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Fire safety for residential and commercial agents (Journal May 2012)
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Fire & Rescue NSW Structural Fire Safety Manager Superintendent Christopher Jurgeit shares advice on how to ensure buildings you manage comply with legislation.
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How do strata fees stack up? (Journal May 2012)
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New research investigated the link between the distance of a property from the Sydney CBD and the amount an owner will pay in strata fees.
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Home Building Act changes (Journal May 2012)
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Strata managers need to be aware of major changes to avoid claims of negligence being made against them by Owners’ Corporations.
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Court rules on unpaid strata levies
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In September 2011 the Supreme Court of NSW handed down its decision in Eastmark Holdings Pty Ltd [2011] NSWSC 1084.
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The danger of owners’ correspondence
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On a daily basis, strata managers receive a range of communications from owners and committee members by phone, fax, post and email. The majority are requests to effect repairs, address by-law breaches and/or authorisations, and instructions from the committee.
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Considerations of a strata manager
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Managing risk in our professional positions as strata managers is becoming more and more complex amid the matrix of increasing legislative controls and contractual agreements with both stated and implied responsibilities. As a strata manager where do you begin?
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Reducing the cost of strata living and working
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Avoid rising strata and community scheme costs by introducing innovative money saving measures.
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Think child safe and reduce risk
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NSW Fair Trading is calling on the real estate industry to join together and support child safety.
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Risks associated with the misuse of common property
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It is not uncommon for residents to use common property for purposes that were not intended.
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Determining unit entitlement
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While it may be that the developer determined the allocation on this basis – and this may coincidentally be correct (e.g. with factory developments) – this method is not in line with the current Strata Schemes Management Act 1996.
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Review of strata Regulations – call for submissions
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Submissions are being called for regarding the review of the Regulations associated with both the Strata Schemes (Freehold Development) Act 1986 and the Strata Schemes (Leasehold Development) Act 1986.
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Strata Management Conference wrap up
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More than 90 real estate professionals gathered at Westpac Place in Sydney for the full-day REINSW Strata Management Conference on Friday, 20 May 2011. With a great line up of presenters to see, attendees quickly settled for a day of learning and development.
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Liability of certifiers for building defects
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Pursuant to the Environmental Planning & Assessment Act 1979, clause 109E, a principal certifying authority (PCA) must be appointed before any building or subdivision work can begin.
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Help shed some light on Census night
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It’s Census time again and REINSW is urging all members to offer their assistance to the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) and help ensure that their residents are fully counted.
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Unfair tax for Retirees (Journal April 2010)
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Retirees are being unfairly hit by GST on their strata levies due to tax laws that affect people who live in large strata schemes.
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Fund for the future (Journal March 2011)
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Sinking fund plans are a great tool to empower owners’ corporations and improve our living environments, while also protecting people and property. Ten-year sinking fund plans are up for review in 2011. Find out what this means for real estate professionals.
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Residential Tennancies Act 2010
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Property management practice in NSW has changed significantly with the commencement of the Residential Tenancies Act 2010. The changes will have a profound impact on all agents. Find out about the impact of the changes on all parties and what your obligations are as an agent.
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Minutes and their content
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The Strata Schemes Management Act 1996 (the Act) contains various references to minutes.
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Use it or lose it
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The importance of inspecting strata records and obtaining a building report prior to purchasing a strata property
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Retail leases - new form of disclosure statement
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On 1 January 2011, the eastern seaboard States of New South Wales, Victoria and Queensland will jointly adopt a new disclosure statement for retail leasing to replace the lessor's disclosure statement that currently forms Schedule 2 to the Retail Leases Act 1994.
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Keeping pets in strata title schemes
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Within strata-owned properties there is a fairly even split about how owners feel about pets. While there may be some resistance from lot owners or Owners' Corporations concerning the keeping of pets, there is now a greater recognition of the beneficial role that pets can play in a person’s life, and a willingness by some Owners' Corporations to allow keeping of a pets.
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Amendments of motions - how to make and deal with them
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The rationale for requiring notice of motions to be given in advance is to enable owners to see the details and appreciate the significance of the proposal.
