#20354
Whale
Flatchatter

    With the utmost respect to my fellow posters, that’s an extremely simplistic view of what’s necessary to properly self-manage; something that I’ve been doing for our Owners Corporation since 2006.

    The following are but a few of the self-manager’s other duties:

    • Ensuring that all contractors are properly licensed, and have the correct insurance coverage.
    • Obtaining competitive quotations to regularly “test” the marketplace.
    • Issuing detailed Work Orders for all contracted activities including Term Orders for emergency/ after hours activities.
    • Inspecting completed works.
    • Paying all Invoices on time in order to maintain good contractor relationships (good ones are hard to find). 
    • Liaising with Owners and their Property Managers regarding the proper responsibility for repairs to Units (they think that the O/C’s responsible for simply every item of maintenance or repair).
    • Attending promptly to all Common Property maintenance issues.
    • Mediating disputes and other “harmony” issues involving Residents. 
    • Liaising with Owners who seek consent to renovations (and with those who don’t).
    • Ensuring Residents’ compliance with the Plan’s By-Laws and Special by-Laws.
    • Attending the CTTT on behalf of the O/C (an enlightening experience)
    • Preparing Agendas & Minutes for Executive Committee and General Meetings.
    • Preparing Financial Statements properly reconciled against the Plan’s Chart of Accounts (which also have to be setup in sufficient detail).
    • Ensuring legislative compliance with revised requirements including: Environmental Planning & Assessment Regulation (Fire Safety),     AS1288/2006 – Glass Safety Audit, Workplace Health & Safety Act (2011) for the Safety Audit, Pesticides Act (2009) for Common Property Inspections & Treatments, Strata Schemes Management Act (1996) & Regulation (2010) and proposed Revisions, plus quite a few more; and….

    • Maintaining the relevant records and processes of the Plan, which in 2012/13 for our 27 Lot Plan was summarised as:

    E-Mail correspondence  sent / received   212
    Invoices Received 159
    Invoices Paid on-time 159
    Invoices Issued (e.g. Levy Contribution Invoices)  114
    Quotations Received  13
    Work Orders Issued 19
    Hardcopy Correspondence Received 5
    Correspondence Sent (e.g. Debt Recovery) 61
    Telephone Calls Received 35
    Telephone Calls Made 92
    Facsimiles Sent / Received 14

     

    So Dudley…. would I do it all again?

    Absolutely, – as apart from the money saved which we estimated as $15-$20K/a (or ≈30% of our total self-managed budget) when strata management fees, disbursements (Sch B), and the costs of “smarter” repairs are all considered, no Strata Manager could possibly manage a Plan as well as a committed and properly supported Owner or Executive Committee who after all, only has the one property to look after!

    The set-up process would have been a whole lot easier for me if there were tools available such as the one you can now find HERE.

    Good luck, and don’t be dissuaded from giving it a go by the information that I’ve provided; use it to your Owners Corporation’s advantage!