Should managing agency agreements be attached to the EGM notice when appointing a strata manager?

By admin,

At our AGM, we resolved to terminate our existing strata managing agent and to call an extraordinary general meeting to appoint a new strata manager. Two companies have been proposed. One has provided a strata management agency agreement, and the other has not.

In New South Wales, is the proposed strata management agency agreement required to be attached to the EGM agenda or circulated with the notice of meeting? If so, what legislation or regulation sets out this requirement?

Does office bearer insurance give committee members too much protection?

By admin,

Most committee members have office bearer insurance that the lot owners fund through their levies. It appears this cover protects committee members if someone challenges their decisions or actions. As a result, it can feel like committee members can say almost anything, while ordinary lot owners do not have the same legal protection. Is this imbalance fair, and does office bearer insurance allow committee members to act with less accountability than other owners?

Your rights when strata arranges lot work without consent

By admin,

The strata arranged work inside my unit against my wishes and now want me to cover the cost. They did not provide me with an opportunity to source my own contractor, obtain quotes, or assess whether the work was necessary. What rights do I have to dispute this work and challenge the charge?

Is security lighting on external walls an owner or common property responsibility?

By admin,

I own four commercial strata units in a block of nine. Each unit has security night lights fitted to the front and back external walls to illuminate the walkways and car parking area. These lights were installed when the complex was first built and are controlled by day–night sensors.

The power for the lights is drawn from each individual unit rather than from a common power meter. Are these external security lights considered common property, or is each unit owner responsible for maintaining and replacing the lights attached to their unit?

Repairing internal damage after a common property roof leak

By admin,

The owners corporation did not properly maintain the roof or ensure quality work. As a result, the roof leaked into my main bedroom, causing significant water damage and mould.

The owners corporation has acknowledged that the roof needed repair and arranged for a roofer to fix it. However, they now refuse to repair the internal damage in my bedroom caused by the faulty roof.

What rights do I have to require the owners corporation to rectify the internal water and mould damage that resulted from their failure to maintain the roof?

Committee members’ rights to access records, correspondence and meeting information

By admin,

We sit on an 8-member committee (one seat is vacant). A voting bloc of four members always votes together, and the remaining three are effectively excluded from information. We are not copied into, or given, key correspondence about issues that later come to a vote. For example, an EGM notice was issued without our knowledge that an EGM was proposed.

Should the body corporate always choose the cheapest quote

By admin,

We have obtained multiple quotes for work in our scheme, and one lot owner is pushing for the most expensive contractor because that is their preferred choice. They want the committee to prioritise their preferred contractor rather than accept a lower-priced quote for similar work.

Clarity on responsibility for repeated internal leaks in a high-rise

By admin,

I live in a high-rise apartment on the Gold Coast. Several months ago, water leaked through my ceiling from the bathroom in the unit above. The plumber identified the cause as water spilling onto the bathroom floor during a toilet repair, then escaping down into my ceiling.

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