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If you need to go to a DA, then it can’t be a simple renovation for a strata. And given the level of reports and plans you mention, it must be some renovation.
Im sure your architect would be capable of project managing your renovation and getting you through the red tape.
For people unfamiliar with the building process the whole exercise looks very disjointed.
Jordan
thelong narrative you provided does not clarify the issues you want help with.
Can you state clearly what you perceive the problem to be. Maybe reference to the areas of the strata act you think are in play.
It looks to me that your situation covers two properties. One is your strata block and an adjoining block which is not strata titled. They share some common infrastructure. If that’s the case then your strata block is self governing and only owners of thst block can manage it.
The shared infrastructure should be covered by a separate legal instrument that’s called a community title. Does such an instrument exist?
Going to offer an alternative view to JT.
Any person at the meeting can ask who is eligible to vote at the meeting . That would require the chair to declare all proxies received.
The proxy form is a legal document. Therefore it needs to be correctly filled out. That means the lot owners name needs to match the strata roll, as the lot number also. If there are two or more owners, all need to be listed and sign.
The strata manager can’t alter any proxy, even if he knows it’s incorrectly done. That’s because the person(s) signing the document don’t know what has been altered.
For the corporate owner, the signatory should be the company secretary. In company law, unless there is an officer specifically appointed to sign documents, the secretary has that function.
As for signatures. There are many people who have illegible signatures. You have to accept what is provided. If it does become contentious, you would need to compare the signature on the proxy with a signature that’s verified as the person named. I don’t know how you would do that short of a court order.
Before you get too carried away, do the simple sums and work out whether the vote would be overturned if the proxies were discounted. There’s no point in winning the battle and losing the war.
Being a former landlord, I would find your letter amusing.
whilst you try and inject some personality into the process, the sad reality is that the landlord/ letting agent is concerned whether you can pay and whether you will keep the place in good repair.For me there are a couple of red flags
You’re moving across the country. Will you hate Brisbane and want to moveback home.
Never rented before. Lack of rental references. You’ll need to supply some really credible references to support you’re a good guy.
Starting a new job. Will it work out or not and then you can’t pay your rent.
I believe you’re a credible prospective tenant, but you need to overcome the above red flags.
Dont try and set up a rental remotely. You’ll have more success by landing in Brisbane, renting short term accomodation (hostel, boarding house) and start looking from there.
Just my view. Others may advise differently.
The previous two posters did not mention that a reassessment of the strata will be required. That involves a surveyor to draw up new strata plans that include your additions, a new valuation of the unit entitlements , getting the motion passed to alter the strata scheme, and r hen registration of the scheme.
It’s all at the cost of the owner.
It’s not impossible and I’m certain it’s been done by a determined owner.
But you need to go 8n with eyes wide open, be aware of all the costs and the hurdles you have to jump.
As the previous poster said, you need to make sure that all owners are supportive and remain so for the duration.
Remember that the new strata plan and revaluation occur after you have finished the build. You don’t want it to go pear shaped at that stage.
Just consider whether this is a vanity project or whether the build will add value to your property. (The answer is that it adds no value because you will pay the OC the increase in value) It may be easier to just purchase a property with the views you seek.
Unfortunately the act does not provide any legal sanctions for such behaviour.
Has the committee had a talk with this person? I suspect that as you mention that they are bullies, it’s probably going to fall on deaf ears.
Perhaps work out why this person is behaving this way. Bullying is usually the result of other issues. Maybe they just want to be important.
Point out to this person thst the only person(s) allowed to communicate the official strata message is the secretary or the strata manager. You could threaten them with reporting them to the privacy commissioner as they are using private information (addresses and emails) for spamming owners.
Finally, be vigilant. Every time this person sends a communication, send out immediately a message saying to disregard this persons message. You can have acstandard message preprepared. Do it every time and hopefully the miscreant will tire of his game and eventually cease.
As always, you need to read the contract that was signed.
The term will be clearly in the contract.
