Working Together with the COA 

The Condo  Owners Association structure was designed to embrace a voice for Condo Owners at the Provincial level and with local MP's and MPP's in each Riding and the local Councillors in each Ward of the City.  COA also works directly with the Mayors and City Staff and other Representatives relating to various issues and new regulatory process/changes relating to condominiums



MP's  - The Members of Parliament

1. MP's are elected to the Canadian House of Commons
2. Each COA Districts (Ridings) works with MP representative
3. ie Ottawa has 308 seats in the Canadian House of Commons
4. View MP Seats at Parliament Hill 

1. 107 Seats for MPP's who serve the Legislative Assembly of Ontario 
2. MPP's have a Toronto office at Queen's Park and a constituency office. 
3. View MPP seats in your riding

1. Represent their Local Wards within their City.
2. These Wards represent the COA Districts. 
3. List of Ontario Municipalities - Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing

COA TORONTO Division and Related District

There are 26 COA Divisions across the Province of Ontario located in various Cities and Towns.   Each of these have various Districts also known as their Political Riding and/or Municipal Ward.

COA Districts Design  Click for City of Toronto Districts Graph
 

1. Districts are known by their Political Riding and Municipal Ward. 
2. Example:  COA Toronto has 44 Districts
3. Each Toronto District has a Councillor, MPP and MP
4. MPP's on the Provincial level at Queen's Park
5. MP's on the Federal level at  Queen's Park and Parliament Hill  
6. Councillor represents City/Municipal issues at City Hall.

How to Apply for a COA CHAPTER

Rules and Regulations for Application for Chapters

Select a City or Region in the Province of Ontario.  Each City or Region is divided into Districts to fall in line with the local Politiical structure.   This platform provides strength and political insight into the community and allows the local District of the Chapter of the Condo Owners Association an opportunity to work within the 3 levels of Government to include the local Councillor, MPP and MP.

There are a few steps to qualify with a COA Region and another process to determine eligibibility for the growth of that City or Regions with the local Districts.

Consent and Authorization

The following Application must be submitted to COA Ontario

a) A formal letter of intent to apply for a COA Chapter within Ontario under the COA Ontario umbrella

b) Submit a description of your full understanding of COA Ontario, the local Chapter and the associated geographic area within the District of application

c)  Submit the names of the committee organizing the application to include not less then three condo owners in the district of application with at least one condo owner a member of a Board of Directors of a Condo Corporation owning a condo within the geographically permimeters of the Local Chapter Condo Corporation.  Each application must contain a maximum of five registered condo owners owning a Condo Unit in the Chapter of application and of these (three) applicants must be members of a Board of Directors in the Chapter Location at the time of application.

d)  All members must be prepared to adopt and abide by the Condo Owners Association Ontario and Condo Owners Association Local Chapters Code of Ethics for Directors.  A Copy of the COA Code is attached and outlined as Schedule "A" and all organizing committee must sign their acceptance.

e) Upon review and approval by COA Ontario, permission will be granted to process the application for the Local Chapter approval.

f)  Upon review and approval by Local Chapter, permission will be granted to process application for certification.

g)  At this time, the new Committee representing the local Districts of the new Chapter will be made available for the building of Districts.

h)  The New Chapter will have the name of the "Condo Owners Association under the applicable Chapter and in additional Chapter-Districts as they local districts grow. Approval is provided to allow the usage of the COA logo for each membered structure for COA Chapters and Districts.

g)  COA Ontario will appoint a COA Director to work with the newly appointed Chapter as a mentor in the planning and operations.  It will also be necessary to create a Mentor System for the new District with the Local Associated Chapter.

CHAPTER REQUIREMENTS

a)  The local Chapter will require active participation of all Board Members to create a base of Districts for membership within Local areas as defined by the political ward

b)  The governing Chapter body will maintained of all registered Condo Corporations

c)  Each Local Chapter shall maintain a database of Registered Condo Corporations within their Districts and provide updating to COA Ontario

d)  All COA Ontario and Local Chapters and Districts are not accepted Individual Condo Owners registration at this time

e)  All Condo Owners of Registered Condo Corporations will be eligible to receive all COA Discounts (as advertised and on websites)

f)  The Local Chapter and all associated District(s) are required to establish good business relationships with local retails and commercial outlets

DISTRICT REQUIREMENTS

a)  The local District will require active participation of all Board Members to create a membership of local condominium corporations within their geographic District.

