Saving lives not levies on old balcony balustrades
There used to be a general principle in strata that even if your old balcony balustrades weren’t up to current standards, you didn’t need to fix them unless there was…
safety
Burning questions about fire inspections answered
Recently, there have been a number of questions about fire safety inspections and measures on the Flat Chat Forum. Last week, one of our Flatchatters, an accredited Fire Safety Practitioner,…
Podcast: Two alarms over fire safety in apartments
This week the pod takes a deep dive into the murky waters of fire safety, how we ignore it at our considerable peril and how this essential part of our…
Trapped in a 50-floor block with no working intercom
It was once Australia’s tallest and most luxurious apartment building, but residents of the Sydney CBD’s Park Regis today live in less-than-splendid isolation. With the access intercom system having been…
Govt. promises major strata fire safety revamp
There is a lot of confusion and anger in Strataland about fire safety, including who gets to choose what’s safe and what isn’t, and how a building that has passed…
Forum: Do we have a right to check child safety locks
It’s already been several years since we were ordered to fit child safety locks to windows above the first floor in strata buildings. It’s an owners corp responsibility to “ensure”…
Dogs that love to swim and dry drowning dangers
The chances are that dogs are not allowed in your communal apartment block swimming pool, and they certainly wouldn’t be welcomed by some of your neighbours. But that doesn’t mean…
Forum: Can I be sued over a climb and fall risk?
So, you’re living in a block where the powers that be don’t want to spend any money on anything. Trouble is, it has lovely old iron lace balustrades on which…
Flatchatter saves $25k on fire safety ‘blackmail’
A Flatchatter has just saved his strata scheme $25,000 – 70 per cent of their fire safety inspection bill – after responding to what they felt were threats and blackmail…
Don’t rush to roll back restrictions, say SMs
Apartment residents shouldn’t think they can rush back to “normal” life, just because some businesses are opening up, says the president of Australia’s strata managers. “It doesn’t mean strata corporations can return…
New fire safety regs on strata webinar agenda
You guys are getting into the technology, big time. Apparently more than 200 strata residents took part in the Owners Corporation Network (OCN) webinar on Airbnb and short term letting…
From the Forum – is working from home legal?
With more of us working from home, a fairly obvious question has been raised – is it legal? And the answer is … probably yes, possibly no. The critical issue,…