Forum Replies Created
-
Replies
-
@Austman said:
Indeed there is. In Victoria, OC rules must be registered and you can get a copy from landata: https://www.landata.vic.gov.au/ The cost is currently $7:30.
I have been doing this for more than 12 years now and I learn something new every week. I did not know this. Now I wonder if we have that in NSW?
If you want to be alerted when anyone replies to your posts or responds to this topic, please register and login, then you will be able to subscribe to the topic. The opinions offered in these Forum posts and replies are not intended to be taken as legal advice. Readers with serious issues should consult experienced strata lawyers. NB: Longer threads may spill over to additional pages - look for the numbers on the bottom right, under the last post.
The strata manager can usually really only act as advised by the committee but someone has made a judgement, different from yours, that this was not a serious enough issue to merit emergency attention.
If the strata manager is aware and has decided to do nothing (they will have certain powers to allow them to act in a significant emergency) there’s not much an ordinary owner can do.
I’d say at this stage your best bet is to wait until your next AGM and raise this as a reason why the members of your committee who made this decision should not be re-elected and let the other owners decide.
If you want to be alerted when anyone replies to your posts or responds to this topic, please register and login, then you will be able to subscribe to the topic. The opinions offered in these Forum posts and replies are not intended to be taken as legal advice. Readers with serious issues should consult experienced strata lawyers. NB: Longer threads may spill over to additional pages - look for the numbers on the bottom right, under the last post.
@fcd said:
Actually if each of the villas are on a separate (privately owned) Title then it sounds like you’re dealing with a “dividing fences” matter.The original post states that there are no fences.
There should be an original strata plan that shows the boundaries of common property (delineated by solid black lines). Dig that out and let it be your guide.
If you want to be alerted when anyone replies to your posts or responds to this topic, please register and login, then you will be able to subscribe to the topic. The opinions offered in these Forum posts and replies are not intended to be taken as legal advice. Readers with serious issues should consult experienced strata lawyers. NB: Longer threads may spill over to additional pages - look for the numbers on the bottom right, under the last post.
It’s different in NSW. According to the “Who’s responsible …’ document
Tiles on a boundary wall or floor are the responsibility of the owners corporation. All other tiles are the owners responsibility.
The two exceptions are:
1. The tiles on the 2nd floor of a townhouse that was built prior to 1st July 1974. The tiles on the floor in this case are the Owners responsibility.
2. The tiles were laid by the owner and are subject to a bylawSo while laying a timber floor is a ‘non-major’ renovation, removing the tiles first would require special resolution approval as it is changing common property.
There would be little to stop you laying timber flooring on top of tiles except you’d have to raise the bottoms of all your doors (including cupboards) and you’d have to pay careful attention to noise insulation as timber on tile would be like walking on a xylophone (at least, to the people downstairs).
Don’t try to do this on the cheap. You could end up paying more when you are ordered to remove the timber flooring or, even worse, reinstate the tiles.
If you want to be alerted when anyone replies to your posts or responds to this topic, please register and login, then you will be able to subscribe to the topic. The opinions offered in these Forum posts and replies are not intended to be taken as legal advice. Readers with serious issues should consult experienced strata lawyers. NB: Longer threads may spill over to additional pages - look for the numbers on the bottom right, under the last post.
There’s very few things that are “automatic” in strata law.
Check your by-laws for references to visitors parking or indeed for restrictions on parking on common property. Check your original strata plan for unassigned parking spaces (perhaps for “scramble” parking).
In the absence of any of these, I would move at your next AGM that the spaces be clearly marked as visitor parking and that you include a by-law that defines what a visitor is in terms of parking (no more than three hours at a time, and not overnight … whatever works best for the majority of owners). It would also, of course, forbid residents from using the spaces at any time.
If you want to be alerted when anyone replies to your posts or responds to this topic, please register and login, then you will be able to subscribe to the topic. The opinions offered in these Forum posts and replies are not intended to be taken as legal advice. Readers with serious issues should consult experienced strata lawyers. NB: Longer threads may spill over to additional pages - look for the numbers on the bottom right, under the last post.
