Residential Tenancies Branch

Section 7 

Notice of Termination

Sub-Section 7.1

Notice by Condominium Corporation

Legislation

s. 56.1(1), The Residential Tenancies Act
s. 13(1.1), 13.1, The Condominium Act

Definitions

Condominium corporation: a corporation set up to build and operate a condominium complex. A board of directors runs the corporation. The board may have a property manager handle the day- to-day operation of the complex.

Notice of termination: a written notice by a condominium corporation to end a tenancy.

Order of Possession: a written Order, issued by the Branch, that enforces a Notice of Termination. The tenant must move out of a rental unit on or before a set date.

Unit owner: a person or company that owns and rents out one or more units in a condominium complex.

Policy

Every condominium corporation has a declaration and bylaws that unit owners must follow. The declaration and bylaws list the rights and responsibilities of the corporation and the unit owners. A tenant who lives in a rental unit that is a condominium must also comply with the declaration and bylaws. When a tenant moves in, a unit owner/landlord must give them a copy of this information.

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If a tenant doesn’t meet the obligations under the declaration or bylaws, a condominium corporation can end the tenancy. However, before the corporation can do this, they must first give the tenant a written warning or a chance to correct the problem. The corporation must also give the unit owner a copy of the warning and reasonable time to correct the problem. For example: A tenant is noisy and disturbs other people in the condominium complex. The condominium corporation must tell the tenant there is a problem. They must warn the tenant and unit owner, in writing, that they will give the tenant notice if they receive any more complaints.

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When the unit owner receives a copy of a warning from the condominium corporation that their tenant is breaching the bylaws, they may decide to deal with the tenant on their own. A unit owner may follow the policies in Notice by a Landlord – Tenant Not Meeting Obligations (Other than Rent).

If the tenant or unit owner doesn’t correct the problem, then the condominium corporation may give notice of termination of not less than one rental payment period.

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In some cases, a condominium corporation may give a five-day notice. The condominium corporation may give the shorter notice if a tenant or a guest of the tenant:

• causes extraordinary damage;
• risks the health and safety of other people in the condominium complex;
• unreasonably disturbs other people in the condominium complex.

Whenever possible, the condominium corporation should still give the tenant and unit owner a warning before giving a five-day notice.

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If a unit owner fails to pay their common element fees, a condominium corporation does not have the right to give a tenant notice to move. The corporation can use collection procedures set out in the complex’s declaration or bylaws, which might include garnishing a tenant’s rent to satisfy the unpaid fees.

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When giving a tenant notice, a condominium corporation must deliver the  notice to the tenant in person.  The corporation can also hand it to an adult at the rental unit.  The corporation must also hand the notice to the unit owner or an agent of the owner.  If the corporation has difficulty serving the notice to any party, they can contact the Branch for permission to serve the notice in some other way.

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The day on which notice is served or delivered can’t be counted or included in the period of notice.  For example: A five-day notice, given to a tenant on a Monday, takes effect on Saturday, not Friday.

Procedure

Overview   

Either a condominium corporation, unit owner or tenant can ask the Branch for information on how to end a tenancy. They can ask the Branch to help them end a tenancy through mediation or by making a decision and issuing an Order.

Steps ▼   

1.   The officer encourages the condominium corporation, unit owner and       tenant to share information, and to discuss the problem, to try to come to       an agreement.

2.   When a condominium corporation, unit owner or tenant asks the Branch       for help with a notice of termination problem, an appropriate officer       follows the procedures for:

• mediation
• orders of possession
• hearings

Forms & Form Letters

Notice of Termination by Landlord
...............................................................Form 5/Residential Tenancies Regulation

X-Referencing

For information on mediation, see Section 1.
Orders of Possession are dealt with in Section 8.
Hearings are covered in Section 11.

Policy Developed

March, 2004

Last Revision

Other Resources

None

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