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ASeT will help Owners' Corporations prepare for the switch to digital TV
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Research undertaken for the Digital Switchover Taskforce into potential barriers to digital television conversion in buildings with shared antenna systems has culminated in a new online facility called the Antenna Systems eToolkit – or ASeT, for short.
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Disputes over trees - the story so far
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The Trees (Dispute Between Neighbours) Act 2006 (Act) commenced on 2 February 2007 and was introduced to provide a resolution process for disputes concerning trees on private property. It applies to trees situated on private land (except land zoned rural-residential) but does not apply to trees situated on land owned by a local council.
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Strata Schemes Management Regulation 2010
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The Strata Schemes Management Regulation 2005 is currently undergoing a five-yearly review prior to its automatic repeal on 1 September 2010. A draft Strata Schemes
Management Regulation 2010 was released for public comment in early July.
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Change is on the way!
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Now that the Residential Tenancies Act 2010 has been passed by the NSW Parliament, it’s timely to look at just how our residential tenancies regime will change.
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Unfair tax for retirees (Journal April 2010)
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Retirees are being unfairly hit by GST on their strata levies due to tax laws that affect people who live in large strata schemes.
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Unlocking value in common property (Journal October 2009)
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As a property valuer I have a noticed a distinct and increasing opportunity in the past few years, and that is for astute strata unit holders to amalgamate under utilised areas of common property as a part of their unit - to the mutual benefit of all unit holders.
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Renovating a strata lot
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A common query asked of strata managers when a new owner purchases a residential strata unit, villa or townhouse is "I want to renovate the property, what is mine and what is common property?".
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NSW land tax - principal place of residence exemption and multiple lots
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Everyone who lives in their own property has an abiding interest in the principal place of residence exemption from land tax contained in the Land Tax Management Act 1956 (NSW).
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A timely reminder for property managers
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Under s 119 of the Strata Schemes Management Act 1996 (NSW), a lessor must give notice of a lease to the Owners Corporation within 14 days after the commencement of the lease.
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Inspections: agents beware!
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In the recently decided Supreme Court case of Wu v Carter (2009) NSWSC 355, the Court was concerned with the duty of care for maintenance and repair of common property. Of critical importance were the actions of the leasing agent.
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Sinking fund plans now mandatory
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Strata managing agents will be aware that, as from 7 February 2005, s 75A of the Strata Schemes Management Act (the Act) made it mandatory for an owners corporation to prepare a plan of anticipated major expenditure to be met from the sinking fund was introduced over a 10 year period.
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Crisis management (Journal June 2009)
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An explosion on the top floor of an apartment building in Bondi has caused about 300 residents to be locked out of their homes for months. The building's strata manager, Dynamic Property Services, spoke to the Journal about how they have handled the crisis.
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Recent changes to the Contaminated Land Management Act 1997
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After a five year review of the Contaminated Land Management Act 1997 (NSW) (CLM Act), the NSW parliament passed the Contaminated Land Amendment Act 2008 (NSW) (Amendment Act) on 10 December 2008.
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Dysfunctional Executive Committees - what's to be done?
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An Executive Committee of an Owners Corporation is the representative body of owners and consists of an elected group of persons, generally made at the Owners Corporation’s Annual General Meeting.
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New to strata (Journal March 2009)
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Assist new owners to understand their strata scheme by providing them with an information package and talking to them regularly.
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Why make a by-law?
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How often have you been asked the question: why do I need to have a by-law? The question is then usually followed up with a statement: I really don't want to have to pay for it.
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OHS reminder
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Section 10 of the Occupational Health and Safety Act 2000 (NSW) provides obligations on a controller of premises. Control is defined as control to any extent. If you are the strata manager for particular premises, there is utterly no doubt that you are a "controller" of the premises for the purposes of the legislation.
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Building maintenance and its relationship to levies
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There were many strata buildings built in the 1960s and 1970s which are now showing their age. Many of these strata schemes have had building maintenance neglected for far longer than is prudent due to occupiers not being able to afford higher levies to to enable their building to have regular maintenance.
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Recent changes to strata schemes management legislation
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The effect of the Strata Management Legislation Amendment Act 2008 (NSW), which commenced on 1 August 2008, is to increase the rights of owners in new strata schemes in their dealings with developers.
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Is it advisable for the landlord of a strata-title property to have insurance in place?