Until the owner has sold more than 50 percent of the units, the voting power of their unit entitlement is reduced to one third of the actual figure.
Thereafter, they can vote as, and hold the prescribed number of proxies for each of the units they own.
There are also restrictions the ‘original owner” or developer voting on building defects under Schedule 1, section 15 of the Act
15 DEVELOPER OR LESSOR EXCLUDED FROM VOTES RELATING TO BUILDING DEFECTS
The developer or lessor of a leasehold strata scheme is not entitled to vote, or exercise a proxy vote, on a matter concerning building defects in, or the rectification of building defects in, building work to which Part 11 of this Act applies.
Part 11 of the Act is the whole section relating to building defects.
If you want to be alerted when anyone replies to your posts or responds to this topic, please register and login, then you will be able to subscribe to the topic. The opinions offered in these Forum posts and replies are not intended to be taken as legal advice. Readers with serious issues should consult experienced strata lawyers. NB: Longer threads may spill over to additional pages - look for the numbers on the bottom right, under the last post.
It depends very much on the terms of your contract.
Does it say things that they must do that you can prove they haven’t?
Does it say things they won’t do that they have.
The simplest way to move this forward would be to list in writing all the things that you say haven’t been done and invite the strata manager to tell you why the contract shouldn’t be cancelled.
If they don’t respond, terminate the contract, find a new strata manager and take the issue to Fair Trading if the old strata manager doesn’t play ball.
But bear in mind that the contract is the beginning and end of all this – if the contract hasn’t been breached then you could be stuck with them.
If you want to be alerted when anyone replies to your posts or responds to this topic, please register and login, then you will be able to subscribe to the topic. The opinions offered in these Forum posts and replies are not intended to be taken as legal advice. Readers with serious issues should consult experienced strata lawyers. NB: Longer threads may spill over to additional pages - look for the numbers on the bottom right, under the last post.
Check the venting and seals between apartments, including the spaces at the top of walls.
Also, some more cheaply build apartments have air conditioning that transfers air from one unit to the next.
As far as an expert goes, all I can suggest is that you Google building surveyors and ring around until you find one that has specific experience in this area.
If you want to be alerted when anyone replies to your posts or responds to this topic, please register and login, then you will be able to subscribe to the topic. The opinions offered in these Forum posts and replies are not intended to be taken as legal advice. Readers with serious issues should consult experienced strata lawyers. NB: Longer threads may spill over to additional pages - look for the numbers on the bottom right, under the last post.
OK any entrance door is common property however, while the Owners corp gets to choose when the outside of the door gets painted (and in what colour) the convention is that the inside of the door is the owner’s province (so it can match the rest of their interior decor).
So, I guess you could insist that the owners corp paints the inside of your door – but then they will a) decide if it needs painting and b) what colour it should be painted.
This is what the “who’s responsible” document says:
Walls and doors that are on the boundary of the lot are the responsibility of the owners corporation to maintain. Internal walls and doors are the owner’s responsibility.
Painting doors and gates are part of maintenance – but that has little to do with appearance and everything to do with protecting the door or gate.
If you want to be alerted when anyone replies to your posts or responds to this topic, please register and login, then you will be able to subscribe to the topic. The opinions offered in these Forum posts and replies are not intended to be taken as legal advice. Readers with serious issues should consult experienced strata lawyers. NB: Longer threads may spill over to additional pages - look for the numbers on the bottom right, under the last post.
I would imagine only committee members get to vote on committee decisions. the objections may well be taken into account but wouldn’t have any effect (unless they do these things differently in Qld).
If you want to be alerted when anyone replies to your posts or responds to this topic, please register and login, then you will be able to subscribe to the topic. The opinions offered in these Forum posts and replies are not intended to be taken as legal advice. Readers with serious issues should consult experienced strata lawyers. NB: Longer threads may spill over to additional pages - look for the numbers on the bottom right, under the last post.
It depends what’s agreed at the mediation but normally the Owners Corp would at least be able to approve the audio engineer and you would pay for the test (because it’s all being done for your benefit and no one else’s).
