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I can’t see where the forum keymaster got the idea you have initiated mediation but if you haven’t then do that for fun.
Your comment is unwarranted. The OP said he’d referred the matter to Fair Trading. What else would he have applied to Fair Trading for? A bus pass? People approach Fair Trading for advice and get none, then they apply for mediation as it is a mandatory prerequisite for action at NCAT (where he clearly intends to take it). Also, this is not this particular poster’s first rodeo, trust me.
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Generally, it’s up to the person or body that’s disputing the status quo to prove that it is erroneous. Otherwise you’d have every man and his dog claiming bits of property that weren’t theirs. You would expect the OC check the facts when they were challenged before they started hiring lawyers to defend something that might be indefensible.
On the other hand, if they had information that contradicted accepted views, you’d expect them to pursue that issue and for the individual owner concerned to start looking for evidence to the contrary.
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(a) Am I correct to read the reply as a threat? If so, what are my options?
It certainly sounds like a threat and your options are varied:
- ignore it and press on;
- abandon your request for mediation (all you can ask from Fair Trading);
- moderate your claim so that it doesn’t fall foul of the “costs” conditions at NCAT, should it ever get that far
(b) If the OC does “seek costs”, I assume they will have to prove that my actions are “spurious” and lodge an application with NCAT for costs? True?
If this is about seeking legal costs for responding to a request for mediation at Fair Trading, that feels like a step too far, since the OC is not required to participate in a mediation that it hasn’t initiated.
If you are referring to subsequent action at NCAT, as this factsheet from Legalvision explains, the bases for NCAT awarding costs are limited and discretionary, however, one of the conditions is that the case was “hopeless, frivolous, vexatious or misconceived”.
On the other hand, if the case does go to NCAT and the OC loses, you should not be charged for any share of the legal expenses through your levies.
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The OC insurer has advised payment will be made to OC, not to me directly. Its then up to the OC to direct the funds to me. I have a feeling this is not going to happen.
I which case, the same lawyer who helped you get a better settlement will presumably write a letter to the strata committee requesting payment or face a case at a local court for which the owners corp will also be charged all legal costs.
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First, if the fire safety inspector only “thought” there was asbestos in the door, then the easiest way to check is to temporarily remove the peephole viewer and look at the door’s core.
But then we get to the issue of the peephole and, paint and brass numbering. These are clearly non-standard, meaning someone has changed the door, with or without owners corp permission.
So your next step may be to ask the committee chair to show you the relevant paperwork to indicate that the door is no longer “body corp” (are you in Queensland?) responsibility.
It may be that the previous owner sought permission to make the changes you described and received it on condition that they took responsibility for the changes.
If that permission was given under a special resolution, then you acquired responsibility when you bought the unit.
If it wasn’t, then the door was altered without permission, and you are looking at a legal wrangle with either the committee (the OC is still responsible for the door) or the previous owner who did not disclose that there might be an issue with the door.
If you insist that the OC replaces the door, and they turn out to be responsible, they probably only need to replace it with a standard door painted the same colour as all the others and may well deny permission for replacement of the peephole and brass numbers.
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This is hardly the place, in my opinion, to be debating well-established science with people who have their heads in the sand.
I thought long and hard before approving the original post. But, as you can see, Sir H, there are plenty of Flatchatters who agree with your thoughts on global warming (myself included). I try not to censor comments to the Forum, preferring to leave it to other contributors to express alternative views. So far, the people who agree with you outnumber the single climate denier by 5 to 1.
This became “the place” for these discussions when Julie McLean said zero emissions targets were a challenge for strata schemes that ought to be addressed now. I would hope that one result of this particular debate being opened will give our readers the ammunition to deal with the denialists and backsliders on their committees.
The denialist chatter largely occurs in the echo chamber of their own forums. I think (or at least hope) by revisiting the facts, here, we empower and energize the science-based views so that strata owners and residents can shoot down the nay-sayer opinions when they inevitably intrude into real-world discussions about spending strata finances on emission reduction programs.
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I published the above post in a desire to allow all opinions, regardless of how blinkered. Are polar ice caps not melting, then? Are sea levels not rising? And as for Australia’s limited effect on the global picture, don’t let perfect be the enemy of good. Tell me, who was it who designed the structure of Mascot and Opal Towers, not to mention the Tasman Bridge? Engineers or environmentalists?
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It may be there are more serious issues than the screen doors potentially being an obstruction for residents fleeing a fire.
If the access doors are fire-rated then having screen doors installed may encourage residents to leave their fire doors open, rendering them useless.
And if you think that’s overstating the issue, check out this story from last year which shows the devastating effect of one door in one apartment being left open while the resident rescued his children from a fire. How bad was it? How about 19 dead and 32 hospitalised. If the door had been closed, most of those other residents would have survived.
Maybe your front door isn’t part of your fire protection. But if it is, then a screen door is both dangerous and redundant.
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owners can’t just nominate someone to be on the SC. They have to nominate themselves.
Not quite right. Generally speaking, in NSW, owners can nominate anyone – owner or not – to be on the strata committee, although that person must agree to the nomination. Most owners can nominate themselves except if they are co-owners, in which case they have to be nominated by the other co-owner(s) or another owner. There are other exceptions for non-financial members or otherwise excluded members. It’s complicated, and ridiculously so.
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If the area repaired was common property, you should never have been charged anything, let alone interest. If you are sure this was a common property repair, write to the strata manager and strata committee asking for full restitution of the money, plus an apology in the next strata committee minutes. Failure to do so will result in legal action for which all the owners (but not you) will have to bear the cost.
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It depends on the style and design. Some toilets don’t touch the floor. Some are on pedestals that sit on the tiles but don’t touch the waterproofing. A more critical issue might potentially be removal of the old unit disrupting the waterproofing.
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Also the chair has a casting vote if tied.
NB: For other readers, this only applies in Victoria and some smaller territories.
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You should probably have sought some sort of approval under that standard strata laws on renovations that were in force at that time.
Having missed that boat, the most you can do now is offer to take ongoing responsibility, for yourself and future owners of your lot, through a special resolution under terms that are mutually agreeable.
Or, if there have been no problems evident thus far, you are probably OK just to keep quiet.
However, some future potential purchaser, if they do a thorough strata search, might see there have been unapproved renovations and use that as leverage to lower the purchase price.
Your call.
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The spa/decking/sauna I would think would be the owners responsibility to move as that is not a body corporate maintenance responsibility.
This is a circular argument. The strata manager “thinks” it’s the lot owner’s responsibility, therefor it’s the lot owner’s responsibility.
I would be asking for less thinking and more facts. Ask for some documentation to prove that this doesn’t come under common property or “fixtures and fittings” which, in NSW at least, are part of owners corporation responsibility. May be different in Qld but it’s a starting point.
The strata manager is, for obvious reasons, keen to make life easy for his bosses – that strata committee – by passing costs on to individual owners. That doesn’t make it right.
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