In the day-to-day management of a shared residential building, communication and organisational needs often arise that fall outside the duties of the main bodies established by law, such as the administrator and the owners’ assembly.
Other roles may therefore exist, including the condominium coordinator, who provides support with condominium management. This person has no independent decision-making powers and is not specifically regulated by the Italian Civil Code. Their role is to make relations between condominium owners, or a group of them, and the administration more straightforward.
Who is the condominium coordinator?
First, it is useful to understand where the condominium coordinator fits into the often complex management of a shared building. In most cases, this is an internal organisational role, often identified within the condominium council or proposed by the owners’ assembly.
As this role is not provided for by law, the coordinator has no powers of their own. The role can be useful in very large buildings, where communication may otherwise become less effective. In general, a coordinator:
- may be chosen from among the condominium owners to collect reports and observations;
- carries out the role in line with any rules included in the building regulations or set out in the resolution appointing the council;
- remains subject to the decisions of the legitimate bodies, as they cannot have independent management powers.
What role does the coordinator have on the condominium council?
To understand the coordinator’s role and duties properly, it is necessary to look at the condominium council. This is a body provided for under Article 1130-bis of the Italian Civil Code. It may be appointed in buildings with at least 12 individual property units, provided it includes at least three condominium owners.
Its main role is advisory and supervisory. For example, it can examine documents, monitor the progress of routine maintenance works or distribute communications, but it cannot make resolutions in place of the owners’ assembly.
Within the council, a coordinator may be appointed with a purely internal organisational role. In detail, they may:
- coordinate meetings of council members;
- facilitate the flow of information within the council;
- maintain contact with the condominium administrator and the owners’ assembly, for example by passing on suggestions and proposals gathered from council members.
What are a coordinator’s duties?
In practice, a coordinator’s duties are largely organisational and aimed at making life within the condominium easier. The person appointed may usually:
- collect reports from condominium owners, such as notifications of faults affecting shared systems;
- follow organisational matters such as estimates or work progress, without being able to take arbitrary decisions;
- facilitate relations with the administrator, preventing owners’ requests from becoming scattered or overlooked;
- improve internal communication within the condominium, always following the instructions received from the building’s official bodies.
What is the coordinator’s relationship with the owners’ assembly?
In relation to the owners’ assembly, the coordinator is mainly subordinate. Under Article 1135 of the Italian Civil Code, the owners’ assembly remains the building’s decision-making body. The coordinator cannot replace it or bind other condominium owners. Equally, the coordinator cannot take the administrator’s place at an assembly meeting.
In Ordinance No. 7484/2019, the Court of Cassation clarified that committees of condominium owners and coordinators may review estimates, but their conclusions cannot be binding, as they require approval by the assembly with the majorities required by law.
In practical terms, the coordinator’s role in relation to the assembly is limited to gathering and preparing material useful for discussion. They have no independent voting rights or powers of representation, aside from any individual proxy granted to them.
What is the person responsible for a condominium called?
The coordinator should not be confused with the far more significant role of the person responsible for the condominium, an informal way of referring to the condominium administrator.
The administrator is responsible for managing the building, under Articles 1129 and 1130 of the Italian Civil Code.
In other words, the condominium administrator:
- acts as the building’s appointed manager, with powers established by law and assembly resolutions;
- is responsible for implementing resolutions, overseeing routine maintenance of common areas, collecting payments and representing the condominium;
- is compulsory for buildings with more than eight condominium owners.
What is the difference between an administrator and a coordinator?
There are clear differences between the person responsible for a condominium – the administrator – and the coordinator, due to their very different roles.
The administrator acts within the responsibilities set out by the Italian Civil Code and in accordance with the owners’ assembly, while the coordinator has a straightforward supporting role. More specifically:
- the administrator acts under a legal and assembly mandate, following specific legal obligations;
- the coordinator organises and facilitates daily activities, but has no independent power to make decisions, spend money or represent the condominium.
Who is the stairwell representative in a condominium?
The coordinator’s role can also differ substantially from that of the stairwell representative (caposcala). This position is not regulated by the Italian Civil Code either, but it is increasingly common in larger buildings, including supercondomini – complexes made up of several condominium buildings or blocks.
In most cases, the stairwell representative is a condominium owner appointed informally by the assembly. Their role is to act as the point of contact for their stairwell, making communication with the administrator and the assembly easier. Usually:
- the appointment is made by resolution or under procedures set out in the building regulations;
- the person selected has no management powers.
What are the duties of a condominium stairwell representative?
Finally, a stairwell representative’s duties are purely organisational and collaborative. They have no independent management role or decision-making powers. In practice, the appointed person may:
- collect and pass on reports of faults or service issues affecting their stairwell;
- facilitate communication and the distribution of information sent by the administrator;
- coordinate small works or flag specific needs, without collecting service charges or handling money.
They cannot, however, enter into contracts, commit funds or replace the building’s decision-making bodies.
Alongside the condominium coordinator, the stairwell representative can help management run more smoothly, provided the boundaries of the role are clearly set out in the building regulations and in decisions taken by the owners’ assembly.
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