Condo special assessments in Alberta: a guide for the board

What a special levy is, and what it can pay for

Alberta.ca describes a special levy as a one-time or temporary assessment imposed on owners to raise money for an unbudgeted expense or shortfall. Its examples include major repairs and an unexpected insurance deductible.

The page says a special levy may be used, among other purposes, to pay for unexpected and urgent maintenance, repair or replacement of the corporation's real and personal property, the common property or managed property, and to pay for a capital improvement if the corporation has passed a special resolution approving it.

Who can approve one

Alberta.ca says condominium boards can approve special levies through a board resolution, and that they do not need owners' approval by a vote at a general meeting unless the levy is for a capital improvement.

The Condominium Property Act says what the board's resolution must contain. Section 39.1(1) requires it to set out the purpose of the levy, the total amount to be levied, and the date by which it is to be paid or the dates of the instalments. It must also set out how each unit's share is worked out: by unit factor or, if the bylaws provide for it and subject to the regulations, on another basis.

If the levy is for a capital improvement, section 39.1(3) requires a special resolution before the board may approve it. The Act defines a special resolution as one passed at a properly convened meeting by a majority of not less than 75% of all the persons entitled to vote and representing not less than 75% of the total unit factors for all the units, or one agreed to in writing by not less than 75% of the persons the Act describes.

Repair, replacement or capital improvement?

Whether owners must approve a levy first turns on whether it is for a capital improvement. Alberta.ca describes capital improvements as additions or alterations that may increase the property's value, while reserve fund expenses are generally for repairing or replacing existing property.

Section 38(4) of the Act says what is not a capital improvement. For the purposes of sections 38 and 39.1, replacing existing real and personal property of the corporation, the common property or managed property with the contemporary equivalent of an obsolete property, or with a lower-cost equivalent of the existing property, is not a capital improvement. Section 38(4)(b) adds any other replacement prescribed by the regulations.

Section 38(4) does not say whether replacing a building's stucco, windows or roof is the contemporary equivalent of an obsolete property or a lower-cost equivalent of the existing property, and Alberta.ca does not say whether a particular replacement is a capital improvement. That is a question to settle with the corporation's lawyer, using the engineer's scope and the options in front of the board, before the board decides how to approve a levy.

What the corporation must already do

Alberta.ca describes a special levy as money raised for an unbudgeted expense or shortfall, with insufficient reserve funds among its examples, so one early question for a board is how large that gap really is. The Condominium Property Act makes it a duty of the corporation to keep in a state of good and serviceable repair, and properly maintain, the real and personal property of the corporation, the common property and managed property (section 37(2)(a)). It requires the corporation to establish and maintain a reserve fund reasonably sufficient for major repairs and replacement that do not normally occur annually (section 38(1)).

Alberta.ca says a condominium reserve fund study must be completed no less than every 5 years and should consider a 30-year timeframe. The Act also allows reserve fund money to be used for a reserve fund study and report and for any other report prepared by an expert examining the condition of the real and personal property of the corporation, the common property and managed property (section 38(1.01)).

What owners must be told, and when

As soon as possible after passing the levy resolution, the board must inform each owner of the purpose of the levy, the total amount, the method used to determine each unit's share, the amount payable for the owner's unit and the payment date or instalment dates (section 39.1(4)). A contribution is due and payable on the passing of the board's resolution, in accordance with its terms (section 39.2(1)).

Alberta.ca says the legislation does not require a board to convene an owners' meeting to inform them about a special levy, and suggests an information meeting may help, with professionals such as an engineer, contractor or accountant attending when the cost is for a specific purpose. In a passage on how to fund repairs and replacement, Service Alberta's March 2026 tip sheet suggests a board could discuss alternatives with owners at a general meeting before making the final decision. It adds that good community relations suggest owners should not be surprised by the board's final decision.

What to have before owners are asked to pay

Section 28(2) of the Act says every member of a board, in exercising the powers and performing the duties of the office, must act honestly and in good faith with a view to the best interests of the corporation, and exercise the care, diligence and skill that a reasonably prudent person would exercise in comparable circumstances. The Act does not say which steps meet that standard, so a board may want a written record of how the number was built.

Before it asks owners to pay, a board can put these in writing:

• The problem. What failed or is at risk, and how the board knows: an engineer's report or test results, not a contractor's opinion alone.
• The scope. What the work includes and what it leaves out.
• The budget by trade. Figures from bids that were all asked to price the same scope.
• The alternatives. Repair, phased work or full replacement, each with its cost, timing and risk.
• The approval route. Whether the levy is for a capital improvement, and so needs a special resolution first.
• The schedule. When the work happens and what owners will live through.
• How the cost is shared. The amount for each unit and when it is due.
• What is left in the reserve fund once the work is paid for.

When the first number is not the right number

CK's own account of the Aspen Close condominium describes a budget that changed as it was reviewed and tested. The board had no construction or renovation experience, contractors had quoted that 40-year-old stucco needed to be removed and replaced, and the budget was initially set at $52,000 per unit. After a review with contractors and an engineering firm the estimate changed to $35,000 per unit. After unit testing, CK reports, it was reviewed and set at $32,179 per unit. Further inspection found the stucco and underlay siding in good enough condition not to replace completely, so damaged sections were repaired and the stucco was coated to seal it.

That is a drop between two budgets, $19,821 per unit, and CK's account does not give the final cost. It describes one building, so it does not show that another building's budget will come in lower; what a board can take from it is to test before a figure goes to owners. The projects page sets the account out step by step.

What CK does for a board facing a special assessment

CK describes its work as complete budgeting overviews of proposed and planned renovations, including special assessments. CK says it meets the engineering firm that works for the corporation, that deconstructive testing is done with the engineer to fine-tune the scope of the project, and that it contacts each appropriate contractor directly. It says it presents a report of its findings to the corporation and gives recommendations on which contractors the board should hire. It also says every contractor bid and estimate goes directly to the condominium corporation, that the board can review all estimates from contractors rather than a single combined bid, and that each contract is signed directly by the board.

CK says it works solely for the corporation and its board, that the corporation pays CK directly and that it is not paid by any contractor. See contractor bids and construction management.

Questions boards ask

Sources and further reading

Legal points on this page were checked on 30 September 2026 against the Condominium Property Act (consolidated to 14 May 2026) and the Condominium Property Regulation (consolidated to 15 February 2026). The law changes, so check the current text.

1. Alberta.ca: Special levies — the province's plain-language guide
2. Alberta.ca: Reserve funds
3. Condominium Property Act (Alberta King's Printer) — the statute; this page used the consolidation current to 14 May 2026
4. Condominium Property Regulation (Alberta King's Printer) — this page used the consolidation current to 15 February 2026
5. Service Alberta: Owning a condominium (tip sheet, 2026)
6. Service Alberta: Resolving condominium disputes (fact sheet, March 2026)
7. CCI North Alberta — educational sessions for members and non-members