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Hi, sorry for the later reply. Your views are appreciated.
- Webman wrote: Out of interest, have you obtained any independant quotes on what it would cost to have the area cleaned once per month? How does this compare to the current costs?
TrueE replies: There is a two person strata committee in a 5 lot building . The Sec/Tsr nominated a cleaning service some years ago which is rumoured to be owned by his friend. No quotes were obtained. No other firms were even approached. While the strata has changed agents 3x, the said cleaning service has been a constant.
2. Webman wrote: From a contractors point of view, they would be charging for the travel time to/from your property, as well as transport costs (eg vehicle costs, etc), employee time, and equipment costs (even if that isa simple broom and dust pan). Sure, it is always cheaper to do it yourself, and every job always looks easier when someone else is doing it. My suggestion, get three quotes, and then present those at the next SC meeting or AGM. Even older people will be able to decide if they want to pay a higher/lower price for the same job to be done.
TrulE replies: You make sense. Even though some may charge for travel etc, three quotes would be very useful as one could see their individual greed. I recall the Tsr/Sec year ago poo-pooing my idea for a resident to spend the 45 mins or so sweeping because he did not want the OC to be liable in case of injury to the resident.
As to your comment on older people: note when there are two and one has severe memory problems and mood swings and the other sits on a committee but is little more than an echo for the dominant Tsr/Sec (as she shies away from confrontation) your optimism cannot be realised in this strata.
3 Webman wrote: Finally, perhaps you should also ask about the original agreement to provide services. Maybe it was to have the cleaning done on the xth day of each month for a fixed monthly fee. When there is inclement weather on the nth day, then obviously services can’t be performed, but it is quite possible that the agreement still permits charges to apply. Again, this might be something that could be re-negotiated if you feel the OC would be better served with a more flexible service (ie, provided any day within a week after the xth day where the weather permits), potentially at a higher cost.
TrulE writes: From memory no agreement in writing was formalised by the Sec/Tsr on behalf of the SC or OC. He did say at an AGM that he will organise once a month cleaning. No mention was made as to whether he has a direct, indirect, professional or social relationship with the said contractor. I see from many invoices that mention is made of once a month cleaning with zero details as to who did the work how long he spent and what exactly he did. The price has grown to $82 per instance, which I find appalling as I could do the small amount of work in 45 mins max.
Webman wrote: When looking at alternative suppliers, ensure you are quoting for the same thing.
TrulE writes: Ideally YES. But I am dealing with an outlier situation to the Act. The strata has 5 lots. The Tsr/Sec demanded the committee comprise him and an elderly woman. That is 2 only. I moved for 3 members of the SC at the AGM but the Sec/Tsr argued that he “could not work with me” and that if I was elected he would not be on the SC. The seniors, see below caved in. For good measure cajoled an elderly man for his proxy. So now the Tsr/Sec has 3 of 5 votes: his, an elderly man + an elderly woman. Nothing will change unless he is blasted out of office. He argued against having me on the committee after inquiring with others about my performance at another strata where as Tsr for a decade I insisted on transparency and quotes, he clearly decided my attitude was incompatible with his vision for the strata.
Webamn wrote: PS, have you tried talking to the actual worker when they show up to do the cleaning? If you approach them in a friendly manner, introduce yourself as a new owner, and being curious as to what they do, how often, etc, you could get a lot more information than beating your head against the SC wall. Although, the SC may have already pre-warned the contractor about you if you have already been raising questions, so that may not go so far now.
TrulE writes: Given the rumoured association between the Sec/Tsr and the cleaning company, this good suggestion will not yield the result hoped for. In fact one resident told me that he has not seen the cleaner for 3 months and wondered what happened? In the last day the agent replied to my question as to WHEN the cleaner allegedly attended the strata and I was given dates in Jan, Feb, Mar and April. I suspect either the cleaner of committee members told the agent these dates. This no doubt is to explain why pmts were made to the cleaner over those months notwithstanding the agent last month wrote to me that the bad weather in Sydney could explain why the cleaner was absent for a few months.
Also in response to my queries as to who on the committee approved the invoices after presumably inspecting the work and finding it to be a good standard, the agent parroted the Sec/Tsr in the reply which ignored mention of anyone approving the invoices and merely indicated that the elderly man (who as mentioned is not on the committee nor a reliable witness) “usually” sees the cleaner and is “happy” with the work.
Webman wrote: Best of luck, I think this is probably going to be just the first of many battles ahead of you 😉
TrulE writes: You said it!