Roundup: Shock of the new
I hate to blow my own trumpet but I’m hearing lots of reports that people are turning up at strata committee meetings and being handed a copy of my “21…
Past Posts
These posts go all the way back to the raw versions of my Flat Chat columns for the Sydney Morning Herald’s Domain section over th e past 15 years. Some of the issues are specific to New South Wales, some are universal. There will almost certainly be differences in strata law between NSW and other states and countries and the laws have changed over that timespan too.
If you have a serious problem, contact the agencies (in Australia) listed in our contacts sections. Or contact a properly qualified and experienced strata lawyer. These columns should not be regarded as a substitute for professional legal advice.
Strata dwellers – lab rats for society?
Is your nose twitching more than usual these days? Whiskers growing out past your ears? I ask because I get the feeling that strata residents are lab rats for the…
Smoking zones planned for apartment blocks
Sydney’s unit blocks may soon get a feature they will share with pubs’ pokie parlours, as well as some overseas international airports. Apartment owners will soon be able to set…
21 strata law changes you really need to know
By Jimmy Thomson There are more than 90 changes to the strata laws that come into force in NSW on November 30. Here are the 21 that will affect you…
Roundup: The times – and strata crimes – are a-changin’
The times are certainly changing . Not only has Bob Dylan won a Nobel Prize but there are only seven more sleeps until strata law changes in NSW make all…
MPs reject pro-airbnb laws
The tide appears to be turning on the apparently frantic rush to make unrestricted apartment holiday letting the norm in Australia. The upper house in the Victorian parliament has rejected…
New hope for old strata schemes
Can we build some granny flats at the back of our apartment block? It’s a valid question from one of our Flatchatters that will become much more pertinent at the…
Roundup: Once more with feeling
Strange things seem to happen when you move out of your normal environment and try to do things in a different way and, even worse, from a different place. Right…
Sydney MP breaks ranks over airbnb
Sydney MP Alex Greenwich has slammed proposals that Airbnb-style short-stay lets of entire apartments should be allowed in apartment blocks, even when the vast majority of owners don’t want them.…
Unborn puppy is a pig in a strata poke
How do you apply to have a pet in your apartment when the animal doesn’t even exist yet? You can’t prove how big it will be, let alone how angelic…
Roundup: Not quite the Cultural Revolution
It’s only 30 days until everything we know and loathe about strata law is swept away and the bright, shiny new face of apartment living smiles down upon us all.…
Bush builder is a strata outlaw
Living in our ivory (OK, concrete and glass) towers in the city, we tend to forget there are tens of thousands of apartment residents out there in the bush. Some…