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Unfortunately, a large number of landlords think they are not required to take out some form of insurance for properties that fall under strata title, assuming that the property is fully covered by the Owner's Corporation. Read more ...
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Sinking fund plans (Journal May 2007)
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All strata schemes will soon have to develop 10-year sinking fund plans, with new legislation coming into effect in stages over the next three years.
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Recovering expenses (Journal May 2007)
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Two recent NSW Supreme Court cases have expressed opposing views on the way owners corporations recover unpaid levies from owners. Bruce Bentley, a partner in the law firm J. S. Mueller & Co, explains.
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Fixing it before it breaks (Journal May 2007)
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A recent court decision has highlighted the importance for owners corporations to carry out regular maintenance on common property. Adrian Mueller, a solicitor from J.S. Mueller & Co, explains.
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Safety reviews (Journal May 2007)
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A professional safety review of a strata building can help to reduce the risks of accidents occurring. Peter McGee from RiskTech explains.
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Strata insurance (Journal May 2007)
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Finding the right insurance for strata buildings and owners corporations can be confusing. Kevin Morman, the National Manager of Aon’s real estate division, provides some tips on what to look for.
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Reading strata plans (Journal May 2007)
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It’s easy to get confused when trying to read a strata plan – but mistakes can be costly. Darren Peters from the NSW Department of Lands provides some background on what information is included in a strata plan.
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Termites - a threat to sinking funds (Journal May 2007)
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If termites travel through a common area to get to a unit, the owners corporation could be responsible. Termite expert and entomologist Ion Staunton explains some methods to help prevent attacks.
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Unlocking the key legal issues (Journal May 2007)
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Does your property management team have strict procedures for looking after keys?
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Altering agency agreements (Journal July 2007)
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If you want to change something on your agency agreement, can you simply just cross it out?
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Avoid a cat fight - know the strata rules on pets (Journal May 2006)
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We’ve all heard of laws to prevent cruelty to animals but what about real estate agents?
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Signing agency agreements (Journal December 2006)
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Who should sign an agency agreement? In part three of a series of 'hypotheticals', Jodie Masson and Elizabeth Hurn from law firm DLA Phillips Fox discuss some of the tricky situations that can arise when trying to get an agency agreement signed.
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Agency agreements (Journal November 2006)
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Jodie Masson and Elizabeth Hurn from law firm Phillips Fox discuss the prescribed terms for agency agreements. If you miss just one of these legally required terms, you could miss out on your fee!
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Agency agreements (Journal October 2006)
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One of the most common mistakes that real estate agents make is incorrectly filling out their agency agreements, following the wrong procedures to have them signed or not having an agency agreement at all. Unfortunately these mistakes can mean losing your commission, facing fines or even losing your licence.
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Arranging Common Property Maintenance & Payment of Invoices
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Whilst it is generally the responsibility of the Strata Manager to arrange and oversee any repairs or maintenance of common property, some Executive Committee members may take it upon themselves to arrange for works to be carried out on common property.
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Compulsorily Appointed Strata Managing Agents
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The Court of Appeal in its decision in The Owners – Strata Plan No. 5709 v Andrews [2009] NSW CA 189 provides a timely reminder of the benefit and power of a compulsorily appointed strata managing agent.
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Repair and Maintenance of Common Property – the latest word
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The Supreme Court has, once again, revisited the issue of repairs and maintenance of common property. In Nicita v Owners of Strata Plan 64837 [2010] NSWSC 68 an owner initiated proceedings against the Owners Corporation following inaction and lack of resolution to a water penetration problem on the part of the Owners Corporation.
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The Spam Act 2003 and the Do Not Call Register Act 2006
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The Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) recently launched a new real estate specific information page on its website in relation to Spam Act 2003 (Spam Act) and the Do Not Call Register Act 2006 (DNCR Act).
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Important information for Strata Managing Agents regarding BAS services
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Strata Managing Agents should be award that as from the 1st March 2010 there is a restriction in relation to completing Business Activity Statements and charging a fee for service.
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NSW Government gets big backlash from proposed changes to Residential Tenancies Act
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Property agents and investors are claiming the proposed changes to the Residential Tenancies Act are 'unfair'.
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All your strata management essentials
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Here are some must-have items for strata managers from the REINSW Store.
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