If you want to be alerted when anyone replies to your posts or responds to this topic, please register and login, then you will be able to subscribe to the topic. The opinions offered in these Forum posts and replies are not intended to be taken as legal advice. Readers with serious issues should consult experienced strata lawyers. NB: Longer threads may spill over to additional pages - look for the numbers on the bottom right, under the last post.
Those are the requirements for a landlord wanting access to their rented property. I don’t know if they are applicable to a strata scheme requiring access to a rented property.
But now that I think of it, any tenant in comradeRK’s position could just tell the committee to make their arrangements through the landlord, at which point the rules quoted by Lady P would kick in.
But generally speaking, the time is long overdue for resident owners to treat tenants with a bit more respect. Apartment renters represent more than half the community meaning that, through their rents, they contribute half the levies.
A little respect is all that’s required – and it’s one of those things that when you give it, you get more back.
Give me a long-term renter any day over a opportunist investor who doesn’t give a damn about the block, the community or its residents.
If you want to be alerted when anyone replies to your posts or responds to this topic, please register and login, then you will be able to subscribe to the topic. The opinions offered in these Forum posts and replies are not intended to be taken as legal advice. Readers with serious issues should consult experienced strata lawyers. NB: Longer threads may spill over to additional pages - look for the numbers on the bottom right, under the last post.
OK, I’m not sure exactly what you want here – compensation for the hassle, to punish the committee member for being a tool, to prevent this behaviour in the future or a combination of all three.
First, can you take steps to have a committee member removed? Yes you can (in theory). Under section 238 of the Act (below) NCAT can order a committee member to be removed for “serious misconduct”. I’m not sure this qualifies.
You might however write to the committee and ask that the committee member be counselled about their behaviour and reminded that they do not have the power to order anyone, owners or tenants, to do anything. There are procedures that should be followed and they have not been in this case.
However, you will consider this matter closed and you will not take this any further (as per Section 238 of the Act allows you to) provided that there is a public apology included in the next minutes of the executive committee and you are compensated for the unnecessary expense caused by this committee member’s actions.
You might add that there is an underlying sense in these incidents that tenants have no rights in strata. This is not the case and it’s worth reminding all committee members of that.
So that’s an option – I’m not sure it’s going to help and I doubt if you will get compensation but it might just fire a shot across this committee member’s bows and make him think before he acts up again.
238 ORDERS RELATING TO STRATA COMMITTEE AND OFFICERS
(1) The Tribunal may, on its own motion or on application by an interested person, make any of the following orders:
(a) an order removing a person from a strata committee,
(b) an order prohibiting a strata committee from determining a specified matter and requiring the matter to be determined by resolution of the owners corporation,
(c) an order removing one or more of the officers of an owners corporation from office and from the strata committee.
(2) Without limiting the grounds on which the Tribunal may order the removal from office of a person, the Tribunal may remove a person if it is satisfied that the person has:
(a) failed to comply with this Act or the regulations or the by-laws of the strata scheme, or
(b) failed to exercise due care and diligence, or engaged in serious misconduct, while holding the office.
If you want to be alerted when anyone replies to your posts or responds to this topic, please register and login, then you will be able to subscribe to the topic. The opinions offered in these Forum posts and replies are not intended to be taken as legal advice. Readers with serious issues should consult experienced strata lawyers. NB: Longer threads may spill over to additional pages - look for the numbers on the bottom right, under the last post.
Just a word of caution, if you change your by-laws to permit children to play on common property and they or anyone else is injured or their property is damaged, the owners corp could be liable.
If you just turn a blind eye to it, and don’t change the by-law, then you can always say they shouldn’t have been there in the first place.
I would be tempted to leave things exactly as they are unless the dissenter decides to take it further.
If you want to be alerted when anyone replies to your posts or responds to this topic, please register and login, then you will be able to subscribe to the topic. The opinions offered in these Forum posts and replies are not intended to be taken as legal advice. Readers with serious issues should consult experienced strata lawyers. NB: Longer threads may spill over to additional pages - look for the numbers on the bottom right, under the last post.