A couple of worried tenants have asked recently if it’s true that they can be evicted by the executive committees of unit blocks.
Executive committees can’t order your eviction directly but they can certainly be instrumental in removing badly behaved tenants, especially if the behaviour is really bad.
When you sign a lease it includes an agreement to abide by the by-laws of the building you are moving into. If you break the by-laws you have also broken the terms of your lease.
In a well-run building, by-law breaches will result in a Notice To Comply from the executive committee. This is a final warning. Do it again, and you are not only liable to be fined by the CTTT, you could be out on your ear.
The EC (or, indeed, the CTTT) can’t make the landlord evict you, but owners can be held responsible for their tenants’ behaviour, especially if they know there’s a problem and don’t do anything about it.
Facing threats of CTTT action, having proof of a breach of your lease and knowing demand for rentals is high, you can guess what many landlords will do next.
Eviction isn’t that easy – nor should it be – but the EC can certainly start the process that leads to it.
Since I wrote this column, a debate about Housing NSW tenants in private strata developments has kicked off. It’s a different perspective on the eviction issue, with all and sundry having their say … except, curiously, Housing NSW who have been noticeably silent on this. Check out the whole discussion HERE.