› Flat Chat Strata Forum › Levies and Unit Entitlements › Why are my Strata Levies so high? › Current Page
Peter
the last statement you make is true.
Committees leave it to the Strata Manager to manage the finances. The accounts presented are presumed to be true, but I have found many times for overcharging by contractors which the SM never picked up.
And don’t think an audit will pick this up because it doesn’t.
Strata Managers also tend to use contractors on their roster. Often these are larger corporates rather than local businesses. You’re paying for fancy offices and company cars. Having the committee get quotes for work from local suppliers results in lower bills.
One thing to keep in mind is that the OC is obliged to maintain common property. Where in your own home one can put off repairs, the OC can’t.
And services like lifts and fire services are not found in (normal) houses, but these are expensive as they require yearly inspections and certification.
Most owners are happy to pay levies provided they don’t go up too much, and leave all the headaches to someone else.
A good active involved committee can go a long way to controlling costs.