State to crackdown on cheap ebike batteries
The NSW government plans to crack down on poor quality, cheap or faulty lithium-ion batteries, a move that will come as some relief to strata committees and residents across the…
safety
Big and bright ideas meet huge strata challenges
By Jimmy Thomson and Sue Williams Black mould built into new homes, fire safety measures ignored and undermined, real estate marketers (rather than town planners) shaping our cities – these…
Forum: Are no-pets by-laws back by stealth?
Here’s a blast from the past: A Flatchatter is thinking of buying into a strata villa and has discovered it has a “no pets” by-law. “Weren’t they outlawed after the…
Forum: Screen doors in the sights of fire experts
Is there a nationwide ban on screen doors? That ubiquitous, iconic entrance to so many suburban homes has come under fire from fire protection consultants. Is it, as one Flatchatter…
Airbnb by-laws – holiday gifts to your schemes
With the weather being unpredictable these days, there are other sure signs that summer is on the way; Christmas music is flooding our shops, decorations are popping up everywhere and…
Forum: Strata pros who won’t talk to owners
Things tend to be a little quiet around holiday weekends but one discussion caught the eye this week and it concerns a solicitor telling committee members that they will only…
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…
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”…