storage of personal items on the common property

@Cosmo said:
I would say that after fair warning that if the relevant owners doesn’t rectify the problem not only could the OC remove and dispose of them but charge the costs back to the owner.  Fair warning, to my mind, would need to include reference to the relevant sections of the Act and set a reasonable time deadline.

The problem is that the strata Act doesn’t specifically refer to abandoned goods – – but the Residential tenancy Act does and I would use that as a guideline (even though it has no legal status beyond tenancy).

You can read a Fair Trading fact sheet HERE but the essential points are:

Rubbish and perishable items

You can dispose of any rubbish or perishable items left behind by the tenant immediately. For example, a broken chair and a pile of old newspapers, perishable food left in a cupboard or dying pot plants in the yard. value.

Notice required

If items other than rubbish have been left behind you have to attempt to notify the former tenant. You need to try to tell them that you have their goods and they will be disposed of after a certain time if they are not collected. If after 2 days you have not been able to contact the former tenant you can leave a notice in a prominent position somewhere on the premises (e.g. stuck to the front door). If the goods are obviously leased you should also contact the rental company.

Storage of goods

Goods of value including furniture, electrical items and clothing need to be stored in a safe place for at least 14 days from the day you notify the tenant to come and collect them.

Personal documents

Different rules are in place when dealing with personal documents left behind by a tenant. Personal documents are defined under the Act as being:

• a birth certificate, passport or other identity document
• bank books or other financial statements or documents
• photographs and other personal memorabilia (e.g. medals and trophies)
• licences or other documents conferring authorities, rights or qualifications.

Personal documents left behind by a tenant need to be kept in a safe place for at least 90 days from the day you give notice to the tenant. 

Disposal of unclaimed items

If the former tenant fails to reclaim the goods within the 14 days you can choose to:

• donate the goods to charity (e.g. leave clothes in a clothing bin or arrange for furniture etc to be collected), or
• dispose of the goods in a lawful manner (e.g. take them to the tip or organise a council collection if such a service is available in your area), or
• keep the goods in the property if they are useful fixtures and fittings (e.g. curtains), or
• sell the goods for fair value and give the proceeds to the tenant (less the occupation fee and reasonable costs of the sale) or send it to the Office of State Revenue after 6 years as unclaimed money.

Unclaimed personal documents can be disposed of after the 90 days in an appropriate manner, such as by returning to the issuing authority (wherever possible) or by shredding.

If you have followed the law correctly, you are protected if the tenant comes back to you later about the goods. However, if the law was not followed you could be ordered by the Tribunal to pay compensation to the tenant. This could include any damage to the items while they were in your possession.

As I said, this has no legal status but, in the absence of clear guidelines, following these steps show that you have at least tried to do the right thing.

stuffy – the Section of the NSW Strata Schemes Management Act that Cosmo posted (#2) states that certain works can be undertaken and associated costs recovered by an Owners Corporation (O/C) where a Beach of a By-Law by an Owner requires them to undertake those works, and the don’t.

So I’d suggest that on the basis that the items placed in the courtyard are obstructing the lawful use of that common area by other residents, and that filling all the common storage areas with similar items prevents others from lawfully using those areas, your O/C should issue the Owner of the Lot with a Notice to Comply citing a Breach of By-Law 3, which states that:

“An owner or occupier of a lot must not obstruct lawful use of common property by any person.” ____and…

… requiring that Owner to remedy that Breach by removing all their stored items within a reasonable (but short) timeframe.

If that doesn’t achieve the desired outcome, then as an alternative to the O/C taking the usual next step by applying to the NSW Civil & Administrative Tribunal (NCAT) for a penalty, I’d be inclined to have it write to the Owner, with a copy to their tenants as the “occupants of Lot X “, outlining instead what it proposes to do in accordance with procedures given by Jimmy (post #3), and enclose a copy of the Application for Mediation Form so that they can initiate that step should they so choose.

Then if necessary, the O/C can then have all offending items removed, and upon the expiry of 14 days for anything unclaimed or 90 days for any personal documents, it can dispose of those and recover the costs of doing so from the Owner by having the Strata Manager add the amount applicable as a separate line item on the next Levy Contributions Invoice to that Owner, where if it’s then unpaid it remains as a debt against the Lot.

OK, you run the risk of not being paid until the offending Owner sells their Unit, but then the usual approach of the O/C applying for a Penalty involves written submissions, and can involve appeals, extensions, and of course the risks involving the idiosyncrasies of the NCAT – whilst during all of that time the problem remains unresolved.

There is a resident in our building of 19 units (his mother is an owner) who continually stores goods on common property.

In the current episode, he has been issued with a written notice to remove his belongings. He failed to do so, so a removalist was booked to remove the goods. There was a “stand off” and the removalists were unsuccessful in removing the goods.

Is there another course of action available to get the goods removed? Are there specific removal companies for this purpose? Can the goods be forcibly removed legally? Can the owner be fined for breaking a by-law (perhaps this would be a deterrent)? If so, can the Strata Manager issue a fine or does this have to come from NCAT [The Owner’s Corporation has previously been through the mediation process]. Can he be issued with the bill for the removalist?

He recently blocked a stairway with all his belonging. These have now been removed, but he has now filled the laundry. The situation could be dangerous as goods could fall on someone (not to mention if there was a fire and the stair was blocked).

One of the units is currently up for sale so the goods need to be removed urgently.