Iain asked…. Does anyone know what the most correct legal answer is to the question of whether a replacement of balcony railings which are common property should be paid for by lot owners individually or borne across all units by way of unit entitlements?
I agree with Jimmy’s comments about the Owners Corporation (O/C) backing away from what appears to be an ill-conceived proposal, and further advise that O/Cs cannot raise levy contributions other than to all Owners (who as Jimmy advised collectively comprise the O/C) in accordance with the units-of-entitlement (U.O.E.) allocated to their respective Lots – that is it cannot, as you suggest is being canvassed by the Executive Committee (E/C), recover the costs of replacing balconies only from the Owners whose Lots are involved.
So the legal advice obtained by the Executive Committee (E/C) is incorrect, and that obtained by you (Iain) and some other Owners is correct.
In summary, whoever it is that commissions the works pays for them, but irrespective of who that may be under the scenarios now being contemplated by the E/C, both involve alterations or additions to, or erecting a new structure on the Common Property and they’re not matters to which an E/C itself may consent.
Rather, prior to a consideration of the Special By-Law that will be necessary in order to assign responsibilities for the maintenance, repair, and replacement of those items, a “special resolution” will first need to be put before a General Meeting of the O/C, where ≥75% of all those voting there, as calculated from their individual U.O.E. (i.e. a “poll vote”), would need to do so in favour in order for either scenario to pass; Sect 65A of the NSW Strata Schemes Management Act (1996) applies.