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I have a question and it might be an odd one. Can a new strata manager and strata committee suddenly insist on owners providing proof of permission for hooks and plant hangers on balconies if those things have been on balconies for a long period of time, say over five years and in some cases over 20?
We have a strata committee member attending open homes and then owners getting emails from the strata manager (who is a friend of the committee member) asking “when did you get permission for XYZ and can you provide it ”Some of us have been there over 40 years. Others 20. How are we meant to find records this old? And to make it more challenging, we no longer have the same strata company as the one who gave original permission.
What are the legalities please, because it could really muck up some sales if this kind of thing is carried on.
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Hello CupOfTea, google “strata schemes management act 2015” and scroll down to section 109 “Cosmetic work by owners”. There is a list of examples of “cosmetic work” which does not require approval of the owners corporation.
Paragraph 5 lists work that is not included as “cosmetic work”. Here is your problem:
“(c) work that changes the external appearance of a lot, including the installation of an external access ramp,”
A hook on a balcony ceiling does change the external appearance of a lot.
You would have to seek permission from the owners corporation. This would require a vote of all the owners at a general meeting. If they decline, they could order you to remove the hooks. If you refuse to remove the hooks, I wonder if the owners corporation would go as far as applying to NCAT to have your pot plant hooks removed. It seems so trivial.
You could explain to the NCAT member that they’ve been there for years and nobody keeps records for that long. You could also apply to NCAT yourself to have the hooks approved. I think the NCAT member would think why is everyone wasting their time on this.
I guess hindsight is a wonderful thing.
But I keep any approvals by the OC or the committee in my personal records.
It then never becomes an issue of memory as the documents are at hand.
I doubt that NCAT will be sympathetic to the argument that it’s been there a long time, though they may direct that the owner makes a new application to the OC.