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It’s a bummer, OK. But I wonder how much it would cost to build a timber and steel platform for the bins next to the ramp (rather than a major concrete construction). Somebody somewhere will have a smart solution to this so hang in there and don’t give up on getting the bins moved (without losing any sleep over it, though).
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Best of luck with that. I think rather than asking them to forward it to the gardeners, I'd have been just asking them to pay it. If they want to take it out of their insurance or pursue the gardeners, that's their business and not your problem.
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No, I think you do have grounds – they said there was no infestation and it sounds like there is. But check with Tenants NSW before you do anything.
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I think the MINORS (PROPERTY AND CONTRACTS) ACT 1970 covers this – but I'm not a lawyer so it's all just words to me.
However, any Owners Corporation that allows an under-18 to be a voting member of its EC deserves whatever it gets. There are some super-smart kids out there who may be property owners … but, to paraphrase the Beastie Boys, let them fight for the right to participate.
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I don't know how many times we get this issue and I wish the Institute of Strata Titles Managementor some other body would get the message out to the strata managers who don't get it.
It's really quite simple – a failure by the EC to maintain common property has caused damage to your property. The repairs to your property have caused further damage (to the paint work). Therefor they have to pay for returning it to its normal state.
Yes, normally the paintwork inside your home is your responsibility but not when it's been damaged by the Owners Corporation.
They did the damage to the paintwork – they pay for it to be reinstated. It couldn't be simpler. If your strata manager is a member of the ISTM they can call them up and confirm this. If your strata manager isn't a member of ISTM, sack them. They sound like cowboys and are probably responsible for the problem getting so bad in the first place.
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This is clearly a problem in the building and not just your apartment. The Owners Corporation and/or Executive Committee should be getting the whole block de-roached but will they do so at your behest? Probably not. So you have to get your landlord and/or agent to put them under serious pressure.
Firstly, you need to make a polite call to the agent requesting a reduction in rent backdated to when the infestation was first reported due to the fact that you were misled in the condition report.
This may be the only way to get the landlord to do what they should be doing anyway, which is hassling the Executive Committee to spend some money of resolving this issue. By the way, the landlord would have a good case for compensation for loss of income from either their insurers or the Owners Corporation. If you meet any resistance from the agent – and you will – contact Tenants NSW and they will advise you how to pursue this, including the rent reduction, through Fair Trading. Click HERE to get their details.
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Last question first. The standard proxy form as issued by Fair Trading says this:
The appointment cannot have effect for more than 12 months or 2 consecutive annual general meetings, whichever is the greater.
So if you are between the first and second AGMs for which you were given the proxy and and it's been less than a year since you got it, it can still be used. They can't give it to you for two years – just two AGMs. Otherwise, the only thing to stop you is if the owner assigned another proxy to someone else or turned up to the meeting in person.
An EC can overturn a decision of a previous EC – but not a decision of the Owners Corporation at a general meeting.
Regarding the same issue coming up again and again, you can propose an amendment for the EGM that this matter not be revisited by the EC before the next AGM. If the Owners Corporation agrees to this, then the Chairman must rule any attempts to revisit this again 'out of order'.
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I’m going to leave this to any lawyers who might be reading this but I do note that in the section of the Strata Act regarding the OC’s right to enter a lot in an emergency, they are responsible for any damage caused by their contractors in effecting emergency repairs.
I think your strata manager is offering you an opinion backed up by … what? Does anyone have a definitive answer?
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This is what the Act says:
Can an owners corporation enter property in order to carry out work?
(1) An owners corporation may, by its agents, employees or contractors, enter on any part of the parcel for the purpose of carrying out the following work:
(a) work required to be carried out by the owners corporation in accordance with this Act,
(b) work required to be carried out by the owners corporation by a notice served on it by a public authority,
(c) work required to be carried out by the owners corporation by an order under this Act.
(2) An owners corporation may, by its agents, employees or contractors, enter on any part of the parcel for the purpose of determining whether any work is required to be carried out by the owners corporation in accordance with this Act.
(3) In an emergency, the owners corporation may enter any part of the parcel for those purposes at any time.
(4) In a case that is not an emergency, the owners corporation, may enter any part of the parcel for those purposes with the consent of any occupier of that part of the parcel or, if the occupier does not consent, in accordance with an order of an Adjudicator under section 145.
(5) A person must not obstruct or hinder an owners corporation in the exercise of its functions under this section.
Maximum penalty: 2 penalty units.
(6) An owners corporation is liable for any damage to a lot or any of its contents caused by or arising out of the carrying out of any work, or the exercise of a power of entry, referred to in this section unless the damage arose because the owners corporation was obstructed or hindered.
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It's common practice, for sure, but it's by no means universal or obligatory and it's certainly less prevalent than it once was.
Taking commission form insurers has long been a way of some strata managers boosting their income from buildings. To be fair, Strata Management is one of those industries where the customers often don't fully appreciate the value for money that they are getting for the services provided and when SMs try to charge for it, there's always a cowboy outfit hovering around, offering lower rates. What they don't say is that their service may also be considerably reduced.
