximum number of nine on that Committee. We have found at AGM we never get more than this to be interested. This year two co-owners expressed an interest in joining the Committee hence we just increase the size of the Committee from seven to nine to allow this.

No Committee member receives any expenses or other payment.

I am not sure what "internal issue" could be. Surely Committee's interest are expectly the same as co-owners. However, a would not like co-owners to attend if staff issue were being discussed. Also our Committee has had private meetings (without any management company involvment) when we wish to discuss the performance of the management company.

[Tammi]

I am on the Commitee of Thabali, the development in front of Chateau Dale

We have Committee meeting once a month (although likely to be reduced one every other month shortly). Committee meetings are conducted in English. Of our nine Committee members only one is Thai and five are native English speakers. They take place in Jomtien.

Co-owners are not generally invited to attend but if any co-owner has an issue they wish to raise with the Committee they can ask to attend (and no request has every been refused)

Minutes (only produced in English) are available to any co-owner on request. We have recently started a e-mail list so that co-owners who choose to sign up, will receive minutes for each meeting authomatically by e-mail.

The Condo act set a maximum number of nine on that Committee. We have found at AGM we never get more than this to be interested. This year two co-owners expressed an interest in joining the Committee hence we just increase the size of the Committee from seven to nine to allow this.

No Committee member receives any expenses or other payment.

I am not sure what "internal issue" could be. Surely Committee's interest are expectly the same as co-owners. However, a would not like co-owners to attend if staff issue were being discussed. Also our Committee has had private meetings (without any management company involvment) when we wish to discuss the performance of the management company.

Many thanks for your reply. I also am not understanding what internal issues cannot be known by the other co-owners.

May I ask some more questions?

1. At your Management Committee Meetings does your manager submit financial statements for your review?

2. Before the AGM, does the Management Committee (MC) send a copy of the audited accounts to the co-owners?

3. Is the Auditor present at the AGM to answer co-owners' questions?

4. At what point at the AGM is the new MC elected (if it is a year for new elections)?

5. Are "Common Expense" and "Sinking Fund" kept separate with separate bookkeeping and auditing?

6. Is the MC duty bound to continue the AGM so long as co-owners have questions or can the Chairman say "That's enough" and get up and walk away?

7. If it is wrong that Chairman decides AGM has gone on long enough what can co-owners do?

8. How many units at ThaiBali?

9. What Management Company do you employ? How long have you had present Mngmnt Co?

Many thanks and regards.

[jbaldwin]

Many thanks for your reply. I also am not understanding what internal issues cannot be known by the other co-owners.

May I ask some more questions?

1. At your Management Committee Meetings does your manager submit financial statements for your review?

Yes. The Committee receives monthly financial statements

2. Before the AGM, does the Management Committee (MC) send a copy of the audited accounts to the co-owners?

The Committee has decided that we should not go to the expense of an annual audit. It is worth pointing out that Committee members are the sole signitories to the bank accounts of the condo and consequently the management company has no access to any funds (other than petty cash). Our Committee believes that this is an essential control.

3. Is the Auditor present at the AGM to answer co-owners' questions?

N/A

4. At what point at the AGM is the new MC elected (if it is a year for new elections)?

After the old Committee has reported on the previous years finances and activities

5. Are "Common Expense" and "Sinking Fund" kept separate with separate bookkeeping and auditing?

We do not have a sinking fund - the developer did not establish one when the units were first sold. The last AGM voted to establish one and I would expect for the money raised to be accounted for separately

6. Is the MC duty bound to continue the AGM so long as co-owners have questions or can the Chairman say "That's enough" and get up and walk away?

I think that technically there are certain thing that must be done at an AGM (set out the the condo rules) and when they have been done, the legal requirements for the AGM have been completed. However, we make clear at our AGM that we will deal with any queries co-owners wish to raise.

7. If it is wrong that Chairman decides AGM has gone on long enough what can co-owners do?

We would not operate in this manner

8. How many units at ThaiBali?

166 - Although we are legal separate, we share staff, manager and some other expenses with Chateau Dale, which is a similar size

9. What Management Company do you employ? How long have you had present Mngmnt Co?

We have employed ESC since 1/10/06. For background the developer acted as manager until May 2005. When it decided it no long wishes to act we engaged a major Thai owned property manager (who I understand manage a number of large condo developments in Pattaya). We found there service to be unsatisfactory and terminated their contract after a little more than a year.

Many thanks and regards.