Why CAO Director’s Training Should Be Mandatory for Every Condo Homeowner

I’m going to say this matter-of-factly: I believe every condominium homeowner should take the Condominium Authority of Ontario (CAO) Director’s Training. Not just directors. Anyone can take it. It’s free, online, and self‑paced. Why, it equips people with the basics of condo governance, finance, insurance, maintenance responsibilities, and dispute prevention, the real‑world stuff that keeps a community running.

For directors, the training is mandatory within six months and valid for seven years. For owners, it’s the fastest way to understand what you actually bought into, and how decisions (and costs) flow. And CAO’s updated “Director Training 2.0” made it even more practical and comprehensive.

People often choose condos for the perceived stability, no grass cutting, no shovelling, “the corporation pays for repairs.” Lovely idea. But… here’s what happens when that expectation collides with reality.

A Real‑Life Case: “It’s my home—I'll do what I want.”

A homeowner phones our emergency line about a leak in their unit. We dispatch the corporation’s preferred plumber. On-site, we discovered that the owner had hired their own plumber for renovations without board approval. That plumber caused the leak.

To stop the water, the curb stop (the shut‑off that serves the unit) has to be closed but it’s frozen/inoperable. The city has to shut down water to the entire community to allow repairs.

The follow‑up:

• Renovation is halted pending board approval (through Onyx).

• The owner is charged back for the emergency visit and the curb‑stop replacement.

• Threats to sue Onyx, the Board, and the Corporation begin.

• Many emails and phone calls later, the owner still insists:

  “It’s my home. I’ll do what I want. And the condo should pay for the curb stop—that’s why I pay fees.”
  

  Once we got past being put on notice that the homeowner was going to sue Onyx, the Board of Directors, and the Corporation. After many back-and-forth emails and phone calls, the owner simply could not understand why he had to have renovations approved: "It's my home, I will do what I want". Also did not understand why he needed to pay for the curb stop to be replaced, "it's not in my unit, it's the condo's responsibility, this is why I pay condo fees."

All the back-and-forth took almost 5 hours of the property manager's time and 1 hour of mine. Had the owner been better informed with training and the review of governing documents, this would have been less of a mess! Also, allowing the PM to spend their time on other much-needed tasks.

What CAO Training Teaches (among other things!)

1) How condos are actually governed. Who does what? What must be approved? What boards can and can’t do. Why “I’ll do what I want” doesn’t work in a shared ownership model.

2) What the Standard Unit Definition (SUD) is—and why it matters. The SUD is the line between the corporation's and the owner's responsibilities after insurable damage, and often for maintenance, too. It explains what’s “standard” and what counts as improvements that owners must ensure and restore. These documents can be difficult to read, as your Corporations Lawyer, to simply.

3) What your condo fees really fund, budgets, reserve funds, deductibles, chargebacks, and why not every repair is the corporation’s tab.

4) Insurance basics for owners, most corporations’ policies do not cover your upgrades or personal contents. Many owners don’t learn this until it’s too late.

5) The right way to resolve issues, communications, conflicts, and the Tribunal, and how to avoid escalation through early, informed steps.

6) The responsibilities of the Board of Directors.

Here is the bottom line: condo living is not for everyone. It is not hands-off home ownership; it is shared ownership governed by law and governance.

Below is a link to the CAO Director Training.

 CAO Director Training

Blog Contribution - Angel Reiner