Is a lump sum motion for legal expenses valid in strata?

By admin,

At our recent AGM the Committee proposed the following motion:

Body Corporate Solicitors

That the body corporate seek advice as is required from time to time from the body corporate solicitors and other industry experts to assist the committee in relation to dispute resolutions, recovery of amounts owing to the body corporate, service contracts and Building Management Group issues at a cost not to exceed the major spending limit of the body corporate.

Our maximum spend limit is $395,000. Is such a 'lump sum motion' valid?

Are two quotes required to renew a body corporate manager’s contract?

By admin,

At our AGM, the committee are going to put up a motion to renew the body corporate manager's contract, which expires in June 2024. The proposed two year contract is above the $10,000 committee spending limit. We advised the committee they need to provide two quotes for the motion. The body corporate manager told them this isn't required. Who is correct? How can I stop or challenge this?

Can a strata committee extend a contract without owner approval?

By admin,

Our body corporate spending limit is $15,909 + GST. Our three year energy supply contract expires soon. The contract's average cost is $24,000 per annum. Two BCMs from different companies have advised the committee they can authorise an extension to the contract for no more than 12 months without owner approval. Can you please advise?

Upstairs neighbour removed carpet and causing noise and water leaks — What are your rights?

By admin,

We purchased a ground floor unit around a year ago. It is in an old 2 story block with 8 units. It was first registered in 1967, so it falls under the 1965 by-laws. The issue is, the second floor units all had carpet & underlay, laid onto tongue & groove boards. The unit above us have pulled up the carpet and underlay and have polished the old boards which sit directly on the structs in our ceiling, leaving no insulation what so ever.

How to deal with neighbour noise in a Queensland body corporate without specific bylaws

By admin,

I'm concerned about the flooring and sound proofing of my apartment. How can residents deal with neighbour’s noise like walking, moving furniture, kids jumping up and down and running around? In our body corporate we do not seem to have bylaws or standards to cover these problems?

Can a neighbour ask you to pay to fix noise from their tiled floor?

By admin,

The owner of the unit above has had tiles laid without soundproofing. We have complained about the noise. In response to our complaints about the noise, he has arranged a quote to put carpet down.

In compensation for the laying of the carpet, the neighbour wanted me to pay him $4000. He has now reduced this amount to $3000 and he would like $2000 in advance before he goes ahead and orders the carpet!

Can he do this to me? Is it legal?

Should I be paying him for work to be carried out in his unit to fix a problem he created?

Is an acoustic test mandatory after installing hard flooring in an apartment?

By admin,

After gaining approval from the then Body Corporate Committee 4 years ago, we installed a floating wooden floor on a 1st level apartment using noise-reducing underlay as recommended by the manufacturers – Compliant below the 62 noise level.

Part of the approval advised we needed to carry out an acoustic test, which required gaining access to the apartment below. After discussions with the owner at that time, he was not keen to allow access.

Do you have to comply with body corporate flooring requirements not stated in the bylaws?

By admin,

I wish to change the flooring in my unit from carpet to hard flooring. Our body corporate states I need to lodge an application for them to approve the scope of works, appearance of flooring product, and acoustic characteristics. After installation, I will also need to pay for testing to ensure the flooring has an acoustic rating below a certain db level.

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