Either party can terminate a contract provided certain conditions are met. In the case of the strata manager , and in the case of a multi year contract, they are required to give written notice a specified amount of time before the date they want to terminate.Also the standard SCA contract has a standard clause that provides for the remuneration to increase yearly . The increase is specified but the standard contract is 5%.
In the matter of the contract, the applicable law is the one of contracts, save that the SSMA overrides when it comes to the length of the term.
A contract should specify the start date, the length of the contract or a finish date and the consideration. If there is ANY ambiguity about the above then the contract could be considered invalid by a court.
It pays to have someone familiar with contract law advise when signing a strata management contract. It’s not really the realm of strata managers. They usually just put up the standard SCA contract, which in my opinion is flawed in a few areas. ( but I am not a lawyer).
I think Jimmy is confusing a few things.
The SSMA states thst the SM has to give the OC three months notice prior to the end of the agreement. (I think the intention of the legislators was to alert OC thst the contract was ending and provide time to look for a new SM or decide what to do. In my experience most SM do not give this notice).
I recall that there is such a clause in the SCA agreement. The reality is that this is a nothing clause. By the SSMA a management agreement ends on the date stated in the agreement, and can be no longer than 3 years.
The SM cannot claim they did not get notice because the date of the end of the contract is in black and white.
The OC does not need to terminate the contract in these cases as the contract extinguishes normally.
My understanding of the current regulations is that residential building work can restart where there is no chance of contact between builders and residents.
Inan apartment block that’s not going to be possible as the builders will share lifts, stairs and corridors with other residents.
If your neighbour restarts the Reno’s and you are concerned,make a report to Crimestoppers.
Firstly go back to the minutes of the 2018 AGM. What was the date of the contract tendered by the SM.
One explanation could be that the previous contract expired inNovember 2018 and the new contract started inNovember.
If there is ambiguity just let the contract run to November 2021.
The SM is probably going to stand their ground. In which case you need to go to court to get the contract sorted out and then terminate the SM. Thst all takes time. If you are inSydney, the courts are only handling urgent cases,so you wait time gets even longer.I think your strata manager is unjustly stalling. If the work has been carried out it should be paid. The plumber attended to your problem in good faith, with an expectation of being paid. The issue of the rubbish is a small reason to withhold the payment.
On the other hand , since you contracted the plumber, you are responsible for the payment of the plumber. Therefore the plumber is within his rights to chase you for payment.
Its an unpalateable situation for both you and the plumber to be in.
If you can, pay the plumber yourself and then seek reimbursement from the Strata manager. You never know when you are going to need a plumber in a hurry in the future.
Good luck with the SCA
I reported a strata manager to SCA with a long list of complaints and referred to their own code of conduct.
All I received was a polite letter saying that they asked the strata manager and he denied all complaints, so they were satisfied.
Remember that SCA represents strata managers and not owners.
Caveat Emptor
I don’t know the full details, but the guarantee is only in place as long as the development company is solvent.
We see it regularly where developers go broke only to phoenix.
The building commissioner can’t close this loophole as its covered by the Companies Act, which he has no jurisdiction over.
This problem straddles the Strata Act and the Trees Act.
Lets assume the trees are growing in lot property.
You are permitted to trim the branches of any tree that grows over your boundary line and into your property. You don’t need to ask the neighbour. But you have to do it at your cost. You also need to comply with your local council regulations as they often specify conditions on trimming trees.
It gets a bit more complicated where the growth is upwards. Technically once the tree is over 15 feet (as per your strata plan), it is encroaching into the common property. However to trim it the OC needs to enter lot property. The trees act does not allow that.
However the strata act does permit the OC to enter lot property in order to carry out works.In this case the trimming of the tree is at the cost of the OC.
If the tree is over a certain height local council rules may apply. It becomes tricky then to get council approval to trim the tree since the base of the tree is owned by the lot and the crown is owned by the OC, and only an owner can apply to trim a tree over a certain height.Note that the council will not intervene in disputes between neighbours about trees. That’s what the Land and Environment court is for.