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Just rang and spoke to fair trading. They said that attendance is compulsory at mediation! Not that I hope matters here go that far. Am hoping if I indicate that I have been talking to fair trading and about taking them to mediation with be enough for them to stand up and take action on all matters. Fair trading also said that you can’t take the executive committee to mediation, only the owners corporation. Though as my EC’s members are not familiar with the act in any way,shape or form, I may be able to really get their attention by saying I intend to take them. If they haven’t read the act, let alone the bylaws, or arranged any work in the complex in years, I don’t see them hitting the books anytime soon.
Giving notice to a strata manager depends on the conditions contained in the contract with them. I believe that the usual time is 3 months notice.
As far as finding a good strata manager, best to ask around. But a good strata manager can only be really good if the owners/owners corp keep on top of things. You really do have to make sure that they are attending to issues that you have asked of them. I would always ask in writing and ask them to respond in writing that they had received and understood then would follow up if I didn’t see/hear anything happening.
I did not consider our SM very good, however I did realise that they had more than our complex on their books and that most complex’s would have had some issue for them to attend to most weeks if not most days. So it is necessary for owners to follow up with their own issues to ensure they are not accidently overlooked.
Yes. Great advice. Am in the same situation as Juan. A committee who says they are going to do things. Even sometimes getting quotes but not actually carrying out the work! Useless telling them what else needs attention. Will give this a go. Fingers crossed.
What if the instantaneous hot water was installed in every unit when the complex was originally built and is positioned on common property, ie external wall in courtyard. Are those hot water systems, which only service each individual unit, owners corp or the responsibility of the individual owner?
I was always told that to change the colours of common property would require the input of owners voting on the change. The old 75% for not more than 25% against rule.
It would concern me if EC’s could just pick colours for common property. I question their decision making as is, without having to put colour choices in the mix.
When I was on the committee I had wanted to get permission to repaint with different colours, mainly using less colours, not necessarily changing to a different scheme. So when I was told it would need 75% approval, and knowing how indifferent the owners are here about getting involved or having any input except complaints, I decided to drop it. Had I known I could just change it I would have gone ahead. Would have not only improved the look of the complex but probably been less for repainting in the future with less colours needed each time.
I was told that if the EC uses tradespeople provided by the SM then it is the SM’s responsibility to ensure they are licensed, insured, qualifiied etc. If the EC chooses their own tradespeople, the onus is on them to ensure that all is above board. If not and something happens, then it falls back on the EC.
Your EC seems to be suffering from the same condition as mine. The “it’s all OK, we have insurance” syndrome. But as Jimmy just said and has pointed out previously, they are not covered for absolutely everything, and probably not for making a bad or uninformed decision. It is easy to get information in this day of the internet so for me there is no excuse.
I am in a townhouse!
I know someone who received a knock on the door one day from the police asking if his was garage number XX. Turns out, this garage was used by a criminal gang, storing goods in the garage – that they had rented from an owner who didn’t use it!
So I am guessing no formal leasing agreement. Perhaps not even a copy of ID. Just an add in the paper, someone responds. Cash in hand to the owner. Everyone is happy. But no one knows who is actually using the garage and what for.
Thanks for those words of support CBF. I too have done all the duties you describe in the past. The problem with having “nutbag” owners/residents in strata is that they are right across from your front door. If I were in a house their front door would be further away. And I could put up a screen, without permission, to have privacy at my front door. We have an owner here who no longer opens the front door, and rarely ventures out (checks first to see who is outside her front door) because of intimidation and harassment (she was on the committee – complained about breaches of by law, gets harrassed). Is that any way to live? When the antagonisers are right there, two steps away from your door, where do you go?
If you read the post about the NSW Strata Legislation Review, there is some hope! The issues mentioned are the same issues we all read in flat chat – over and over again. Of course parking is probably the biggest issue, one that I am well and truely over. If you went into a department store and bought a 50 inch plasma TV, would you fork over the money then pick up another 50 inch TV and walk out with both? No, because you only paid for one! So what makes people think it is any difference in strata. You get what you paid for!
