Co-owners' general meeting: the voting rules

Voting at a co-ownership general meeting is subject to different majorities depending on the proposed decision: simple majority, absolute majority, double majority or unanimity. The result depends on the votes attached to the units and, for certain decisions, on the number of co-owners in favour.

In Saint-Denis, as elsewhere, distinguishing between these rules makes it easier to understand why a resolution may be adopted, rejected or put to a new vote.

How are the votes counted?

Each co-owner has a number of votes corresponding to their share of the common areas, expressed in thousandths. These thousandths are attached to the lots: a flat, cellar or parking space may therefore represent different shares of the common areas.

The number of people in favour of a proposal is therefore not enough to determine the result. It is also necessary to know the votes they hold and the majority applicable to the resolution. For the double majority, both elements matter: the number of co-owners and the number of votes.

The Service-Public.fr information sheet classifies decisions according to their subject matter: co-ownership bodies, works, documents, safety, and sales and acquisitions.

The four majority rules

Simple majority: votes cast

By a simple majority, the count is based on the votes cast by co-owners present, represented or having voted by correspondence. Abstentions are not taken into account. This rule applies in particular to adapting the co-ownership regulations when required by legislative or regulatory changes introduced since they were drawn up.

Absolute majority: the co-ownership votes

The absolute majority is calculated on the basis of all the votes in the building. The votes of absent co-owners are therefore included in the calculation, even if they do not take part in the vote. A proposal may receive a majority of votes in favour among participants without nevertheless reaching an absolute majority.

Double majority: people and shares

To obtain the double majority, the co-owners in favour must outnumber the others and hold at least 2/3 of the votes. According to the authorities’ example, a co-ownership has 10 co-owners and totals 1,000 thousandths. The decision is adopted when 6 of them approve it and together hold 700 thousandths.

This example shows the importance of checking both criteria: counting the co-owners in favour does not, on its own, indicate the proportion of votes they represent.

When is a second vote possible?

A resolution subject to the absolute majority may be put to a second vote by simple majority if it obtained at least 1/3 of the votes of all the co-owners. The result of the first vote therefore remains decisive, even when the absolute majority is not reached.

For a resolution requiring a double majority, a second vote by absolute majority may take place at the same meeting if half of the co-owners present, represented or having voted by post have approved the proposal and if those co-owners represent at least 1/3 of the votes of all the co-owners. Both conditions must be met.

A specific possibility concerns works intended to save energy or reduce greenhouse gas emissions. If the project has not obtained at least 1/3 of the votes of all the co-owners, a new meeting may vote by simple majority on an identical project, provided it is convened within 3 months.

Which decisions concern organisation and regulations?

The appointment or dismissal of the property manager and members of the co-ownership council is subject to an absolute majority. The same applies to the formation of a secondary co-ownership association.

A delegation given to the property manager, the co-ownership council or another person to carry out an act or take a decision falling under the simple majority is also voted on by the absolute majority. The delegation granted to the chair of the co-ownership council to bring legal proceedings against the property manager for compensation for loss suffered by the co-owners’ association also falls under this majority.

For the co-ownership rules, the subject of the amendment makes the difference. Adapting them to legislative and regulatory changes made since they were established is subject to a simple majority. Amending or establishing them in relation to the enjoyment, use and management of the common parts is subject to the double majority.

Unanimity is required when amending or establishing the co-ownership rules concerns an object other than the enjoyment, use and management of the common parts. This is the case, for example, when changing the use of the building. The use refers to the purpose for which the building was constructed: residential, professional or mixed use.

Works and equipment: a majority depending on the project

Preservation, accessibility and assessment

Works necessary for the preservation of the building and the health and safety of its occupants require a simple majority. This includes, in particular, works affecting the stability, exterior enclosure, roof or networks, as well as works intended to bring dwellings into compliance with health, safety and equipment standards.

Works to improve accessibility for disabled or mobility-impaired people require a simple majority when they affect neither the structure of the building nor its essential equipment. If they affect the structure or this equipment, an absolute majority is required.

The decision to commission a comprehensive technical assessment and the choice of how it is carried out are subject to a simple majority. The method for preparing the draft multi-year works plan is also subject to this majority, whereas adopting all or part of the plan requires an absolute majority.

Improvement, energy and parking

Works to transform or improve the property, or to create equipment, require an absolute majority. The same applies to works intended to save energy or reduce greenhouse gas emissions, whether or not they include works of collective interest carried out on private areas.

For charging electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles, the precise nature of the decision matters. The decision to equip parking spaces with charging points where access is secure and use is private, together with the assessment of whether the existing installations are suitable and, where necessary, the corresponding works, is subject to a simple majority.

However, installing or modifying electrical installations to supply these spaces, as well as installing charging facilities with individual metering for these vehicles, is subject to an absolute majority.

The meeting may, by simple majority, authorise one or more co-owners to carry out, at their own expense, works to provide secure bicycle parking in the common areas. These works must affect neither the structure nor the intended use of the building or its essential equipment, and must not compromise the occupants’ safety.

Service charges, common areas and safety

In principle, changing the allocation of charges requires unanimity. However, it is subject to an absolute majority when it is made necessary by a change in the use of one or more privately owned parts. When works or acquisition or disposal transactions have been decided by the majority required by law, the resulting necessary change to the charges is voted on by the same majority as that which allowed the works or transactions to be adopted.

The removal of the concierge or caretaker position and the sale of the caretaker’s lodge, where it belongs to the co-owners’ association, are subject to the double majority. Unanimity is nevertheless required if the co-ownership regulations provide that removing the concierge service affects the intended use of the building or the arrangements for enjoying the private areas.

An act of acquisition or disposal of property falls under the double majority. However, the conditions for carrying out acts of disposal concerning the common parts or their associated rights fall under the absolute majority when these acts result from legal or regulatory obligations, such as those concerning common courtyards, other easements or the transfer of party-wall rights. The disposal (for example, the sale) of common parts whose retention is necessary to comply with the intended use of the building requires unanimity.

For security purposes, the opening mechanism for access doors is decided by an absolute majority. The permanent authorisation given to the municipal police to enter the common parts is, for its part, subject to a simple majority.

For a condominium in Saint-Denis, as for any other, reading the resolution and the regulations remains important to identify the applicable rule. Saint-Denis Immobilier offers flats and houses for sale in the town and surrounding areas. If in doubt about a specific condominium situation, an ADIL or legal professional can advise you.

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