Simple economics would suggest that what you gain on unpaid commissions, you lose on added fees but that's not always the case. Your strata manager should have the contacts to be able to find the best insurer for your building at the best rate.
How would you feel if they then offered you better insurance coverage for lower premiums and still took their commission?
The problem arises when an SM is nudging you towards an insurer who's offering you less coverage for more money. Eventually, you have to do your homework and see what's the best deal, regardless of commissions.
That said, I would rather work with a strata manager who didn't take commission. But if they did, and were the best choice for the building, and the insurance coverage was value for money, I'd still go with them.
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I'm with you on this. The gardener was acting on behalf of the Owners Corp so they should pay and it should come out of their insurance. Seems pretty clear cut to me.
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Hi Cobra
I think we can safely say that the Owners Corporation (Body Corporate) has to pay for both the replacement of the tiles and for the paintwork. Even if the water leaks weren't their fault, they are their responsibility.
Your EC and/or strata manager may tell you the the paint on your walls is your responsibility – which is true … but not if someone else damages it. This is one of the most common misconceptions in the business so don't be surprised if they tell you you have to fix the paintwork yourself. But the fact remains, they are responsible for the problem so they are responsible for the damaged paintwork and they have to pay for the remedy.
On the question of the tiles, your issue will arise when it comes to replacing like for like – a little flexibility in this area will probably lead to a quicker satisfactory outcome for all concerned.
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The key is to be organised and committed. Get some like-minded owners together and get to work.
First of all, talk to local real estate agents about the difference it would make to values of properties in your building – both in terms of sale and rents – if the building was smartened up and run properly.
Then get a hold of the strata roll and write to every owner, non residents especially, quoting these people extensively, telling them how much the continuing mismanagement of the building is costing them.
If you can, include pictures of some of the worst examples of neglect and bad management.
Include your own proposals for improving the building and something that says the current incumbents have been given a chance time and again and have allowed the building to be run down. (NB: Don’t name names, it will just get you into trouble you don’t need).
Also include Proxy forms which you can download from a link on the “Essential Links” page on this website. If you can afford it, include stamped addressed envelopes.
Talk to people either personally or on the phone, everyone has an gripe in strata so listen and promise them that things ar going to change.
It’s a simple fact of strata life that the chairs of owners corporations are given proxies by people who don’t know them, and have little idea of how the building is being run or even looks. However, if you tell them they are losing money, they will get interested enough to change things.
Try if possible to make this NOT about personalities and more about problems that aren’t being addressed. Ask for the other owners support in calling an EGM to sack the current EC and elect a new one that is more interested in maintaining the building. When you have the 25 percent of unit entitlements that you need to call an EGM and the 50 percent of votes, including proxies, to change the Executive Committee, start the process.
And be careful what you wish for … taking control of the EC is one thing, running a clearly dysfunctional building is entirely another.
By the way, if the strata manager is obstructive by, for instance, refusing to let you see the strata roll – he has a vested interest in protecting the status quo – explain to him that things are about to change whether he likes it or not and he can choose either to be part of the problem or part of the solution. His decision will not be forgotten when the new EC is installed.
There is another route you could take which would be to ask the CTTT to appoint a manager to take over the duties of the EC but this is such a tricky and unreliable process – with no guarantee of a desirable outcome – that I would only recommend it in the most extreme circumstances.
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mrsmaker said:
Are there rules for a Strata Manager dealing with dedicated levies? We were levied, 2 years ago for carpet installation in the common areas.
We have been recently levied again, for the same amount, $5000, for the same carpet..it has never been purchased and laid.
The Strata Manager said that she used the previous levy funds to pay bills. No executives were informed or asked about using the dedicated carpet levy money.
Are there any rules for Strata Managers re the spending of dedicated levies?I fear we may be getting a wee bit off topic. The stuff from BB (previous posting) is interesting but it’s essentially about transferring money from the sinking fund to the admin fund and back. If the carpet money went into the sinking fund, then, yes, that would be relevant but I’m not sure it did.
The question is, was the Strata manager right to spend money specifically raised to replace the carpet on other stuff. I don’t think there are specific regulations that cover that except an umbrella principle that the strata manager should only do what the Owners Corporation or Executive Committee has asked them to do.
However, one of the things that the OC asks the strata manager to do is pay the building’s bills and it sounds as if there was a shortfall in the budget that required those carpet funds to be used for other purposes. That could be caused by anything from a sudden rise in costs to an unexpected drop in revenue (with more residents than usual getting behind on their levies) or both.
At the very least, there seems to be a failure of communication and the strata manager should have made it clear where the carpet money was going and why, at the time it was spent. There also seems to be an urgent need to review the building’s accounts.
If you are running your admin and sinking funds so dry that your sinking fund doesn’t even have enough in it to pay $5000 for a carpet, you may have much more serious problems that a non-communicative strata manager.
Do you have a ten-year sinking fund plan in place (as required by law)? Is it being adequately resourced?
Sounds like it’s time your executive committee and strata manager had a long chat about the finances of the building, where the money is going, where it’s coming from and a few more financial facts of strata life.
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