Podcast: Contract con tricks and little victories
It’s very much a mixed bag in this week’s podcast, not least because what’s good news for some in property prices is, inevitably, bad news for others. But first, we…
strata
Would you pay trained committee members?
There’s been a lot of chat in the strata-sphere recently about whether untrained volunteers should be expected, as they are, to manage the finances of multi-unit apartment complexes with million-dollar-plus…
Forum: Strata manager’s seal of disapproval
They say those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it. More than 20 years ago, the new building in which I lived was in dispute with…
Get the lowdown on the top 10 strata issues
What would you say are the top ten issues in strata right now? Building defects? By-laws and breaches? Strata disputes and the logjam at NCAT? Well, those three are certainly…
In-apartment parking is no pie in the sky
Apartments in a luxury block planned for Brisbane’s New Farm river-front will have parking for the owners’ cars right next to their apartments. And that will “propel Brisbane into an…
Podcast: High-level parking and low-cost living
This week we look at two apartment blocks that it’s pretty safe to say are at the opposite ends of the social spectrum. The first is a Housing Commission block…
Prize-winning unit block is a social surprise
A 58-unit Housing Commission apartment block in Liverpool, has won the NSW Premier’s Architecture award for a multiple occupancy residential award. According to a story in the Sydney Morning Herald,…
Forum: Your thoughts on rents, pets and NCAT?
We’re going to depart from the normal reader Q&A format this week, to try to gauge your thoughts on a number of issues. Firstly, should we be happy or worried…
Developers dump gas stovetops for induction
High profile apartment developers pledge to drop gas stoves from new apartments in favour of electrical induction cooktops.
Strata law website from a top strata lawyer
It’s all very well to look up strata laws and regulations on the internet, but what do they all mean? What are the changes in the laws and how are…
Rental commish has pet bans, evictions in sights
Nothing succeeds like success and if the newly minted rentals commissioner is anything like as productive as Building Commissioner David Chandler, then the whole rentals scene in the state can…
Forum: Smoke signals and mixed messages
It’s amazing when you think how much we used to tolerate smoking, as if it were a God-given right. But these days you are increasing likely to find that not…