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My unit has a rather large balcony that was enclosed by a previous previous owner with floor-to-ceiling sliding glass doors, effectively making a sun room of sorts.
Would these sliding doors still be considered common property? They need resealing so I am trying to work out if this needs to come out of OC funds.
Also: would exterior windows be considered common property as well? I am in NSW.
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It all depends if the windows were installed under the terms of a special by-law and what the terms of the bylaw were, concerning ongoing maintenance.
If there is no by-law on record, but the previous owner had written permission, it gets very murky. Chances are you have to fix them yourself but responsibility could default to the OC but that would mean they also “own” the windows and could decide to remove them.
If the previous owner didn’t have permission, the owners corp could ask you to either take responsibility for the maintenance (via a special resolution) or remove the windows entirely, so you might not want to push the maintenance issue.
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Was your NSW strata plan registered before the 1975 changes. If it was, windows are private property.
Another matter to determine is when the building was erected.
In many high rises buildings, sliding doors were in place when built which allowed for a balcony.
Some proprietors over time enclosed the balcony by moving the sliding doors forward.
It is my understanding that in pre 1972 (or so) buildings (regardless of when the balcony was enclosed) that the original sliding doors and the sliding doors which replaced the original ones remain “owned” by the Owners’ Corp but repairs and maintenance is for the a/c of the lot owner.
This is proven by the fact that in many cases the OC will tell a lot owner who can perform the works and what the specifications are to be.