- This topic has 2 replies, 3 voices, and was last updated 13 years, 5 months ago by .
-
Topic
-
hi, my brother and i inherited a ground floor unit in a block of 5 built in
1925 in [location withheld- JT]. My auntie owns 3 units and my uncle 1, my auntie has been managing agent since 1986 as well as the chairperson, trustee and secretary. I recently moved in to the unit and found that no maintenance has been done. And the building has major defects that have not been addressed nor has a 10 year sinking fund plan been put in place. Our unit is the one suffering. I got a building inspection done on our unit and the structural walls, supporting walls and common property area have damaged majority of our unit. Due to no guttering or drainage for the building, bitumen damp course no longer effective, no ventilation, rising and lateral damp are just the beginning. Now all these defects need fixing asap. My auntie said to do this we will have raise levies. Will we have to now pay a special levie to fix this or would my auntie be personably liable as the owners corp and managing agent being negligent causing our unit to be depreciated in value and unsellable ?
-
Replies
-
Assuming this is strata (rather than Company Title) I'm going to out on a limb here and say that the legal costs of proving that your auntie was negligent and personally liable (even if you could do so) could be more than you would pay in a special levy with no guarantee of a positive outcome.
Look on the positive side, your apartment is going to be the one that benefits most from this upgrade and it's only going to cost you one-fifth (possibly less). Meanwhile, it's time to get Auntie to step down and if she puts up a fight, apply to the CTTT for the appointment of a statutory strata manager who will get the building maintained as it is the Owners' Coprporation's legal duty to do.
The question of personal liability, I will leave to our legal friends who may know of a way of proving that this is personal rather than corporate negligence.
If finance is an issue, there are strata finance companies around that provide funds exactly for situations like this.
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 is right. There is no way to avoid paying your share of the levies to rectify common property.
On the issue of suing someone for failing to maintain the common property or failing to act thereby exacerbating the problem or some other issue, I would need to know a lot more before being able to give advice on this issue. It is possible but there needs to be clear evidence to make out such a claim.
Finally, if significant work is required, you should consider whether the building should be upgraded to generally improve the value of the units. This will require even more money to obtain Council approvals, prepare designs, etc but the increase in value may offset the total cost.
Regards
Chris KerinPartner – Building Defects
TEYS Lawyers
The Strata Law Experts
02 9562 6500
1300 TEYSLAWYERS
Suite 73, Lower Deck
Jones Bay Wharf
26-32 Pirrama Rd
Pyrmont NSW 2009Don't miss our next
monthly webinar:
How To Prevent Building Defect Litigation Tearing
Your OC ApartRegister Here
- You must be logged in to reply to this topic.