- This topic has 10 replies, 7 voices, and was last updated 6 years, 8 months ago by .
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Is the Secretary of Owners Corporation entitled to a copy of strata roll with owners’ contact details from the Strata Manager, without having to pay the statutory fee? If so, what action can Secretary take if Strata Manager refuses to provide the Secretary with the strata roll?
I am aware that the strata roll belongs to OC and not to the Strata Manager but I would have thought that Secretary as office holder would be freely entitled to have a copy.
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I would say that the secretary, as an executive member, is entitled to access to all and any of the records of the owners corporation. However, managing agents can be understandably wary of handing out personal information. I assume the secretary/committee wants to send some kind of letter or notice to all owners or perhaps just some? A way to side-step this issue is to direct the managing agent to mail out something prepared by the committee. If there is a managing agent, I can’t think of many circumstances when a committee or secretary would actually need the strata roll in order to function.
Interesting question. Can I please have some things cleared up?
From memory, Sir Humphrey is in the ACT, yes?
In saying ‘managing agent’ does Sir Humphrey mean ‘strata manager’?
In NSW it is my belief that any owner (or possibly anyone) has the right to ‘inspect the records’ and may ‘discover’ and copy the strata roll. Is that right?
And one might thing the OC secretary could indeed be supplied the strata roll by the strata manager, wouldn’t one?
I think strata managers bend and misquote the rules to protect their turn and so, income.
The rules may differ from state to state. In my experience, it’s the owners who are responsible for what goes on in the building, including any downside aspects. Fair Trading in NSW has a strata book that can be downloaded free. They also respond to a phone query.
“In saying ‘managing agent’ does Sir Humphrey mean ‘strata manager’?” Yes, I am from the ACT and yes, the jargon differs a bit from place to place. Details of the legislation sometimes vary in curious ways but the principles tend to be similar.
What does the original poster want to do with the strata roll? Regardless of the what the secretary or anyone else may be entitled to do, what does that the secretary want to do that could not be done by directing the manager to mail out some material prepared by or supplied by the secretary?
In NSW (and I believe other jurisdictions, unless there is some peculiarity), the records of the OC are the property of the OC. This means that the Strata Committee is entitled to a copy of those records. This includes the strata roll (unredacted).
The strata manager holds the records as agent of the OC – the OC is the owner of the records.
There are no privacy issues in this case – the collection and access to the information is required by the Act.
Tell the agent to pull his head in and give you the information.
I am in accord with Scotland, in that thought the hon sec of the building is quite entitled to get this info, as outlined above.
Hello All
This is my first post, and I would like to contribute my recent experience regarding the above. I recently approached my Strata Manager to request the contact details of two neighbouring apartment owners, in order to exercise the functions of the Owners Corporation. The Strata Manager said he would approach the two owners, and request their permission to release their details to me. Only one owner responded and I received their details.
The other owner never responded to the Strata Manager’s request. In order to notify all owners of an extraordinary meeting (which the Strata Manager was not invited to), I then again approached the Strata Manager to get the remaining owners contact details. The Strata Manager said they still wouldn’t release their details due to privacy reasons, but if I paid the Strata Manager for a Strata Roll, they could release the details. I asked why their privacy rights are wavered if money is involved, and the Strata Manager replied, ‘That’s just the way it is.’
What recourse does anyone have in this situation. Would Fair Trading NSW get involved in such a trivial matter?
FYI – the Strata Manager said they would be willing to send any notifications to the remaining apartment.
“This is my first post, and I would like to contribute my recent experience…”
Even in such a situation, even if the topic of the meeting is about replacing the managing agent, and even though the managing agent should not impede access to the OC records, why not just be open and direct the managing agent to send out the meeting notice? Even if you are unhappy with them, they should be professional enough to send what you direct them to send. If they don’t do it, you have even more reason to dismiss them. It would be unwise in any case to put anything in writing that would not be entirely defensible or could cause a problem if the managing agent got to see it.
My point is: Yes, the managing agent should not stop you getting the unit roll but when would you really need to have the argument? If they are being difficult, make them do the work of mailing stuff out.
The strata manager is not complying with the law, he is impeding the function of the OC, and lying (or ignorant) about how the law works. Unfortunately there are managers who do not act in a professional manner, and this one is a good example.
A line has to be drawn somewhere, the Committee can give notice under section 181 of the Act requiring the manager to provide the strata roll. It isn’t a trivial matter, I have had to deal with this type of thing, and my experience has been that it is better to make it clear that you will not tolerate someone mucking you around.
Costa wrote:
From memory, Sir Humphrey is in the ACT, yes? In saying ‘managing agent’ does Sir Humphrey mean ‘strata manager’?
The official terminology in NSW is “Strata Managing Agent” which is used throughout the strata Act. Strata Manager is just a local convention, albeit widely used.
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