NBN coming to your block – like it or not
In about a month we will know whether we are going to get the gee-whiz, super dooper National Broadband Network favoured by Mr Rudd, or the state-of-the-art (until it becomes…
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Backyard blitz on granny flats
What if you discovered that your cheap-as-chips rented home in the backyard of someone else’s house, wasn’t just “unofficial’ but was unsafe and technically unfit for human habitation? We are…
Granny Flats – Some Background
Granny flats Dependent Person Units (DPUs) seemed like a great way to ease the rental shortage and fit more people into our bulging suburbs. But this aspect of the affordable…
NBN – a no-brainer for apartments
The National Broadband Network may be a bit of a political football right now but it is a reality for a lot of Australian residents, with more getting connected very…
Deaths lead to gas heater safety alert
Landlords and homeowners have been urged to have their gas heaters professionally serviced regularly, following an inquest into the deaths of two small boys in Victoria. Meanwhile tenants should ask…
Press Release: Landlords do the right thing
Three out of four Aussie tenants are happy with their landlords Wednesday, 31 July 2013: Contradicting the common stereotype of the nightmare landlord, a recent survey* by domain.com.au has found that…
Call to dob in dodgy floor sellers
Strata owners given false information on timber or tiled floors – which can lead to them having to rip up or re-carpet their new floors – are being urged to…
Agent’s hot air over mouldy flat
When Flat Chat reader Melissaimee told her rental agent that there was terrible mould in her flat, he had a brilliant idea … she and her partner should leave a…
Strata smokers face $5,500 fines
Smokers can be banned from puffing away inside their own homes if it affects other residents, and face fines of up to $5,500 if they don’t quit. That’s the legal…
Why your sinking fund costs you money
It used to be that, if you hadn’t squirreled away sufficient cash in your sinking fund, special levies were the only way of raising finance for big projects. But Lannock…
Out-of-date by-laws mean pet bans will stay
Dog and cat owners in apartments and townhouses need to sit and stay. It could take decades for the proposed changes to the standard by-laws to make any difference to…
Strata voting in different states
I have said many time in these pages that when you look at the different strata legislation in different parts of Australia, you could easily reach the conclusion that in…