To pass a by-law you need 25 percent of owners, in person or by proxy, for the quorum and no more than 25 percent of those voting to vote against the by-law for it to pass.
One vote out of four is not a fail unless that person calls for a poll vote and they have higher unit entitlements (the basis on which your levies are calculated) than the others.
The six out of eight would only apply if all eight owners voted either in person or by proxy. The vote is based on those voting, not the number of owners in the scheme.
If you were not one of the three who turned up – i.e. it was one vote against versus three votes for – the vote would be carried.
Yes, you can raise the issue again at the AGM and this time you should male sure you have the numbers.
The first thing to do is have a chat with the ‘no’ voter and ask them why they rejected the motion. If it’s questions about noise and dirt etc, offer any concessions you possibly can – llimit times of noisy work, guarantee clean-ups etc – to minimise the disruption for them.
If they are just playing dog in a manger, get in touch with some of the other people who didn’t attend and ask them to give you (or the Strata Manager) the proxy for the next meeting. This may be a good idea anyway.
Send a simple and polite letter explaining that everyone has to go through this kind of thing sooner or later and it would help with the general smooth running of the scheme if they could participate in the next vote.
Try your hardest not to make this personal or political and, whatever you do, keep the strata manager on-side.
The opinions offered in these Forum posts and replies are not intended to be taken as legal advice. Readers with serious issues should consult experienced strata lawyers.