General meetings

The general meeting is when your co-ownership decides: budget, accounts, works, mandates. RM Syndic prepares each GM with the rigour the Belgian Civil Code requires — convocation on time, readable agenda, accurate minutes — and ensures follow-up of decisions passed. Professional IPI-licensed syndic in Brussels, we manage a human-scale portfolio: you have a named contact, reachable by email and phone, and your documents are accessible in the Co-owner portal.

Why the GM is a critical moment

A poorly prepared or poorly run general meeting can have serious consequences. The Belgian Civil Code imposes strict rules on convocation, quorum, majorities and drafting of minutes. A formal error — insufficient convocation period, item missing from the agenda, wrongly qualified majority — can lead to judicial annulment of the GM and, with it, annulment of decisions taken: budget not approved, works not authorised, council election contested.

For the co-ownership council as for co-owners, the stake is not only administrative. It is the building's legal security: being able to launch a project, renew a maintenance contract, set charges for the coming year.

RM Syndic treats each GM as a formal act, not as a simple neighbours' meeting. Every step is documented, dated and archived.

What RM Syndic does — from calendar to execution

Our involvement covers the full lifecycle of a general meeting:

You do not have to check yourself that the legal calendar is respected. That is our professional responsibility.

Planning

We follow the statutory calendar of each co-owners' association (ACP): deadline for the annual ordinary GM, advance reminders, coordination with the co-ownership council and accountant for availability of annual accounts and provisional budget.

Preparing the convocation

Drafting the agenda, legal qualification of each item, compiling the attached file (accounts, budget, reports, quotes for works votes), generating and sending the convocation within the legal deadline.

Running the meeting

Chairing the GM: attendance sheet, quorum check, conducting votes, calculating majorities weighted by ownership quotas, recording decisions.

Minutes

Drafting minutes from meeting elements, review, signature, sending to co-owners and archiving in the ACP's decision register.

Post-GM follow-up

Transmitting decisions to concerned service providers, opening approved works files, updating mandates (council, meeting chair), publishing documents in the Co-owner portal.

The Belgian legal framework

Co-ownership in Belgium is governed by the Civil Code, book 3, title 3, chapter 3 (articles 3.79 to 3.94 and following). The general meeting is the ACP's decision-making body: only it can rule on matters reserved to it by law or by the co-ownership's base deed.

RM Syndic structures each GM so these obligations are met without approximation.

Syndic obligations

The syndic is the usual convoker of the annual ordinary GM. They prepare the agenda, provide documents needed for decision-making and draft the minutes. They engage their professional responsibility on compliance with legal forms.

Co-owner rights

Every co-owner has the right to be convoked in the legal forms and deadlines, to receive the agenda and attached documents, to attend the meeting (in person, by proxy or, where applicable, by advance vote if your ACP provides for it), and to obtain the minutes after the GM.

Retention

General meeting minutes constitute the ACP's legal register of decisions. They must be kept permanently and be available for consultation by co-owners.

Types of meetings

Request by co-owners: one or more co-owners holding at least one fifth of ownership quotas may request an extraordinary GM (art. 3.87 §3). The syndic then has 30 days to convoke. RM Syndic treats these requests as a priority and verifies that the quota condition is met before any convocation.

Ordinary GM — At least once a year, within the deadline set by the internal regulations: approval of annual accounts, vote on provisional budget, discharge of the syndic, routine administration items.
Extraordinary GM — At any time, on initiative of the syndic, council or co-owners: one-off decisions (major works, amendment of regulations, council election, change of syndic…).
Written GM — Exceptional case: unanimous decisions without a physical meeting (art. 3.87 §11 Civil Code) — only if all co-owners agree.

Convocation: deadlines, content and sending

Minimum deadline: 15 days

The Civil Code requires at least 15 days between sending the convocation and the meeting date (art. 3.87 §4). This deadline is mandatory: a late convocation exposes the GM to annulment. We plan each calendar in advance to meet this deadline, including when accounting documents arrive late from a third-party accountant.

Mandatory convocation content

Every RM Syndic convocation includes: date, time and place of the GM (building address or room made available); detailed agenda, item by item, with the text of proposed resolutions; mention of attached documents (annual accounts, budget, reports, quotes); participation arrangements: physical attendance, proxy; reminder of the right to add an item to the agenda within the legal deadline; a proxy form.

Sending method

The convocation is addressed to each co-owner according to the method they have accepted: registered mail (paper or electronic), or email with read receipt if the co-owner has formally agreed to this method. We keep proof of sending and receipt for each recipient.

Adding items to the agenda

Co-owners may request an item be added to the agenda, under the conditions and deadlines provided by law. These requests reach us by email, phone or via the Co-owner portal; we process them and inform the co-ownership council before sending the final convocation.

