Hi Dudley,
Regretfully in this game your Strata Manager is either your friend or foe. I have been through 2 block upgrades (all of which i initiated and managed)and although the outcomes are great, values and rents have increased dramatically, I get more praise from our neighbors than the owners!
In relation to the S/M gently let the strata manager know that you are the boss and pay his fees and if he makes your life difficult threaten to change him. Of course, you need to build your case with the other owners so they support you if push comes to shove but you must be aggressive to get this done. Some S/M’s tend to be quite salty and hard to crack.
If you can’t get his support then just starting making your own decisions and blame the SM if the others don’t like it. That way they will more happy to get rid of him when the time comes. Strata is a strategic game and you need to know how to play it to get results.
The S/M has no right to force you to use his contractors exclusively, but you need to understand that if the contractor you select goes pear shaped on you he will get the blame for “allowing” you to use your own contractor which is why many S/M’s don’t like it.
The other possibility is that he is getting some kind of “reward program” from his contractors, which can range from a case of beer to extensions on his house. It is difficult to trace but it does go on.
Your SM will most likely use a service called Trade Monitor to verify the contractors licenses and insurances so you don’t need to do that yourself. Verification is around $80 per contractor and once verified you can keep using them.
Note that all jobs over $1000 in NSW now require a 2 page contract which you can download from Fair Trading.
Just remember, engaing your own contractors means you take all the risk and if your contractor turns out to be a moron, you will have to yell and scream at him and nobody else will give a damn or support you (infact they will blame you), so my advice is that unless you are saving several thousands or you know the contractor is reliable and good, don’t bother with it. It may not be worth the hassle and you wont get paid a dime for your efforts!