Airbnb: ‘It’s about planning – not by-laws’
DR Cathy Sherry of the Law department of UNSW was quoted in the Privy Council findings. Ironically, she doesn’t think allowing by-laws to restrict holiday lets is not the answer.…
by-laws
Law Lords’ ruling a major blow for holiday lets
A legal ruling in London could bolster legal defences against court challenges to anti-holiday letting by-laws. Strata lawyer Tom Bacon explains … Britain’s Privy Council has unanimously ruled that owners…
ROUNDUP: Tying myself in knots over NCAT loophole
Bear with me folks, because the so-called strataguru is stumped. A couple of weeks ago my colleague and partner Sue Williams wrote this story that basically said the whole strata by-law…
Strata charges – a question of cheques and balances
How much can you – or should you – trust the professionals who are contracted by your owners corporation? Bearing in mind the major factors at play here – owners’…
By-laws review: Beware the rusty ratchet effect
Tucked away near the end of the new strata laws that came into force in NSW almost a year ago is a requirement which is being widely ignored but should…
Roundup: Clock ticking on your compulsory by-law review
Have you completed your by-laws review yet? What do you mean “what by-law review?” The NSW strata laws that came in last November gave all owners corporations exactly one year…
Roundup: The power of doing absolutely nothing
Sometimes in my idle moments – not that there are many of them – I think about writing a book on the power of doing nothing. I’m sure it would…
Holiday lets – the sound and the fury
With a Sydney University report out last week claiming that holiday rentals are having a significant and negative impact on the residential housing market, whether you are a resident owner…
How to nail rogue renovators
Bang, crash, wallop … drrrrr, brrrrooop, thud-thud-thud. That’s the sound of your weekend when rogue renovators are at work. It’s also a noise that greets way too many strata residents…
Are these the right rules for your committee?
You can’t expect people to play by the rules if they don’t know what the rules are. So we have devised a code of conduct for anyone that might want…
Smoking zones planned for apartment blocks
Sydney’s unit blocks may soon get a feature they will share with pubs’ pokie parlours, as well as some overseas international airports. Apartment owners will soon be able to set…
21 strata law changes you really need to know
By Jimmy Thomson There are more than 90 changes to the strata laws that come into force in NSW on November 30. Here are the 21 that will affect you…