This NSW article is about tenants applying to NCAT for rent relief due to building defects.
Tenants, Building Defects, NCAT and Rent Relief
In a recent case, a property manager failed to inform a landlord of defects in the common property of a strata building and take any steps to investigate issues that a tenant had complained about.
The tenant applied to NCAT for a rent reduction as the landlord had breached their obligation to keep the rented premises in a reasonable state of repair as water leaked into the premises. The tenant was successful.
Who Could be Liable?
If a tenant claims rent relief from NCAT due to defects in a strata building, it’s important to note that NCAT could deem that it is the responsibility of the:
- Landlord who could lose rent (or worse) if they do nothing;
- Property manager if they fail to fix defects in the premises that they are authorised to repair following a tenant’s complaint in a timely manner;
- Property manager if they have not advised the landlord of defects (where they are not authorised organise repairs) following a tenant’s complaint;
- Owners corporation who could also be held liable for a landlord’s loss of rent.
A Timely Reminder for Managing Agents!
Ensure your professional indemnity insurance is current;
- Ensure your professional indemnity insurance is current
- Obtain landlord consent on a minimum amount for repair works which can be dealt with without the landlord’s approval;
- Allocate sufficient resources to attend to repair requests in a timely manner to avoid issues which could lead to court proceedings;
- Request that any common property defects are promptly repaired by the owners corporation;
- Ensure that the relevant strata by-laws for the apartment block are up to date to minimise your risk
Here we share some cases…
JS Mueller & Co Lawyers
E: [email protected]
P: 02 9562 1266
This post appears in Strata News #603.
If you have a question about tenants applying to NCAT for rent relief due to building defects or something to add to the article, please leave a comment below.
Disclaimer: The information contained in this article is provided for your personal information only. It is not meant to be legal or professional advice nor should it be used as a substitute for such advice. You should seek legal advice for your specific circumstances before relying on any information herein. Contact JS Mueller & Co for any required legal assistance.
JS Mueller & Co Lawyers has been servicing the strata industry across metropolitan and regional NSW for over 40 years. We are a specialist firm of strata lawyers with in depth and unmatched experience in, and comprehensive knowledge of strata law and levy collection.
Read next:
- NSW: How To Establish A Major Building Defect
- NSW: Q&A Remediation of Serious Building Defect
- NSW: Q&A Who determines which documents form the Strata records?
This article has been republished with permission from the author and first appeared on the JS Mueller & Co Lawyers website.
Visit our Strata Building Defects OR NSW Strata Legislation
Looking for strata information concerning your state? For state-specific strata information, take a look here.
After a free PDF of this article? Log into your existing LookUpStrata Account to download the printable file. Not a member? Simple – join for free on our Registration page.
Leave a Reply