For condominium cost sharing and shared facility agreements
Good governance. Good neighbours. Good community.
A hard truth –
Condo cost and facility sharing agreements create needless disputes.
Cost sharing agreements (CSA) or facility sharing agreements (FSA) should provide mechanisms to enhance, and reward reliable cost sharing. Errors and omissions, once discovered, are difficult to resolve. Alternate Dispute Resolution (ADR), mediation or arbitration is expensive, disruptive and often inconclusive.
Condo developers do not always build features into their developments to support CSA or FSA practices (e.g. meters to measure sharable electricity or water consumption).
Condo boards lack the specific skills and knowledge to manage the specific terms and conditions of their cost or facility sharing agreements. Condominium managers don’t help. Standard condominium management contracts often omit accountability for determining, allocating or reporting shared costs. Condominium accounting systems lack basic cost accounting functionality.
Condominium financial auditors are not always independent and objective and able to provide the necessary assurance on cost sharing determination.
The result is a governance gap. Stalemates are inevitable. Bad behaviour is rewarded. Communities are disrupted. Owners pay the cost.
The good news –
Reliable shared cost determination and allocation is possible.
CSA Health Check provides training and advisory services necessary for complete, accurate cost sharing.
Consensus requires a shared understanding of the physical facilities, the components or services driving sharable costs and agreement on accurate measurement and allocation of those costs.
The information necessary lies in the fine print of the cost or facility sharing agreement, site surveys, technical drawings or other available records.
CSA Health Check Advisory Services
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Complete and Accurate Cost Sharing...
Complete and accurate cost sharing starts with complete and accurate understanding of the property and the terms and conditions of your CSA or FSA.
Year end invoice verification tells you what costs have been shared, not what should have been shared.
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What Managers Need to Know
Today, condominium managers in Ontario are merely required to “Explain the requirements of cost sharing agreements”. This course teaches managers how to identify and assess the risks to complete and accurate shared cost determination from identifying easements and facilities to complete and accurate calculation of sharable costs and provides your board with a framework for oversight. This course is approved by the CMRAO for CPE.
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Building an Endurable Risk Based Model
Every cost sharing or facility sharing agreement is different, but every CSA or FSA will define the easements being shared, the facilities and the costs. Every agreement will set out specific rights and obligations for determining and settling shared costs. Parties to these agreements can collaborate at the outset to develop practices and protocols that work agreeable understand and establish
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CSA / FSA Workshops for Boards
Find issues collaboratively. If your board or manager is struggling to understand or implement your shared cost agreement, a cost sharing workshop can be an effective way to discover issues, generate solutions, solve specific problems and achieve consensus.
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Independent Assessments
Need a fresh point of view or an independent opinion to respond to new challenges? I can help streamline adapt or even automate your cost sharing practices.
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ADR Support
Looking for middle ground in shared cost determination? I can suggest tools and best practices for measurement, estimation and allocation.
Bruce McCuaig, B.Comm, CPA.CA
The best advice I was given is to take the high road and avoid conflict. That is the philosophy needed for managing shared costs.
What’s important to me
The best advice I was given is to take the high road and avoid conflict. That is the philosophy I bring to my practice.
I have learned that collaboration is critical in both discovering and resolving issues in complex environments.
I spent the first stage of my career in large corporate environments in Toronto, Calgary and Houston managing audit, accounting, and finance teams with a major international oil and gas company. The oil and gas industry thrives on joint ventures for exploration, development and production.
The second stage of my career was spent as a consultant and trainer to executives and business professionals seeking collaborative governance practices. I worked with public sector, private, not for profit and professional services firms in North America, EMEA and Australia
The third stage of my career was spent in a global role as director of product marketing for governance, risk and compliance software serving clients around the world.
Development and adoption of technology was a common thread throughout my career.
My interest in corporate governance led me to supplement my financial credentials by completing the Directors Education Program at the Rotman School of Management.
I joined the Board of the CCAC in Mississauga/Halton region and eventually chaired that board. As a condo owner, I joined and eventually led my condo board where we experienced cost sharing issues.
Governance Experience
Board Chair PCC3 | Stratford
Board Chair CCAC | Mississauga / Halton
Directors Education Program | Rotman School of Management
Business Experience
Director, Solution Marketing
Governance Risk and Compiance | SAP
Vice President Risk and Compliance (Paisley) ThompsonReuters
General Auditor, Financial Manager, Manager Accounting | Gulf Canada
Professional Credentials
CPA.CA Ontario | Life Member
CPA.CA Alberta | Life Member
B.Comm | University of Windsor
Useful Links
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Condominium Shared Facilities – Top 8 issues →
Learn why it is important that all parties to a cost or facility sharing agreement understand the terms and conditions and decision-making process.
– Lash Condo Law
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Facility or Cost Sharing Agreements are difficult to amend or terminate. This article discusses the inherent problems.
– Sorbonne Shibley Righton LLP
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Sharing Facilities and Services with Neighbours →
As condominiums are being used in more unique and complex ways than in the past, the potential for disputes is increasing.
– Robson Carpenter