Levy for Foxtel

First up, I'm not sure if exactly where strata law is the same or different in WA but it will be. 

The first question is whether or not the Owners Corporation could make this decision by a simple majority, then there's a question of whether this includes subscription as well as connection.  And then there's the whole question of any opt-out possibilities (unlikely if common property is involved).

WA strata law is still in its infancy and they are way behind the rest of us in its development and application.  For instance, strata managers in WA don't even have to be licensed.  You can download the WA government's Guide To Strata Titles HERE but I don't know how much help it will be.  It does say that changes to any structure must have unanimous approval – but I don't know if that applies to cabling Foxtel. 

25.1 Strata Schemes (sec 7 and 7B STA)
25.1.1 Approval for Structural Alterations
The alterations of any structure on a strata lot must be approved by the other lot owners in writing or the strata company by a resolution without dissent at a general meeting.

Strata Disputes in WA are refereed by the State Administrative Tribunal but the guide warns that they will not offer advice and, in any case, their decision may end up in court.  (Sounds familiar, eh?)It costs about $60 to register a dispute and you can get the forms HERE.

Where to go for advice, I'm not sure.  You could start with the WA branch of Strata Communities Australia – the new national umbrella body for strata managers. Their website is HERE.  Or you could contact the Strata Titles Institute of WA at their email address: admin@stiwa.com.au.

One thing though – three other people voted against the Foxtel installation and they should all be working together on this. Time for a cup of tea with the neighbours, I reckon.

Our building has old Foxtel cables (referred to as Foxtel Lite) but we haven't bothered to update them because no-one seems interested in it. However, I raised with our Strata Manager earlier this year whether we would have to do something to our building once the NBN comes around. He was clueless (like he is on most things). At the end of the day, cables are just like pipes and electrics, so I don't know why these things are not upgraded (and why no-one bothers to think about making provision for it).

Yes, the satellite dish on each balcony is definitely not a good look.  Especially when they are the size of the balcony.  And personally, would not want to live in something that looked like that!  A satellite dish on each balcony may be a cheaper option, but it also does cheapen the complex's visual appeal!

Getting Foxtel installed would be good for resale value of the unit.  

This is a good example of people, especially pensioners, not being able to afford special levies.  In this case, it is not an essential repair, but what about next time, when there is a need to put in $1,000 for work that cannot be avoided.

Perhaps craigmc can find out if his grandmother can pay in installments?  I know when we had a special levy for essential works, we spread it out over a few quarters to lessen the load on all owners.  So the OC  essentially paid for the works and had the owners pay us back.

I understand how difficult it is for those working to afford unexpected extras, let alone those who are not.  But one cannot live in strata and not have to put in some extra sometime!  

This is related to Foxtel and other pay TV services.

Several months ago we received a brochure explaining the Digital roll out across Australia.  There are a couple of pages for people in Strata asking “Is your building ready for digital television?”.

When analogue television is finally turned off, will it mean that Owners in Strata plans will need to replace whatever they have now to receive television signals, or is it just the television set?

Are there other upgrades to facilities that would be of interest to those uninterested in Foxtel? Perhaps a range of facilities could be proposed where all might see benefit in at least one of those things. We have a tennis court but not everyone plays tennis. We have a playground but not everyone has children or grandchildren. Not everyone uses the BBQ.

Generally people don’t begrudge the facilities that are used by only a subset of owners. Those things all went in quite a while ago. Now things have ossified a bit and we are getting arguments along those lines. We had a recent proposal to set up a community garden (we have a large area of land) where residents might have a fair sized vegetable plot (or share one if they didn’t want so much).

We have enough in reserves to not need a special levy to set it up. Once established well with a possum-resistant fence and landscaping around and so on it would have no on-going costs to owners. We had had one in the late 70s, early 80s so our Articles had a section to govern how it would run. It would have used $95/unit out of savings to set up well.

Nonetheless, the proposal failed to get majority support, with some objecting to paying for something some wouldn’t use. I thought I would enjoy seeing and meeting my neighbours out in the garden even if I didn’t have a plot. Over time I though many units would use the garden as people’s lives changed and they gave up or took up vegie growing. Sadly, a majority did not see it this way.