Podcast: States’ split is rental as anything
This week, having survived a computer crisis on the home office front, we delve deeper into the differences between the way renters are treated in Victoria and NSW. In the…
developer
Building pressure as more developers cut and run
A story in the Sydney Morning Herald last week should have sent an unseasonal chill through the corridors of NSW Fair Trading and the whole of the state Government. In…
Podcast: Mascot in court and how to clinch a deal
In this week’s podcast we catch up with what’s happening at Mascot Towers as owners in the ill-starred building prepare for their day in court. Specifically, they will be pursuing…
PODCAST 57: Developer database – why bank computers could say “no”
Sue Williams is back in the Flat Chat Wrap co-chair this week as we discuss the proposed Dodgy Developer Database announced by the NSW government last week. Sue reckons it…
Dodgy developer database won’t be for public view
Don’t get over-excited. The new “dodgy developer” database announced this week by NSW Better Regulation Minister Kevin Anderson may well be a game changer, especially if adopted by other states,…
Same old story as phoenix frauds ‘exposed’ yet again
There’s much less fun than there ought to be in saying “we told you so” – possibly because it implies that the bad thing we told you was going to…
Flat Chat Wrap #32 – Time we had a star rating for the best and worst developers and builders
We have a friend called Royce who wouldn’t buy so much as a toothbrush without checking online to see if it was the best design (at the best price) for…
Podcast: Inside a strata disaster … a pet ban backfires
I am occasionally asked how come I ever got into writing about apartment living. After all, I’m a published author, have been a reasonabIy successful TV scriptwriter and occasionally still…
Flat Chat Wrap #9 – How a pet ban led to the birth of Flat Chat
Jimmy and Sue look back at the first time they bought off the plan … and how it led to Flat Chat
Defects bond? Jail the dodgy developers!
This post, an expanded version of last week’s roundup intro, appeared in this form in the Australian Financial Review. Happy New Year! Two pieces of legislation came into force as…
How to avoid buying a high-rise lemon
Flat Chat is now appearing in the Australian Financial Review, both in print and online at weekends. This is the first column in its new home. With recent revelation that…
Bush builder is a strata outlaw
Living in our ivory (OK, concrete and glass) towers in the city, we tend to forget there are tens of thousands of apartment residents out there in the bush. Some…