NSW Health nudges the needle on reno rules
Health NSW has acknowledged (but only just) that strata residents deserve a bit more protection from noise and potential covid-19 transmission, in its latest Covid-19 advisory. Nudging the needle on…
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Forum: Tree growing in neglected flat floor
In these days of housing shortages, it seems almost criminal that an apartment owner would allow a unit to lie empty, literally falling apart, then fight tooth and nail to…
Group wants to open more rentals to pet owners
Just a week ago we were on James Valentine’s Afternoons on ABC Radio discussing the plight of renters with pets – a topic we pick up in this week’s podcast.…
JimmyT’s comfort food kitchen: Macaroni cheese
After being shocked to discover Macaroni Cheese described as an “American classic” in a Sydney newspaper I was horrified to discover this calumny repeated by the normally reliable True Brit…
By-law breaches: New links for our new-ish laws
The “new” strata laws in NSW came into effect almost five years ago in 2016. The old CTTT became the “new” NCAT two years prior to that. Since then, at…
How apartments have made us the luxey country
Apartments were once the poor relations of the property market. But now, as Sue Williams discovers, savvy buyers are finding they can get more bang for their luxury bucks in…
Video and webinars reveal smart buyers’ secrets
It’s the biggest purchase and therefore the biggest gamble that most of us will make in our lives … buying a home. And the element of chance seems to take…
Podcast: Pets & renters, prices and owner revolts
This week’s podcast has placed a ban on the C-word … no, not that one, the other one that’s filling our news bulletins on radio and TV and clogging up…
MONA builders to oversee flammable cladding fix
A managing contractor has been appointed to run the NSW State Government’s flammable cladding removal program for apartment blocks, in the face of relatively slow progress and limited uptake by…
Health says multi-unit renos are okay
You’d be forgiven for hoping that, at times of an increasingly out-of-control and potentially deadly virus, our state Health department would be keen to give us clear directions on what…
Forum: Under water but over-insured
It’s not often that you hear people complaining about being over-insured but, hey, this is strata and anything can happen. In a nutshell, an owner installed a nice new timber…
Confusion reigns over blockdown renovations
NSW Health and Fair Trading seem to be struggling to keep up with each other over whether or not renovations are allowed in apartment blocks. According to a Health spokesman…