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[Fiveaces]

Hi everyone,

 

Is the following by-law as uncommon as it sounds?

 

We’ve been advised of a by-law regarding a property we’re looking at purchasing that has been described as unusual and uncommon. It has been adopted in the past few months and seems to me about shifting maintenance responsibility of items to individual lot owners in an attempt to reduce a $200K deficit in the strata’s administrative fund.

 

In short it is:

• Drafted from LPI memorandum regarding maintenance responsbilities for schemes.
• Intent being any fixture or fitting contains within the lot or any appliance that only services one lot is the maintenance responsibility of the lot owner.
• Any item specified that is afforded cover for damage due to an insurable event by the OC insurance policy shall still be protected by that insurance.
• The OC shall retain responsibility for structural elements, integrity and general safety. Waterproofing shall also remain OC responsibility except where a lot owner has undertaken a renovation.
• The OC deems it innapropriate to repair, maintain, replace or renew any of the following.

  • All decorative finishes within a lot (cornices, floor tiles, wall tiles etc)
  • Bathroom and laundry fixtures (taps, internal pipe work etc)
  • Kitchen fixtures and fittings (taps, internal pipe work, exhaust fans and external ventilation points etc)
  • Floor coverings (carpet etc)
  • Balcony (all tiles etc)
  • Electrical fitings (electrical sockets etc)
  • Doors (any locking device etc)

Internal pipe work is defined as any pipe work that only services one lot, whether located on a common property or internal wall.

A lot of this we’re not concerned about, if we broke a tile we would expect to have to repair it. Our concern would be however that if a pipe leaks and is in an external wall but servicing only our lot, we would now be responsible for chipping the wall to get access for repair.

 

Is this correct and is it unusual?

 

Thanks,

Mark

 

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