With wage pressures rising and new technology needing investment, what's the single most important thing medium and small strata businesses should focus on in 2026 to stay competitive as employers?
I am on our body corporate committee. Our chairperson has lodged a complaint alleging that our caretaker's employee recorded or photographed him on common property.
Is it legal in Queensland to video or photograph persons in public areas such as a body corporate's common property?
The relevant legislation covering my unit block is the Body Corporate and Community Management Act 1997 and the Small Schemes Module Regulation 2020. My paid manager continually applies the Act only to body corporate matters, e.g. composition of a committee, despite his attention being drawn to the error several times. Is this a problem, or should I stay quiet?
We live in a 50 year old Class B residential complex in the ACT. Recently the question 'who pays for repairs to damaged stop valves' has arisen.
While generally the owners corporation (OC) is responsible for the common stop valves and unit holders for those on their properties, several stop valves provide water to two lots and several also to three lots. In other cases, the stop valve providing water to a single lot appears to be located on common land.
Our strata company had a valuation done on the property, as requested by the insurance company. The valuation (done six months ago) increased the assessed replacement value from $3.5 million to $9.5 million, so our insurance budget has increased. The annual insurance for our property was paid about 5 months ago based on the older, lower value, and we have been advised that we will not be insured for the higher value until next year. The amount of the increase in the budget is a guesstimate only, and the strata management has not obtained any quotes.
We recently had committee minutes from a newly appointed committee circulated with two agenda items completely blacked out and a third item with the lot number redacted. I understand this may occur if the information discussed is legally privileged, but if it is for 'lot owner privacy', is this legally allowed and is this appropriate?
If a future purchaser requested committee minutes, redacted text might alarm them. As an investor, I am alarmed. What is so private that owners can't be told about it?
I recently requested by email copies of documents referred to in minutes of our body corporate committee meeting as follows: "the minutes state, in item 10 (e), that the area of overgrowth bordering XXX Street is the responsibility of the City of XXXX and that several communications have been made to the Council requesting maintenance. Please provide copies of that correspondence and any responses received from Council."
I am an owner of a strata unit in a two-lot strata complex and have been the secretary/treasurer for the last six years with no problems. A new owner purchased the other unit and their tenants moved in. The owners refuse to recognise they have purchased in a strata. Therefore, they refuse to pay any strata levies. They told their tenants they could park outside their door on the common property driveway, which restricts access to our unit 1 garage.
We have tried twice to vote out committee members who have been excluding owners from meetings, with a committee member being paid for work whilst on the committee. Somehow the voting figures do not add up for them to be dismissed. We have had vote numbers called out at the AGM, but the printed minutes do not reflect the numbers that were called.
We have what you would call a rogue body corporate, very competent at writing abusive and spiteful emails. What other options would you suggest?