The strata reform first promised for July and then delayed until later this year is back on track, according to Fair Trading sources.
“We’ve managed to get draft Bills quicker than expected and next week we’ll be releasing them for limited consultation for a period of four weeks, says NSW Fair Trading Minister Stuart Ayres.
“The timelines are tight but we are aiming to be in a position to introduce these Bills into Parliament this financial year.”
However, the next stage of the Bill won’t be available to the public after Fair Trading issued a stern warning today that it must not be distributed beyond a limited number of stakeholders.
This follows concerns last month when a leaked copy of the draft bill was posted on this website
Fair Trading say that subject to the passage of the Bills, supporting regulations will be drafted over the second half of 2014.
“Although the date for introducing the Bills to Parliament has been brought forward, the consultation period provided to stakeholders remains unchanged,” says Mr Ayres.
The new legislation includes a number of controversial proposals, including allowing 75 percent of unit block owners to agree to sell their building for redevelopment, curbs on proxy harvesting – where one owner can dominate a building by gathering up the votes of absent or uninterested owners – making acceptance of pets the default by-law and encouraging local councils to patrol strata car parks and fine rogue parkers.
A version of this article has also appeared on the Sydney Morning Herald’s online pages.