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There are real problems for OC’s that attempt to regulate what residents / owners do within their own lots.
It is the EFFECTS of resident activity that should be regulated, rather than resident ACTIVITY. eg a By-law controlling smoke (or smell) drift from balconies rather than banning barbecues. That’s why we can have a By-law controlling the behaviour of pets, but not their existence / keeping etc.
In addition a by-law control could also be warranted on safety grounds. If gas bottles are banned, the case has to be made that they represent a hazard and, if charging e-scooters within apartments is to be banned, the safety case has to be made likewise. There would seem to be a prima facie case for both. Safety is after all just minimising the risk of those impacts on other residents that would properly be afforded by-law protection.
I can’t help but feel that making the argument for banning the use of barbecues to reduce the risk of smell / smoke drift would be too long a bow to draw.
A typical Strata Management Agreement sets out the areas of delegation to the strata manager and whether this is Full delegation or only delegation Subject to Instructions.
Even if it is Full delegation, then the Agreement will contain a clause to the following effect….
“Nothing in this Agreement will prevent the owners corporation or the strata committee from performing all or any of the agreed services or additional services”The Agreement may delegate the roles of Chair or Secretary / Public Officer in full, but these office bearers retain paramount power and can exercise it whenever appropriate.In other words they can tell the strata manager “where to get off” – the problem is that they may not do so.Does your strata management contract have in it a provision amongst its “Schedule B Charges” along the lines…. Levy Arrears Collection – Issue letter of Demand / Refer lot owner debt for legal action Etc. $xxx Chargeable to Lot owner ? Most would.
I guess Office Bearers and Committee Members keen to do the right thing and ensure the efficient payment of levies might be gratified to think that the OC isn’t going to have to pay these collection charges, BUT on what basis can the owners corporation oblige an individual owner to personally pay the strata manager’s fees ?
Individual lot owners are NOT party to the SM agreement and s 86 of the Act only obliges recalcitrant owners to pay the “owners corporation’s reasonable expenses” if the debt is recovered by means of a Tribunal Order or a Court.
Where is the lot owner’s obligation to pay the strata manager for sending them a letter of demand etc ? I don’t see it…I see only another revenue stream for strata managers. It has gone on for years.
What a great read over my morning coffee! Thank you so much for sharing Sorrel!
This danger is also very real (with greater heat intensity)for L-ion batteries in electric cars.
Apartment dwellers have a real problem here as to my knowledge, underground carparks are unable to safely contain these fires. In recent discussions with Architects who work in this area they have mentioned this – and there appears to be very little media on this issue.
The public would appear uninformed. The consequences to persons living in a single dwelling with a downstairs carpark that houses an Electric car and charging station would also appear to be fatal.
I recall there was a recent EV battery fire in an outside carpark adjacent to Sydney airport control tower that consumed three ? adjacent vehicles. The firefighters on this site responded very quickly but could not effectively control the fire.
I would appreciate any comments.
Would this also apply to a boundary fence that needs repair?
You missed out:
“Stomping and banging against hard surfaces common with your lot”.
This was really helpful for me too!
A unit in our strata obviously sub-leases a bedroom, but only the main tenants are on the rental agreement.
https://legislation.nsw.gov.au/view/html/inforce/current/act-2015-050#sec.258 was pretty clear that both the lessees and sub-lessees details need to be disclosed for the Strata Roll.
As a bit of a general guide, here is the link to the landmark Qld decision from late last year in which second-hand smoke was declared a ‘hazard’ (there is a specific legislative reference to hazard under Qld strata legislation). The adjudicator’s discussion about the objective basis for saying this might be relevant more generally, in other States: http://www.austlii.edu.au/cgi-bin/viewdoc/au/cases/qld/QBCCMCmr/2021/596.html?context=1;query=artique;mask_path=au/cases/qld/QBCCMCmr
Amazing! Thank you!
And yes, already keeping a detailed log and videos of all this nonsense.
Hi Geooff@YoungSt
I’d suggest you have a look at your insurance policy to see what you can claim with regard to the floating floor board damage. I don’t think from your post that the pipe burst but if it did it would be worth discussing with you SM about it being a insurable event.
Defect Warranty is 2yrs for minor and 6 years for major (in NSW), this link has more information (to understand what is considered minor / major etc):
My understanding if the you’re still under warranty it will only be considered a defect if its not compliant (to code) and / or poor workmanship ie if its been otherwise damaged or not maintained it will be your responisibility.
Hi Moxie
Unsure when you say agent if you’re referring to Strata Manager or Property Manager.
If you’re an owner, this should be simply writing to request the motion for the AGM via the scheme’s secretary. Just ensure that you give sufficient time, although it sounds like you have plenty of time at present still find out the timings around this, as having time to plan for major repairs to common property is ideal I know our scheme starts preparing quotes / budgeting around 3 months prior to the AGM.
As you’ve had no response from the strata manager / property manager I’d suggest as a next step you contact the strata committee (if you’re tenant cc the landlord’s agent) outlining the issue, the impact it has on you / other residents and what you’d like seen done to get some dialogue on the matter.
Failing the above it it’s a common property repair issue, you may want to request mediation via Fair Trading. https://www.fairtrading.nsw.gov.au/help-centre/online-tools/apply-for-strata-mediation
Hi Ziggy
No problem, and apologies I was meaning to exclude the reference to employees and then included it!
Anyhow, I do agree that employees shouldn’t be considered a visitor. In our by-laws we have a length of stay included as permissible in our visitor parking. So, as Jimmy said you need to think about what’s reflective of your SP, and the time period determines what’s fair and reasonable for those who may come to visit on a regular basis.