I don’t want a house for space. The space I have here is perfectly adequate. I have actually been looking at houses of the same size as my place! A small house with just more yard than I have. Most don’t have garages or parking! There is a reason though why these houses cost about $150,000 -$200,000 more than my townhouse – because here I just own inside and I can’t change it. For the extra couple of thousand grand I can do what I like, if I could afford it. Yeah sure my neighbour could be a collector of rusty car bodies left on his front lawn. But that is why God invented muraya hedges.
I know that my complex is not the worst by any means, though I have left out many details in my tales of woe on this forum. At dinner parties I am often asked to tell what “they” have done now and to retell past stories. I have had friends in the market for a place, but when one comes up in my complex they run a mile preferring the devil they don’t know rather than deal with what they know has happened/is happening here! And when friends visit they ask me to point out the units of “them” – like one of those Hollywood stars tours!
When my elderly mother had to downsize, I would not let her to go into strata. I found her a small house instead. I could not imagine what stresses she would have to go through living under the current strata system. She has fantastic neighbours on all sides who keep an eye out for her, do things for her if needed – mow the front lawn, bring the bins in, trim trees, even organised maintenance for her. I shudder to think of her living in a complex like mine. If someone dropped dead by the letterboxes in my complex, the owners would wait to complain at the AGM next year about having to step over the body to get their mail that day – the EC should have done something!
Just interested. What exactly did they change in your by laws?
So the EC picked and chooses what they enforce in this complex? They are telling you what you can’t do but obviously not telling the residents that they can’t park in the visitors spots which in most complexes in a by law.
Though I would be concerned about renting out a garage to just anyone who would then have a security key. It is obviously not a garage located on the outside of the building. But if you get the EC to actually monitor the visitors car spots, you may well find someone in the building who will then be in need of a garage. But why would they pay you for the privilege of extra parking when the EC let’s them use the visitors spots for free and without penalty?I would have such a by law say that “owners are responsible for any unauthorized changes made to common property within or on their lot” or words to that effect. Many owners are not aware that common property is not only outside their unit. And in my case we have an EC who believes if others can’t see it it is not common property, including exterior features!
Owners in my complex would read such a by law as giving them permission to do unauthorized changes as long as they maintain them. This clause perhaps should be tacked on the end of the clause that says you cannot change common property. We have had an owner change common property without permission. This owner was made to pay for an engineers report and then pay for works to meet standards noted in the report. This unauthorized change cost this owner alot. Should be a penalty attached to the discovery of unauthorized works as a deterrent from people just getting a few friends around and knocking down a wall.
How does an OC protect itself from unauthorized renovations. From what I have learnt from flat chat, if an owner decides to remove the aluminum sliding doors to the balcony and replace them with French doors without permission then the OC may be liable for future repairs/replacement. So what does an OC do? Do they stop anyone with a tool belt around their waist and ask where they are going and what do they intend to do? Or place a sentry at the driveway entrance and check every ute, van or truck that comes in?
I in all honesty, someone could have materials delivered and work done whilst most people are at work. Then there are the owners/ residents who don’t say anything about anything in the complex believing that it for someone else to take care of, such as the EC. But if the EC members aren’t home or don’t see anything, then they can’t do anything. I know that some residents have had work done on their units. I know from the building materials that have been left in the visitors car spots and the skip bin left blocking the driveway for a week. And I have heard rumors about changes some owners have made. No one ever questions or complains (except me). The EC isn’t concerned taking on an it will be alright attitude. But what could they do anyway? Get the swat team in the break down the door and check the unit for suspected changes? Even if an owner sells and the real estate photos show changes, they can say the last owner changed it! OCs need to be protected from owners doing whatever they want but expecting others to suffer the consequences.
We have had issues of water damage to floating floor boards and these were claimed on our strata insurance where as the carpet was claimed on the owners contents insurance.
I was dubious about this so contacted our insurer. Sure enough, damage to floating floorboards is covered by our strata insurer because they are items or fixtures that cannot be taken with the owner when they move. Carpet however is not covered because, apparently, an owner can take this with them when they move!?! So it comes under and owners contents insurance.
This also applies to items such as dishwashers. An integrated dishwasher (you know the ones that look like a kitchen cupboard) are covered by our strata insurance but one that is freestanding can be taken with the owner so it is under contents insurance.
Why anyone would take their carpet with them when they move is anyone’s guess!
Check with your insurer about what is and isn’t covered in your complex.