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QLD: Q&A Appearance of Lot. What constitutes a breach?
Todd Garsden, Hynes Legal
Question: We put a cat enclosure on our balcony and received a breach notice under the Appearance of Lot bylaw. Isn’t a cat enclosure just like outdoor furniture? Why is no-one else in breach?
NSW: Q&A ‘No Animals Allowed’ – not even a companion animal
Leanne Habib, Premium Strata Question: There are a number of very vocal apartment owners in my building who are against animals of any type, including a companion animal.
WA: Q&A Strata refuse to repair phone line – it’s ‘not need as emergency service’
Gary Phillips, StrataGP Question: The phone line to our unit is damage within common property space. Strata refuse to repair the phone line stating it is not required for any medical or emergency purpose. Is this right?
QLD: Q&A We Feel There is a Lack of Support for Resident Managers
Frank Higginson, Hynes Legal
Question: Our Body Corporate did not pay us for services carried out whilst we were Resident Managers. We liaise with 76 other resorts and managers in the area and it seems there is little protection or assistance for the owners of Management Rights.
NSW: Q&A Lot Owner’s items lost from storage on common property
Andrew Terrell, Bright & Duggan
Question: I’m having a dispute with our strata manager about some of my items which have been lost from storage on common property. The items were removed in error. Who is responsible and can I expect reimbursement?
QLD: The timing for body corporate debt recovery proceedings is clarified
Frank Higginson, Hynes Legal
The confusion over the time limit a body corporate has to commence recovery proceedings for body corporate debts has been clarified by the Court of Appeal.
Ben Chester, Locality Planning Energy Since August 2017, when the Prime Minister summoned electricity retailers to Canberra to see what could be done to improve the consumer electricity price point, electricity offers have been a point of contention. One of the only things to genuinely come out of the meeting was reform by way of the pricing information that is published by retailers, and effectively ‘sold’ to consumers.
NSW: Q&A Fibre optic upgrade to individual units. Who pays?
Leanne Habib, Premium Strata Question: Where will the financial responsibility lie for the fibre optic upgrade to individual units, assuming a majority of the owners corporation want direct fibre to their home?
QLD: Q&A Car Park Storage. Furniture … tyres! I want this rubbish gone!
Todd Garsden, Hynes Legal Question: What are our rights as renters in regards to storage in our car space?
We want to put up a keter plastic shed as we are on short lease to store my husbands animal traps and stuff in but the committee won’t allow it even though the owner said yes.
WA: Q&A Charging interest on overdue strata levies. Is there a formula?
Phil Langton, Langton Strata Management Question: I have recently been hit with over due levies for two quarters. Levies are $405 a quarter with $82 for sending a notice and $15 interest. My overdues amount is around $250 which I am trying to break down.
Basically my unit was vacant for a few months and being managed by a real estate agent. I put in $1500 after a few months to cover various expenses. Its only after I reviewed my bank statement that I found the extra cost and subsequently found out there was an ongoing email war between the real estate and the strata manager which I was unaware of. Is there any where I can go to get some resolution on this?
WA: Strata Management Perth
We specialises in the management of residential and commercial strata properties in Western Australia. We have more than 20 years of experience in the industry and a team of professional strata managers supported by dedicated administrative staff.
NSW: Commercial | Strata | Painting | Remedial Repair Does your strata or commercial building need some love? easyTrades can help you to mitigate risk and show your property in its best light. easyTrades comprehensive service is designed with owners and tenants of multi- dwelling apartments and commercial buildings in mind.
Aust Wide: Strata Insurance distributed via insurance brokers
Now in our tenth year of operation, our business was born out of the belief that we could create a better model for strata insurance: a model capable of delivering more positive outcomes for everyone involved. Our model is different because we only deal with insurance brokers.
Aust Wide: A better online strata experience We are an online platform that enables committee members, owners, residents and strata managers to efficiently and securely manage their communications and administrative requirements.
Specifically built for strata & packed with features that make it unique.
News of the Week
Shoe-box apartments won't meet family-friendly housing demand as millennials come of age
Stephanie Chalmers, ABC News The tiny inner-city apartments built during the boom of the past decade are unlikely to meet the needs of Generation Y as they grow older.
RACQ Media Brisbane City Council looking to overhaul the city’s planning rules to allow incentives for developers to include car-sharing arrangements in new residential buildings.
Reflections: The ups and downs of a vertically integrated life
Alex McClintock, Domain The A4 piece of paper was the first thing my girlfriend and I saw when we moved in. Taped to the glass door of our new inner-Sydney apartment building, it invited newcomers to be part of the block's private Facebook group. We moved into our one-bedroom unit and promptly signed up, figuring it was as good a way as any to meet the neighbours. Our requests to join were approved within minutes.
State Member for Sydney, Alex Greenwich, has launched a petition to have short term letting debated in NSW parliament. He needs 10,000 signatures. They must be original signatures so people need to print, sign, and mail/drop off to his office.
We urge NSW LookUpStrata readers to sign, put up in their lobbies, and share with their committees and other lot owners.
Independent MP Alex Greenwich: There has been a strong supportive response to my petition calling for owners corporations the authority to control short term letting in their building, including to place limits beyond state controls or to ban the practice outright. If you support this approach, please sign and collect signatures. Print petition HERE.
Before making any decisions about possible changes to the BUGT Act, the Queensland Government would like to hear your views about QUT’s recommendations.
You are invited to provide feedback on QUT’s recommendations to harmonise some provisions of the BUGT Act and the BCCM Act to provide bodies corporate operating under the BUGT Act with a more contemporary body corporate legislative framework.
