Kaindub said:
It’s unlikely a bylaw transferring Windows to owner property would be legal or upheld by NCAT unless all owners agreed. That means all 4 owners , not just the usual 75%, would have to agree to the bylaw.
This point has been made at least four times already. This kind of arrangement is not common but neither is it unusual. If four owners all want the same outcome, then there’s no obstacle.
If the windows of the affected lot owners are in a state of disrepair, then they must be fixed. That’s the obligation of the OC.
This point has also been made already.
If there are insufficient funds, then a special levy needs to be raised. It’s no defence of the OC to claim lack of money.
Which would mean the people who want to fix their windows taking the others to NCAT to force them to pay for something they don’t want. Terrific stuff for community spirit in a block of four!
But it seems to me that two owners want the Windows replaced largely on aesthetic grounds. In that case the owners can pay for it themselves.
Where does it say or imply “largely aesthetic grounds”? The original poster only refers to repairs. Also, you are aguing against yourself. As you say, the windows are common property, so the owners who want them fixed can’t just go ahead and do it at their own expense without risking a breach notice aor having to “unfix” them down the track.
A bylaw may not be necessary, if the OC decides to own and maintain the Windows in the future. The other owners and the OC are getting replacement windows at no cost, putting off a cost of the future. And if the Windows are installed correctly, the maintenance in the medium term will be less than if they were not replaced.
Eh??? The owners corp already owns the windows. What you seem to be saying is that the “Fixers” can go ahead and repair the windows at their own expense and the OC will then take over the future maintenance. OK, and the only legally binding instrument for doing that is a special resolution by-law. They can’t just agree at a general meeting (well, they can but it would have no legal standing).
Also, when the other flats get round to fixing their windows, what’s to prevent the “Waiters” from saying, “hey our windows are common property so you need to contribute”. Again, avoiding that would require a unanimous special resolution by-law as described in my previous post.
The owners paying for the Windows may feel aggrieved in the future if the other Windows are replaced by the OC at the OC cost.
Well they would, wouldn’t they! That’s why you need a legally binding instrument like a unanimous special resolution under which each owner agrees to take over the repair and maintenance of their own windows. And if one owner doesn’t wwant to do that, then no one can.
Final word. An owner does not own the common property. An owner may be dissatisfied with the style, colour or aesthetic of the common property but one bought into the strata on an “as it is” basis. To expect that the common property can be changed to suit their tastes is folly.
Yes, but a 75 percent vote at a meeting can decide to change the look of common property, and people can be persuaded; you don’t have to accept the status quo.
And I’ll decide the “Final word”, thanks.