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Meanwhile, all they can do is complain and strata sends notices to him.
No, they can pusue Notices to Comply through NCAT, seeking penalties and Tribunal orders. Following that, they can even take him to court for failure to obey Tribunal notices. Sending “warnings” and leaving it at that is a waste of time.
If there’s a problem, send a Notice To Comply on the official form. If the brat ignores it, they should apply to NCAT for the imposition of fines (you don’t need to go through the Fair Trading mediation process) then escalate it until the departure process is accelerated.
This has the double effect of dealing with the immediate problem and letting other residents know that by-law breaches will not be tolerated. Let me stress this one more time: unofficial written warnings are a waste of time. Notices to Comply are both a warning and the absolutely essential first step to having the problem fixed.
They are not a fine because OCs can’t impose fines or penalties, so those reluctant to take action can calm themselves.
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It’s a complex question. If they are being accused personally of something they have done in their role as a committee member, then maybe they would come under the strata committee’s legal umbrella. If they just want to add their lawyer to the team, then that’s their decision and it should probably be at their expense.
Perhaps your best tactic at this stage is to let other owners know that you will be seeking all costs, which might get them to persuade the EC to back down.
Also if the SC loses, all owners, except you, will have to pay, regardless of whether the Tribunal awards costs (which it only does in very specific circumstances).
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Has there ever been a case where an Owners Corporation can force this type of owner to sell their property? Or, at least to re-instate/remove everything they have done?
I have never heard of the former and I doubt if it has ever happened – the right to property ownership is pretty much sacrosanct – but you can get to the same point by religiously enforcing all the by-law breaches that have led to this point, including seeking NCAT orders, until the miscreant wants to move of their own volition.
As for the second part – which is related to the first – the OC has the absolute right to seek orders at NCAT to protect and restore common property and that’s exactly the kind of totally reasonable action that might drive the recalcitrant out of your building (and make sure that whomever they sell to knows the issues have to be fixed).
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All I can see in the Act is a reference to the executive committee being required to elect office-bearers. I can’t see anything that would prevent an agenda item to declare one of those roles vacant then for an election of someone to fill it. On the other hand, I can’t see anything that would specifically permit it.
EC members can, however, be removed from the committee entirely by the vote of a simple majority at a general meeting.
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Make the claim and let the insurers decide whether or not they want to pursue it with your neighbour. Cracked walls or slabs are no job for DIY amateurs.
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The regs say block light, not filter or reduce. You have to wonder why they felt the need to add the reference to privacy – maybe to ensure they cover all or most of the windows? I’d stick with what’s there – provided they comply with by-laws about appearance.
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If the council clearly ordered the developer to install specific inappropriate plants, then surely it’s the council’s liability.
Otherwise it’s the developer’s responsibility – even if they were fulfilling a request from the owners (who had no standing before the first AGM).
The council not telling the developer not to use certain plants doesn’t make the council responsible, IMHO.
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It sounds like the OP is asking if the council isn’t liable for not advising the developer correctly. My view, it’s up to the developer to check and if they planted the wrong plants, then it’s a defect. If they did so because the council told them to, it’s up to them to take it up with the council.
Either way, the owners should not be paying a cent towards this.
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If the garage door is common property then the owners needs strata committee permission before they change it (by adding an opening device). That permission should come subject to a commitment by the owner to maintain and repair the door and the mechanism.
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Make a claim directly with the strata insurer and see what happens.
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Would it make any difference if the pay-per-use machines were already there? Common use laundries are fairly rare these days. All laundries use water and electricity – should that be provided free to owners who don’t have washing machines in their units?
It’s up to the owners collectively to decide what they want in their laundry and, indeed, their gym. And I think the ruling you referred to is correct in that, since the original specifications didn’t state that the laundry would have washing machines installed for the free use of owners, then there is no requirement to do so.
This is an odd one. Previous complaints about common property laundries have been about owners putting their own machines in but using common property electricity and water. This is usually resolved by installing coin-op machines.
The advantage of that is that internal laundries can be used for much-needed storage, for instance.
You may find that all it takes for a laundry to be referred to as such is the provision of water, electricity, drainage and a waterproof floor.
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Thanks JT. I don’t think tradies can automatically be included. They quote, get a work order, do the job, and get paid. They don’t get involved in the whole strata decision making process.
The point I was trying to make was that it isn’t just men and women in business suits that are involved. This is low-level corruption (allegedly) and calling it by another name seems like an exaggeration which doesn’t help your case.
A person just doesn’t walk into a police station and admit to a crime they just committed. They’re certainly not going to do so at a strata meeting.
That is a false analogy. Of course people don’t walk into police stations and admit to crimes – then they will be arrested charged.
But if you ask someone at a strata meeting if certain things happened on a nod and a wink, and if so, why, they might say: “Look, we’re all doing it so it evens out in the end.” And they might have a point.
I suggested you raise the issue by asking a question. I didn’t expect you to get written confessions but you’d have started a process that might have consequences for any miscreants.
There are no stratakops and the Fraud Squad would not be interested. You have to do the heavy lifting yourself, and that begins with asking pertinent questions in a reasonable tone, which you are perfectly entitled to do.
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If there was no general meeting at which the special levy was agreed, then the special levy is invalid. If there was a general meeting then there should be a copy of the agenda and the minutes. Strata searches – turning up at the strata manager’s office and looking through the files – costs $30 or thereabouts.
If you don’t have a strata manager and the strata committee can’t produce a copy of the agenda and minutes, go to Fair Trading and ask for mediation.
If you feel the building is seriously dysfunctional, or there is clear evidence that fraud is involved, apply to NCAT for the appointment of a compulsory manager (but be careful what you wish for).
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OK, it’s hardly whitecollar crime, especially when you consider that a lot of these dodgy deals are done with and by tradies.
If you have a genuine concern, identify the payments for work that you think were illicit and send a letter to the strata committee and strata manager asking them to verify that these were legitimate payments.
If you get no reply withing two months, a rejection, or an unsatisfactory response, commence proceedings for mediation at Fair Trading with a view to taking the matter to NCAT. Fair Trading mediation is free but it is a prerequisite for Tribunal action.
If there have been dodgy deals, then those responsible may just refund the amounts rather than have their reputations trashed by exposure at Fair Trading and NCAT hearings.
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