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Hi all, new to this forum and would like some advice.
Mid last year we bought a villa in a four-unit complex, we are unit 4 at the very end of the block (L shaped, we are at the end of the ‘axe’ so to speak). There’s a very, very long driveway and a super tight 90 degree bend (unit 3 just at the bend and I’m at the very end). Between unit 3 and 4 there is a massive tree and a bit of common property between the tree and unit 3’s garage that acts as a ‘turn around facility’ for unit 4.
Theoretically, to get out of the complex I reverse into the common property between adjacent to the tree and drive straight out. When we moved in late last year, we found that unit 3 is parking one of their cars in the common property in question. In fact, they installed a retractable sunshade onto the external wall of the villa to protect their car from rain… I believe there are no exclusive use arrangements.
In order to get out of the complex, I have to reverse all the way out (about 50m). It’s very tight and at night or when it’s raining hard to see anything. I’ve had several close calls with pedestrians reversing out, once with small children. Not to mention the hassle of reversing almost 50m in a tight driveway…
The owner of unit 3 used to park their car from about 4pm until 6am (wife’s working times). I spoke to the owner and he was dismissive of my concerns, citing his tenure of the villa (10 years or so) and the fact that they have ‘always parked there’ and the ‘previous owner just reversed all the way out’. I didn’t want to have an argument at the time as we just moved in and have a lot of stress-causing things happening in our personal lives (work and wedding preparation etc).
However, since early this year, they got a new car and started parking their other car, a bigger sedan (husband goes to work on a motorcycle) all day, every day almost permanently in the common property. There maybe days that he uses the car but it’s once in a blue moon.
We want to start a family and either upgade to a larger car (I’ve got a tiny Corolla), or have two cars which will make it harder to reverse out all the way to the street. I also don’t want to risk reversing and posing a danger to residents and pedestrians. I’ve had it and want this issue resolved; there should be no parking on common property anyway! To add fire, the owner regularly parks his cars on the driveway to wash his cars or load/unload things, sometimes hours on end. I’ve had to on several occasions, tell him to move his car so that my wife and I can actually get out of our garage.
We have an AGM in a couple of weeks and I plan on raising this issue. I just want some advice on how I should approach this, as we have just appointed a new strata manager (owner of unit 3 convinced us to change strata managers last year).
I’m not one to cause disharmony and trouble but I’m under stress everyday and just want it to end.
Thanks!
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You won’t be able to raise the issue at the AGM unless there’s a Motion on the Agenda to do so, and whilst I’d be pleased to draft something for you there’s no point if the Agenda has already been distributed.
So what about contacting your Strata Manager ASAP to find out if the sunshade has been approved, to confirm that the area where your neighbour parks is common property and, that if so, there’s no license or exclusive use by-law covering its use, and if it’s too late to add a Motion to the Agenda, – and then come back.
You’re in NSW right?
You should have received a copy of the current bylaws with your property purchase documentation, which will show if he has permission to park and to erect a sunshade.
If nothing shows he has permission for neither (unless granted under a normal motion at EC or AGM and if so it can be revoked with another motion removing that permission).
Suggest a compromise let him keep the sunshade but stop parking his car their. His being their 10 years is meaningless except that he ought to know better (having 10 years strata experience).
demonaz – that’s a good approach so long as an informal discussion with whoever is present after the conclusion of the Meeting will resolve your issues, but if you want those issues to be formally resolved, then the only way to do that is to submit an Item to your Executive Committee Secretary or Strata Manager (whoever is organising the Meeting) for inclusion on the Agenda for the AGM.
Good luck with whatever approach you take.
best of luck i have been fighting , with the help of a 1,000 dollar lawyers letter to explain to the other 16 owners and so called strata manager that owners cannot park in vistors bays permantley for 13 years in this complex. i have even been taken to court by these no brainers .case dismissed the best days entertaiment i have had for a long time, good luck.
@demonaz said:
As you said earlier, it could be too late for inclusion on the AGM agenda. If so, I’m assuming I can pursue the Fair Trading mediation option?
I would be scouring the agenda for anything that even obliquely mentioned parking or common property and use that as a platform. You might even be able to propose an amendment (if it doesn’t stray too far from the original motion). For instance, if there was a kotionn that people shouldn’t leave stuff on common proeprty, then I would be all over that (a very long shot, I admit).
Or, at the risk of being cute, there is a standard motion that has to be considered at every AGM and that is, is there anything that the owners don’t want the EC to consider in the next year.