Agenda and majorities

Each agenda item corresponds to a resolution submitted to vote. The Civil Code distinguishes several majority regimes according to the nature of the decision (art. 3.87 §8 to §10).

Qualifying the applicable majority is a legal responsibility. RM Syndic proposes, for each resolution, the legally required majority and justifies it in the agenda. In case of doubt on a sensitive item, we consult the co-ownership council and, if necessary, external legal counsel before convocation.

Voting is weighted by ownership quotas, not by head: each co-owner's weight corresponds to the sum of the general quotas of their units. Cases of co-ownership of a unit (several owners of the same unit) and dismemberment (usufruct/bare ownership) are handled in accordance with articles 3.86 and 3.87 of the Civil Code.

Approval of annual accounts — Simple majority of votes cast by those present and represented
Approval of provisional budget — Simple majority
Discharge of the syndic — Simple majority
Maintenance and repair works — Simple majority
Improvement and embellishment works — Two-thirds majority of votes cast
Amendment of internal regulations — Two-thirds majority
Amendment of statutes (base deed) — Four-fifths majority
Sale of a common part — Unanimity
Amendment of quota allocation — Unanimity

Quorum and running the meeting

Quorum at first round

For a GM to validly deliberate at first round, co-owners present and represented must hold more than half of ownership quotas and represent at least half of co-owners (art. 3.87 §5).

Second round

If quorum is not reached at first round, a new GM is convoked (with the same minimum 15-day deadline). At second round, the GM may deliberate regardless of the number present and represented.

Attendance sheet

At the opening of each GM, we establish the attendance sheet: co-owners present, represented by proxy, absent. Quorum calculation is performed before any deliberation.

Proxies

An absent co-owner may give proxy to another co-owner or to an agent. The Civil Code limits proxy cumulation: an agent may not hold more than three proxies, unless the sum of the principals' quotas does not exceed 10% of total quotas (art. 3.87 §6). The syndic, their staff and their family may not receive proxy. We verify these limits on receipt of each proxy.

Proceedings

The syndic chairs the meeting or appoints a meeting chair according to ACP practice. Each agenda item is dealt with in turn: presentation, discussion, vote, announcement of result. Decisions are recorded as the meeting progresses to feed the minutes.

Minutes and decision register

Minutes are the legal document that records the GM's decisions. They must state: identification of the ACP, date, place and type of GM; list of co-owners present, represented and absent; for each resolution: title, text voted, vote result (for, against, abstention, expressed in quotas), required majority and whether it was reached; appointments made (co-ownership council, meeting chair, tellers); signatures of meeting chair and secretary.

RM Syndic drafts minutes in the days following the GM, submits them to the co-ownership council for review if necessary, arranges signature and sends the document to all co-owners.

Minutes join the ACP's decision register — a chronological history available to every co-owner. It is your building's legal memory: works voted, budgets approved, mandates renewed.

After the GM: execution and follow-up

A well-run GM does not stop at signing the minutes. RM Syndic ensures implementation of decisions:

Each decision is tracked. The co-ownership council may ask us at any time about the status of a resolution.

Budget and accounts: transmission to the accountant for implementation of the voted budget and archiving of approved accounts (see our Administration & accounting page).
Approved works: opening the project file, consulting selected contractors, site follow-up through to completion (see Works & maintenance).
Mandates: updating co-ownership council representatives in the ACP register.
Contracts: renewal or termination of service contracts according to votes.
Change of syndic: if the GM ruled on replacing the syndic, preparing handover in accordance with IPI rules.

For co-owners: email, phone, portal

You do not need to be a lawyer to follow your co-ownership's life. RM Syndic gives you three simple channels:

By email

Write to us to ask about the agenda, request an item be added, send a proxy or report unavailability. Your message is handled by the contact who manages your ACP.

By phone

For an urgent question before a GM — quorum, proxy, missing document — our team is reachable during office hours.

Via the Co-owner portal

After the GM, find in your online space: signed minutes; resolutions adopted; attached documents (accounts, budget, quotes); history of previous GMs.

No need to wait for paper mail or search through emails: everything is filed by building, accessible at any time.

For the co-ownership council

The co-ownership council plays a central role in preparing the GM. RM Syndic works closely with your representatives:

As a small syndic, we know every council in our portfolio. You are not a file number.

Agenda preparation: the council validates proposed items, works to be submitted to vote, activity reports.
Document review: annual accounts, provisional budget, quotes — the council has the papers before convocation.
Attendance at the meeting: the council participates in the GM, presents reports and answers co-owners' questions.
Post-GM follow-up: the council is informed of decision implementation and may request a progress update at any time.

Your next general meeting

Whether you are preparing an annual ordinary GM, an extraordinary one to vote on works or a syndic handover, RM Syndic structures each step in compliance with the Belgian Civil Code and IPI rules. Tell us about your co-ownership and your next GM situation. We reply quickly and without obligation.

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