Hey Jimmy, Is it really behind the times though? … What happens in the apartment is no business of the OC.
I think allowing individual owners to do too much within their units that does affect other lots, even indirectly, is a proven recipe for dissent and disaster.
The NSW system is far from perfect. But there has to be a process where work that compromises the integrity of the structure is monitored and responsibility clearly assigned.
Tiles in the bathroom are a case in point. If someone’s renovation affects the waterproofing of an adjoining wall, the ensuing battle of who pays to fix it when the damp starts to spread is a huge waste of time, money and emotional energy.
All of that can be avoided if there is a simple process in place where, when common property is involved, the owner tells the strata committee what their plans are, and the tradies involved have to be licensed and insured.
It’s all about the individual’s responsibility to the community and Victorian strata seems to have gone in a different direction and tried to treat apartments as if they were free-standing houses. They’re not and never can be, and I believe that trying to hang on to an irrelevant model of home ownership is “behind the times”.