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So, this is a ‘small building’. Talk, find out what people had in mind. Is this someone storing their personal goods on common property and not wanting others to use them or is it someone being generous – a kitchen without a kettle or fridge is not much use. It shouldn’t be hard to find out.
“The AGM can be held anytime in the 12 months after the Financial year for the Plan ends.”
Is that right in NSW? That surprises me if correct. Where I am, which is not NSW, the AGM can’t be more than 15 months after then last one and not more than 3 months after the start of a new financial year. We are not allowed to wait till the 364th day of a year before setting the budget and levies for that year, all the while spending without authority!
I don’t have the NSW legislation in front of me but on the question of continuing with the same levies, whether they can just keep running on at the same level might depend on the wording of the AGM resolution. At my particular OC, we usually have a resolution worded such that it authorises levies of particular amounts due by particular dates. I can’t see how a resolution worded that way could be used to levy again in the next financial year.
So, in addition to following JT’s advice, I would not be paying any levies beyond those that were authorised for last year. If the OC has no money to pay the managing agent, that might focus their attention on advising the committee about the statutory obligation of an OC to hold an AGM each year at which a budget is set, levies agreed etc. If there is also no money to pay the property insurance, then you really have a crisis to take to the Tribunal. I would be demanding to be shown evidence that the property insurance has taken priority over paying the manager. Go into the manager’s office and demand to see the OC records, as is your right as an owner. Take a few friends, perhaps those who might form the nucleus of a new committee once you have an AGM.
Has there been any indication of why the manager and/or committee are not inclined to call the meeting they are obliged to call?
“This is my first post, and I would like to contribute my recent experience…”
Even in such a situation, even if the topic of the meeting is about replacing the managing agent, and even though the managing agent should not impede access to the OC records, why not just be open and direct the managing agent to send out the meeting notice? Even if you are unhappy with them, they should be professional enough to send what you direct them to send. If they don’t do it, you have even more reason to dismiss them. It would be unwise in any case to put anything in writing that would not be entirely defensible or could cause a problem if the managing agent got to see it.
My point is: Yes, the managing agent should not stop you getting the unit roll but when would you really need to have the argument? If they are being difficult, make them do the work of mailing stuff out.
Each state would have its equivalent of the Uncollected Goods Act (or similar title) that sets out what you have to do to legally dispose of someone else’s property when left on your property. A strata manager who manages more than a few properties should be across the process as they will have had to deal with this sort of issue often enough.
I expect you are legally obliged to attempt to find the owner before you can dispose of their goods. Then, if they are sold without finding the owner, there might be a requirement to hold the proceeds in a trust account for some period of time. The stringency of the requirements varies with the estimated value of the goods. If the fridge is small and old, you might fall below a threshold that make the process relatively simple.
Still, if you think it is actually quite handy to have the wherewithal to make a cup of tea or coffee and store some non-curdled milk, perhaps you could survey the other tenants and owners to see if they are happy to host a fridge and a kettle. If most are happy, the one upset occupant might be persuaded that it is not such a big deal.
Before involving the manager and legal processes, I would ask around and put a note on the fridge door requesting a discussion with a committee member. Otherwise you might make the upset occupant happy but make another occupant unhappy, perhaps an occupant who thought they were just being nice and doing everyone a favour.
Wouldn’t a kettle and a fridge in a shared kitchen be a useful thing? Perhaps someone feels they have been generous in donating them for general use?
In the context of the total electricity consumption of a commercial building, the electricity consumption of one fridge and an occasionally used kettle is likely to be very minor.
How about putting a note on them asking whoever put them there to contact a member fo the strata committee?
“Can the contact details of the tenants be made available to 1. the Strata Committee and 2. another owner / neighbour?”
Probably. However, if I were on the strata committee, I would add a layer of formality, review and record-keeping by preparing a letter and directing the strata manager to send it to the owner (as recorded on the strata roll) and the tenant(s) and/or rental agent if the manager has such details on record. Your manager might even have certain useful standard wording they use in such circumstances.
“In saying ‘managing agent’ does Sir Humphrey mean ‘strata manager’?” Yes, I am from the ACT and yes, the jargon differs a bit from place to place. Details of the legislation sometimes vary in curious ways but the principles tend to be similar.
What does the original poster want to do with the strata roll? Regardless of the what the secretary or anyone else may be entitled to do, what does that the secretary want to do that could not be done by directing the manager to mail out some material prepared by or supplied by the secretary?
I would say that the secretary, as an executive member, is entitled to access to all and any of the records of the owners corporation. However, managing agents can be understandably wary of handing out personal information. I assume the secretary/committee wants to send some kind of letter or notice to all owners or perhaps just some? A way to side-step this issue is to direct the managing agent to mail out something prepared by the committee. If there is a managing agent, I can’t think of many circumstances when a committee or secretary would actually need the strata roll in order to function.
“… or even, is it an issue ?”
Depends…
If you have plenty of visitor parking and it is hardly ever full and, historically, you only ever have one or two units with surplus vehicles over their allocated spaces, and nobody is complaining, then its not worth bothering. Why not let a resident enjoy a convenience that is doing no harm?
On the other hand, if parking is tight and other residents are being inconvenienced because their visitors often can’t find a park, then it is certainly worth pursuing.
If there are residents with allocated spaces that they don’t use, perhaps you can play match-maker.
Note that the first reminder is the second letter and that comes after AGM minutes that have the due dates and amounts for levies decided and that first reminder is free. The second reminder is not that expensive and it comes after they have been told three times for free how much and when to pay.
Whether the cost can be charged to the owner, two things might be relevant due to yet another state difference. 1) In the ACT there is a section of the Act about OC costs that can be recovered from owners. 2) This schedule of charges for such letters was included in the management agreement.
JT may have a point and an alternative route would be to seek an order from the Tribunal that the debt be paid. Your managing agent, if you have one, should be able to advise.
The agreement was in writing, I presume? If you have a managing agent, they will have a usual approach to debt recovery. Our levy notices have the following on them:
“Levy Arrears Process from Due Date
After levy due date, First Letter $0.00
+14 days after, Second letter $55.00
+14 days after, Final letter $110.00
+7 days after, Notice to Debt Collection Agency $250.00 + legal fees”
The same could apply to another valid debt.
The ACT has a different approach to the Qld one. Here, “A person entitled to vote at a general meeting of an owners corporation must not … appoint a person as a proxy if the person is— (i) the manager; or (ii) a service contractor.” Anyone else can be appointed as a proxy, another owner, your lawyer, a non-owner friend, your neighbour, the chair of the meeting etc.
PS. You can always ask the treasurer at the AGM to expand on how s/he arrived at certain bits of a proposed budget. There might be a good explanation or not. Ideally, send the treasurer your questions in advance for the best chance of a clear response. When I was a treasurer, I appreciated the owner who would ask questions with notice and was less happy with some other owners who preferred to spring something. Give them the benefit of the doubt but don’t accept anything other than a good explanation.