b)  A list will be maintained of all registered Condo Corporations and provided to governing Local Chapter and governing body of COA Ontario.

c)  Each Local District shall maintain a database of Registered Condo Corporations within their District and provide this list to their Local Chapter at the time of registration.

d)  Local Districts and Chapters are not accepted Individual Condo Owners registration at this time

e)  All Condo Owners of Registered Condo Corporations will be eligible to receive all COA Discounts (as advertised and on websites)

f)  The Local District is required to establish good business relationships with local retails and commercial outlets

Please proceed to:   "Getting Started" for all details

Copyright 2010 COA Ontario All Rights Reserved

   COA TORONTO - GTA       

   (reg. non-profit Association)

   Click here for: www.COAToronto.com     

COA Ontario and all COA Chapters throughout the Province to include COA Toronto formed to address the shortfalls of the Condo Act as per Bill 186 and to advocate change by creating a strong and persuasive voice in the community to all levels of Government.  

The Condo Owners Association (commonly known as COA) represents all Condo Owners registered through their independent Condo Corporations.  

COA TORONTO was established under the umbrella of COA Ontario.  To represent Condo Owners Province wide it became necessary to create districts within each City.    In the City of Toronto there are 12 COA Districts representing 44 Wards as per the Federal and Provincial Political Ridings. 

COA Toronto Districts are broken down by Districts aligning the areas in conjunction with each particular Ward to develop a close working relationship with the local Counsellor, MPP and MP.  The same structure defines the City's around the Province within the Condo Owners Association for Ontario. 

 Click to View COA Districts of Toronto Chapter below:

 They parallel with the local wards from the map below

COA TORONTO Districts

LEARN SOMETHING ABOUT CONDOS

CBC MARKETPLACE

Why

Condo Law

Must Change

Warnings - Watch Dog needed for:

LIVE-WORK CONDO UNITS

ARE THEY OPERATING A BUSINESS?

ARE THEY LIVING IN THE UNIT?

DO THEY HAVE FULL TIME STAFF?

The City and Municipal Property Assessment Corporation are watching for "Unscrupulous Condo Owners who use Live-work units to operate a full scale commercial business yet pay Residential Taxes when they should be paying Commercial Taxes which are 5 X's the amount for residential.    Unfortunately to make matters worst, some are on the Board of Directors yet their units are in non compliance to their Condo Declaration.  It is a potential fire hazzard and the Condo building insurance policies may be at risk considering these Owners are not acting on the best interest of the Corporation.

Events & Seminars

WELCOME TO CONDO OWNERS ASSOCIATION ONTARIO (COA)

ITMayDay

Specializing in SMBS and Home Users,

Websites and Customization

http://www.ITMayDay.com

Email:  This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

History in the Making

Condo Owners Association (known as COA Ontario) was Founded on March 2010 by Linda Pinizzotto, a Toronto/Mississauga Realtor who had a vision to create the 1st Non-Profit Association to represent Condo Owners and design a mechanism for awareness and representation in the Political forefront within all levels of Government across the Province of Ontario.  There are over 1.3 Million Condo Owners who need a cohesive united voice to represent them on many important issues. COA supports the development of its members and fosters a prosperous and sustainable economic environment while contributing to the quality of life in the condo community.

Linda's vision included a Condo Owners Association structure to represent Condo Owners in all of the Municipalities across the Province of Ontario.  The Municipalities and Regions are known as Divisions of COA Ontario and each have various Districts to identify their respective Wards.    he structure recognizes the vast amount of condominium owners and embraces various levels of government for representation in each Municipality and Region.    This structure allows a productive and communicative working environment with local Councillors, Members of Provincial Parliament, Members of Parliament and the various Ministry's of our Government.

COA Ontario is growing steadily with additional strong commitment and dedication from bellow Board of Directors Bob Coffey, Ex Chair of KPMG and Derrick Thomas; President and CEO of ITMayDay.   Please view COA Submissions to Ministry relating to some recommendations.   COA is an active Senior Stakeholder in the Condo Act Review.  "Building a Better Condo Act"   Working to represent and advocate for Condo Owners Rights... please see quote at the bottom of the page on this Provincial website.

Why Condo Owners need a Condo Owners Association

Condo Owners are facing huge maintenance fees, problem Board of Directors and a Condo Act that needs to be updated to protect their interest.  There is a huge imbalance of the present structure which takes away the rights of Condo Owners and puts too much control in the hands of the Board of Directors therefore compromising Condo Owners rights.

