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These are the decisions a Committee can’t make:
– improvements or enhancements to the common property – this requires a special resolution of the owners in a general meeting
– setting levy contributions
– spending more than 10% over the budgeted amount for an item, unless the owners have removed that restriction by resolution at a general meeting
– starting legal action or getting legal advice, other than where the expected costs are $1K x the number of lots, or $12,500, whichever is the lesser – this requires an ordinary resolution of owners in a GM
– for large schemes – not obtaining two quotes where the costs are more than $30K for one item/matter
– approval of by-laws
– termination of a strata manager.
As a starting point, any “decisions” made at those meetings are not invalid. However, certain decisions can be challenged. There are a few steps you need to consider. Note you haven’t said what the size of your scheme is, as the requirements are slightly different.
You have mentioned the Chair, Treasurer and Strata Manager but not the Secretary who is responsible for notices of meetings, have you told the Secretary that they are breaching the Act?
1. A notice of a Strata Committee meeting must be given to each Committee member and owner at least 3 days before the meeting. The notice must include a detailed agenda, which would include any proposed decisions.
If the scheme is more than 100 lots, then the notice can be placed on the notice board.
2. If owners have an objection to a proposed decision on the agenda, one third of them by unit entitlement can give written notice of that objection to the secretary before the meeting, and any decision will have no force or effect.
3. Going to the actual decisions that might be made at a Committee meeting, the type of decision can vary. So the Committee might make a decision about something relatively minor or routine, such as doing a regular pest inspection. Or they may resolve to enter into a contract to do major works that cost a lot of money.
The latter type of decision is one that could be challenged, if the owners were concerned that proper processes were not followed. In the case of a Committee decision to proceed with major works, the owners could seek an order to stop those works proceeding, or call an EGM to reverse the decision, refer below.
4. Another factor is the scope of matters that can be decided by the Committee. If you are concerned that the Committee is going to continue in this way, then the owners can restrict the types of decisions they make, including the type of decision and an amount. So you would include a motion on the agenda at the AGM to that effect.
5. Another option if the Committee made a decision that was of concern to the owners is to call an EGM to reverse the decision.
Note that if the Committee had entered into a contract pursuant to a decision, and the owners wanted to reverse that decision, this could create legal difficulties. The other party to the contract is entitled to rely on the validity of the decision and the authority of the Committee to enter into the contract, in the absence of notice to the contrary.
That’s true, given how slack they are you could bring your levies down!
Real estate agents often don’t do it, but it is a requirement under the Act that owners give the details of tenants within 14 days. Some people don’t use real estate agents, it doesn’t matter, one way or another it should be done.
If those details haven’t been provided, then the strata manager needs to contact the owners and tell them they are in breach, and that those details must be provided. So then either the owner or the real estate agent gives the strata manager the details. If the owner is non-responsive then you can ask the tenants who the agent is.
That is what the strata manager is for, to enforce those types of requirements.
I can see where you are coming from Sir Humphrey but the by-laws apply to all the owners and residents, and govern the behaviour of the residents and common property. Any code of conduct applies to the members of the Strata Committee in that capacity and therefore if you wanted one (although I don’t believe you should have one) you would need to keep it separate.
I agree with Austman, the Victorian provision is succinct and summarises the duties of Strata Committee members. I don’t know why they didn’t include something like that in the NSW legislation, they took long enough to produce it.
Ok – that’s not a penalty, that’s an outcome.
I can see why people are looking for more guidance and certainty on conduct of Committee members, but am not convinced that a legislated code of conduct achieves much. The ongoing issue is that people will go on a Committee for a range of reasons including self interest, and those reasons will drive their behaviour, whether or not there is a code of conduct.
One thing that does come out in the Qld legislation that is not so clear in the NSW legislation, is that Committee members must act in the interests of the owners as a whole, which is a primary issue.
You can’t include a penalty for a breach, the Committee doesn’t have any power to penalise its members, they’re not a tribunal or a Court. To be honest if someone asked me to agree to that I would refuse.
The Qld extract above doesn’t include any penalties?
You can’t have a proxy at a Strata Committee meeting, you can appoint an acting member who must be an owner or company nominee, refer section 34.
That depends on whether the garages are separate lots. Have a look at your strata plan and it will tell you, also if the owners pay a separate levy for the garages that means they are separate lots, with the rights (including voting rights) that go with that.
If they are separate lots then your scheme has 22 lots, but it wouldn’t make any difference because 5% of 22 is 1.1 – the result is effectively the same.
Yes the Act requires an owner to notify the OC of a lease, and the notice must include the name of the tenant and and address. Notice must be given within 14 days. The same applies to a sub-lease. or an assignment of a lease or sub-lease. In other words whenever there is a change in tenant notice must be given.
If the tenants change, the same notice provisions apply.
258 Tenancy notice to be given to owners corporation of leases or subleases
(1) If a lot is leased, the lessor must give notice of the lease, in accordance with this section, to the owners corporation not later than 14 days after the commencement of the lease.
Maximum penalty: 5 penalty units.
(2) If a lot is subleased, the sub-lessor must give notice of the sublease, in accordance with this section, to the owners corporation not later than 14 days after the commencement of the sublease.
Maximum penalty: 5 penalty units.
(3) If a lease or sublease of a lot is assigned, the assignor must give notice of the assignment, in accordance with this section, to the owners corporation not later than 14 days after the execution of the assignment.
Maximum penalty: 5 penalty units.
(4) The notice must be in writing and specify:
(a) the name of the tenant and an address for service of the tenant, and
(b) the date of commencement or assignment of the lease or sublease, as the case requires, and
(c) the name of any agent acting for the owner in respect of the lease or sublease.
Note : An address for service of notices may be an Australian postal address or other electronic address, including an email address (see section 261).
You sound like a very nice person.
I am a bit puzzled as to why you spent all that time and effort fixing a leak in someone else’s garage. I think in such a case I would just pull the plug, perhaps because I have done it before and got no thanks.
You have two options, which aren’t mutually exclusive:
– enter into some sort of caretaker agreement which would involve quite a bit of paperwork, but at least that way you have certainty going forward
– put up a resolution to be paid for the time and work in the past year for approval at the next AGM, with an itemised list of what you did. $20 an hour is cheap.
If the other owners refuse to pay you, then you should advise them that you will not be doing anything further of that nature.
If the lifts are not stopping level at the floors there is a fairly high risk of injury. One thing you may wish to consider is contacting the insurer – if they become aware that the OC isn’t meeting its obligations in circumstances where they know there is an issue, then they may not cover you in the event of a liability/claim.
That would focus the minds of the Committee and the other owners.
Jimmy’s right – the meeting can’t approve a resolution unless it has been included as a proposed resolution on the notice of meeting. Anything raised at the meeting as a proposed resolution where notice has not been given would have to be ruled as out of order by the Chair.
Any proposed resolution must be included in the notice of meeting sent to the owners.
You can amend a proposed resolution, but only if it doesn’t change the substance of the resolution, and that can be challenged, in which case it has to be considered again.
Lady Penelope it is not correct that anyone can attend a meeting, the article you have linked states the opposite. The Act specifically states that tenants have the right to attend meetings, but not to vote and can only speak if the owners resolve to allow it. It is a meeting of owners, you can exclude anyone else as they have no standing. If the opposite applied anyone could attend.
By-laws don’t govern meetings.
Going back to basics, the meeting is a meeting of the owners, so what right does the third person have to attend? The third person does not have any right to attend (they are neither an owner nor a proxy for an owner), therefore the Chair could exclude them from the meeting.
That is what I would do.