Condominium Manager Magazine

As Ontario’s skyline continues to rise, so does the complexity of managing the province’s ever-expanding condominium communities. With nearly 1.3 million condo units and counting, the role of the Condominium Manager has never been more critical—or more strained. At the heart of this evolving landscape stands the Association of  ondominium Managers of Ontario (ACMO), a steadfast champion for professionalism, education,and advocacy in the field.
 

In this edition of CM Magazine, we explore The Future of Condominium Management: A Vision for Condominium Managers. The timing couldn't be better as ACMO relaunches ACMO Tech, a series of brief educational presentations providing a concise, high-level overview of various condo management topics.

A quick glance at what’s happening with ACMO and the condominium industry.

In recent years, condominium boards and managers have been navigating rough waters when it comes to reserve fund planning. Whether calmer seas lie ahead or more storms are brewing remains uncertain.

Our world is changing, and with it, the challenges facing condominiums are evolving at an unprecedented pace. Stronger storms, hotter summers, and unpredictable weather is becoming the new normal. At the same time, there's a growing push for buildings to become more sustainable and energy efficient.

Editor’s note: Excellence in condominium management is built on a foundation of experience, insight, and continuous learning. In Ontario, the industry benefits from a strong network of seasoned professionals who are ready to share their expertise with the next generation of leaders. For managers seeking to build meaningful and sustainable careers, mentorship and guidance are well within reach—offering a valuable opportunity to learn from the past while shaping the future. For this article, we spoke with Catherine Murdock and Kristian Pasku of Del Property Management to gain two valuable perspectives: one from a seasoned industry veteran, and the other from a rising leader who recently took an exciting step forward in his career.

...multigenerational living in a condominium can also mean that we are seeing a variety of generations coming together under one larger roof and creating a real cross-section of society. This can present operational considerations and risks that need to be managed. Furthermore, it is important to always remember that the Human Rights Code of Ontario creates a clear standard of performance to ensure that people are able to live with dignity and have disabilities considered and accommodated.

Words like “crisis” and “critical” appear regularly in conversations about condos, sometimes so often that they start to lose meaning. Yet it’s fair to say that something is shifting in the way these communities are managed. Across Canada and in other parts of the world, recent legislative changes suggest a growing emphasis on structure, transparency, and planning. The focus is not about reinventing how boards operate but about reinforcing an approach that takes a longer view of the building’s (and community’s) future, and the collective responsibilities that come with shared ownership.

The condominium management industry in Ontario is facing a pivotal moment, one shaped by rapid growth in vertical communities, increased legislative complexity, evolving owner expectations, and a profound shortage of qualified condominium managers. As we look to the future, it's clear that adaptation, innovation, and mentorship will play crucial roles in sustaining the profession and meeting the sector’s rising demands.

Condo corporations in Ontario are losing millions of dollars to fraud through outdated procurement processes – often without any awareness or subsequent detection.

In the evolving landscape of AI, cultural shifts, and social changes, condo managers and their colleagues face increasing challenges in managing what are often simple misunderstandings. 

Building decarbonization retrofits takes a significant amount of time and effort to plan, design, finance, and construct. They require input from multi-disciplined engineering teams and collaboration with management and boards.

If it feels like every parking garage in the province is breaking down at the same time, that’s not a coincidence; it’s a consequence.

As climate risks and infrastructure challenges intensify across Canada, the condominium sector faces mounting pressure to evolve. Rising operational costs, energy inefficiency, extreme weather events, and an aging building stock have made it imperative for condo managers and boards to pursue long-term resiliency strategies.