This is an obligatory motion intended to prevent the EC from pursuing hobby horses that have been rejected before or from pushing ideas that nobody wants.
However … what if you said you don’t want the EC to consider allowing people to park on common property. I may be way out on a limb here but if all you want is to get the problem aired in public, that could be a way of doing it.
Anyone have any thoughts on that?
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.
Here is a copy of the default strata bylaw for strata. Depending on when your strata was registered it could vary slightly.
2. Vehicles
An owner or occupier must not park or stand a vehicle on common property without the written permission of the owners corporation. That permission can
be cancelled. Permission does not give an owner or occupier a permanent right over that part of common property.Inform the SM that this parking is causing a safety hazard to other residents (especially children) as you are being forced to reverse a distance of xx m.
Ask him to issue a NTC immediately (has to be approved by committee) and write to the resident (copy yourself) informing him that he is in breach of bylaws and giving him a time limit to comply.
If this elicits no response advise the SM and other residents that you will be starting proceeding at NCAT within 14 days to get the cars removed and the shade cover removed (cost to you approx $150) unless your initial request was complied with.
Take plenty of photos of the offender parking illegally (use a time/ date feature on the camera) and instead of photographing and submitting hundreds of photos chose a 7 day period and state this is just a typical week of the offenders parking breaches.
Especially photo any instance of him totally blocking the drive and record any verbal communication in a diary and keep any written or email communication.
This as far as I can see is a slam dunk result in your favor. Winning a parking bylaw breach is one of the easiest to win as a photograph is hard to dispute.
@kiwipaul said:
Here is a copy of the default strata bylaw for strata. Depending on when your strata was registered it could vary slightly.It doesn’t matter when the by-laws were registered – it’s what bylaws were registered and they may have said nothing about parking on common property. Unlike other states NSW by-laws do not default to the “model” by-laws if notne exists that cover that issue. Demonaz needs to check the by-laws of his lot and proceed from there.
Ask him to issue a NTC immediately (has to be approved by committee) and write to the resident (copy yourself) informing him that he is in breach of bylaws and giving him a time limit to comply.
Strata Managers often have delegated authoity to issue Notices to comply – if so, EC approval is not required. The Notice To Comply does not have a ‘grace’ period; it says you must stop breaching the by-law “now and in the future”.
You’ll find the official Notice To Comply form HERE. NB: Funnily enough, the form uses parking on common property as an example of a typical by-law breach.
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.
@JimmyT said:
It doesn’t matter when the by-laws were registered – it’s what bylaws were registered and they may have said nothing about parking on common property. Unlike other states NSW by-laws do not default to the “model” by-laws if notne exists that cover that issue. Demonaz needs to check the by-laws of his lot and proceed from there.
According to the OP in post 4
I’ve already emailed the property manager for a copy of the by-laws. I just checked the contract of sale for the title search certificate. It states in Schedule 2: “Attention is directed to the residential schemes model by-laws contained in the Strata Schemes Management Regulation applicable. At the date of registration of the scheme – keeping of animals – option B has been adopted.” –So the model bylaws for when the strata was registered do apply.@kiwipaul said:
According to the OP in post 4I’ve already emailed the property manager for a copy of the by-laws. I just checked the contract of sale for the title search certificate. It states in Schedule 2: “Attention is directed to the residential schemes model by-laws contained in the Strata Schemes Management Regulation applicable. At the date of registration of the scheme – keeping of animals – option B has been adopted.” –So the model bylaws for when the strata was registered do apply.Yes. You are right and I was wrong. have had my head in Victoria’s strata laws where the Model Rules are the default when there are no other rules in play. My bad. Apologies.
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.
Only the strata manager or EC can issue a Notice To Comply. You, however, can first apply for (mandatory) mediation at Fair Trading then if that doesn’t work, apply to NCAT (formerly the CTTT) for orders forcing the other owner not to park on Common Property.
This is not a road your neighbour would want to go down since falure to abide by NCAT orders carries 10 times the financial penalty of failure to abide by Notices To Comply.
Click HERE to find the process explained in detail, with links to the forms you will need to proceed with your action
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.
You are in the RIGHT it’s your neighbor who is causing the problem by his irresponsible behavior.
Conciliation (the first step) lawyers are frowned upon as you are trying to resolve the issue not get into a legal fight.
Adjudication it is more acceptable (but expensive) to have a lawyer but you have such a cut and dried case it would be a waste of money. Also Adjudication is generally (but not always) just you present your case in writing with att documents and your neighbor does the same and their is no meeting the Adjudicator decides on the documents provided.
Takes about 3 months in total.
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