The Condo Act needs changes and proper governance  ie; better Tarion Warranty Coverage,  government funded energy retrofitting plans, respect for Municipal height restrictions and no further interference from the Ontario Municipal Board; better building codes,  specific property tax assessment strictly relating to  condominiums, a government bond with higher interest rates for condo reserve funds and education standards for Condo Board of Directors.

The act must include compliance mandates and fines as deemed necessary (as per other acts) to insure the Boards are in compliance to the Act and Owners are protected.   We need to address the important needs of existing condominiums where prices are dropping and maintenance fees are way above the normal ratio to value. We need to review service related trades and create a defined price list for services.

Some COA Initiatives

• Support Changes to the Condo Act working with Ministry of Consumer Services in Condo Act Review
• Meetings with MP's, MPP's and local Councillors in all Districts - across the Province of Ontario
• COA supported NDP Leader Andrea Horwath at HST Rally  Queen's Park, Toronto
• Preparing extensive reports and investigating numerous Condo Owners issues
• Meetings with Minister Margaret Best, Deputy Minister Giles Gherson
• Meetings with Hon J. Gerretson, Minister Consumer Services
• Discussions and Meetings with Andrea Horwath, NDP Leader
• Discussions on Condo Act  with Tim Hudak, Leader PC
• Meeting with John Campbell, CEO Waterfront Toronto
• Meeting with Go Transit, Metrolinx, Municipal Stakeholder Groups
• Meetings with condominium Board of Directors, Lawyers and Engineers
• Presentations to Carson Dunlop, Financial Institutions, several Corporate Firms
• City Official discussions and correspondence (Building, Zoning and By-Law Depts)
• Special Discussions with MPAC - Municipal Property Assessment Corporation- Property Taxes
• Press, Media and Political Conferences - CBC - CTV - Metro Morning - CP24 - That Channel
• Newspaper and Magazine Press Articles - Toronto Star, National Post, Local Magazines
• Social Media - 27 COA Twitter for City's across Ontario, Up-to-date Website, Videos
• COA supported NDP Leader Andrea Horwath at HST Rally  Queen's Park, Toronto

Should the Province Protect Condo Buyers
on new Condo Projects?

The COA would like to hear from you  
Click to Blog  or  Tweet    COAontario   COAtoronto

Condo Buyers lose hopes and dreams when doors close!   Buyers are putting their life on hold buying New Construction, what risks are they facing the minute they sign on the dotted line.

COA recommended more disclosures on New Construction during the Condo Act Review.  Some of our recommendations were accepted but  many were not.  When can Buyers feel they have protection from signing to completion.  Buyers check out construction sites with excitement on a daily basis.  Then all of a sudden, they have sleepless nights because something has gone wrong.   Why hasn't ground broken yet, are the workers on strike, why doesn't anything look different from last week, last month?  The question, concerns and distress grows daily as the unknown is yet to be announced.

1. Junction Triangle Condo - Hundreds of Toronto Condo Buyers Lose Homes after development fails by John Lancaster * CBC News
2. Go Mimico Development - More than 200 Condo Buyers by John Lancaster * CBC News
3. Cosmos Condominiums - Developer cancels project in Vaughan - Sean O'Shea - Consumer Reporter Global News

Buyer's Beware

Does the reputation of the builder help, seems to be a key question but there is no answer until that unexpected letter comes in the mail and the inevitable future of your home slowly seeps down the drain.  There is no solution on time periods either, reports of construction site closures can be at anytime and will have a variety of effects depending on the market conditions not only at the time of announcement but also the effects of the Real Estate market from the time of signing onwards.   The Toronto Real Estate Market has increased 20%  in the past year plus and there is ongoing market updates on continued shortage of inventory in the condo sector and increasing values. 

1. Toronto Real Estate's Harsh New Reality by Daniel Tencer * Huff Post  
2. Buying a Pre-Construction Condo Risk and Reward by Lydia McNutt * The Blog 8 Huffpost
3. Consumer Protection Act 

Is it a case of a Builder not receiving their  "Building Permit"?  Are there zoning bylaws or other restrictions impacting the building permit process.   Is this a municipal issue or possibly provincial concern where the other Ministry's should get involved.   We have heard numerous reports of the same issue.