The Importance of Paying Your Condo Fees

The Importance of Paying Your Condo Fees

There’s a lot to love about condo living – but one thing that even we’ll admit is a bit of a drag is the fees that come along with it. So the whole thing would be better if you could enjoy all the benefits of living in a condo without worrying about those pesky monthly payments, […]

Plan Ahead with an Emergency Response Plan

Plan Ahead with an Emergency Response Plan

Quick – your next-door neighbour accidentally set the microwave for two hours instead of two minutes, and now those hot pockets he was warming up have caught fire and set the whole condo building ablaze!  Where do you go? How do you evacuate? Who’s in charge of making sure everyone got out okay? And most importantly: […]

Getting a Read on Condo Documentation

Getting a Read on Condo Documentation

When it comes to the ins and outs of condo documentation, the details can sometimes be as complex and in-depth as the documents themselves – and if you’ve ever had to try and make sense of a post-tension cable report, well, you’ll know exactly what we mean!  That said, there is definitely a method to the […]

What to Look Out for in a Condo Realtor

What to Look Out for in a Condo Realtor

Everyone always talks about what to look for in your future condo unit – but what about your condo realtor?  If you ask us, our dreamy condo realtor would be tall, dark, and handsome, with a knowledgeable air about him and an in-depth understanding of the Alberta real estate market… Wait a minute. We’re talking […]

Where Do Your Condo Fees Really Go?

Where Do Your Condo Fees Really Go?

They say that the only true constants in life are death and taxes – and if you’re an Alberta condo owner, you can feel confident adding “condo fees” to that list, too! Condo fees are all but a guarantee when you decide to take the plunge into condo living. Yet despite the extra expense, most owners […]

Are You Wasting Money on Condo Waste Management? Part Two

Are You Wasting Money on Condo Waste Management? Part Two

We took some time last month to dig into the details of condo waste management with special guest expert Mickey Pendergast – a Cost Reduction Expert at Schooley Mitchell, the largest independent cost reduction consulting firm in North America – to chat about what your condo board can do to lower costs and save money. We […]

Building a Condo Budget that Works

Building a Condo Budget that Works

Last month, we took some time here on the Catalyst blog to explore exactly why it seems like the bottom has fallen out of condo reserve fund studies here across the province in recent months. We covered some decent ground and made some good progress, but there’s a second part of that story that we […]

Are You Wasting Money on Waste Handling?

Are You Wasting Money on Waste Handling?

Waste handling is a necessary consideration for condo corporations to keep on top of. Oftentimes, though, it can just as easily become something that simply goes for years unnoticed or without a second thought – even as the associated costs continue to creep steadily upward.  That’s where our esteemed guest expert, Mickey Pendergast, comes in […]

Setting Your Reserve Fund up for Success

Setting Your Reserve Fund up for Success

Reserve fund studies are getting a bit of a bad rap right now – and honestly, we can’t blame Alberta condo owners for feeling the way they do! Of course, we can only speak from our own on-the-job experience, but it seems like every time a condo corporation’s turned around to tap their reserve fund […]

Regarding Reserve Fund Reports

Regarding Reserve Fund Reports

If you’re a condo owner here in Alberta, chances are you’ve heard at least passing mention of the ubiquitous reserve fund study – but what about reserve fund reports?  “Wait,” you might find yourself thinking, “Reserve fund studies? Reserve fund reports? Aren’t those just two different names for the same thing?” To which we’d respond: actually, […]