Question: A lot owner in our 25 yr old building allowed the bathroom to deteriorate to the point that major waterproofing work is required. Is this, and the subsequent cost of the bathroom, at the cost of the owners corporation?
I own a lot in a 25 yr old villa complex.
One of the previous owners allowed the original bathroom to deteriorate with water leaking behind the tiles on the floor and internal wall due to grout degradation. The new owner is saying that the waterproofing is compromised with some areas of dampness in the subfloor although no deterioration of same.
It has been difficult to get consistent advice from the plumber and builders. Some say the waterproofing is intact and others say that it is not.
Is the Owners Corporation fully responsible for what will be a new bathroom given that the previous owner had never requested preventative maintenance? There are still some original bathrooms over the 10 lots and all are in good repair. The new owner was fully aware of the problems prior to purchase.
Answer: Regardless of the state of repair of the bathroom or that the owner was aware of the problems prior to purchase, the owners corporation is responsible to repair and maintain the waterproofing membrane and floor tiles.
The owners corporation has a strict duty to repair and maintain the common property tiles and waterproofing membrane. This is regardless of whether or not the current (or previous) owner performed or advised the owners corporation of any preventative maintenance.
A waterproofing membrane in a bathroom that was in place at registration of the strata plan would normally be common property. Under normal circumstances, a waterproofing membrane will last for a minimum of 10 years as this is the usual warranty provided by installers. If the villa complex is 25 years old, the waterproofing membrane could be expected to be reaching the end of its serviceable life.
I would suggest that the owners corporation engage a waterproofing expert to undertake testing to ascertain whether or not the waterproofing membrane requires repair or replacement and for the expert to suggest a scope of works for the repair or replacement.
Regardless of the state of repair of the bathroom or that the owner was aware of the problems prior to purchase, the owners corporation is responsible to repair and maintain the waterproofing membrane and floor tiles. This includes replacement of the waterproofing membrane and floor tiles if required. If the repairs or replacement damage lot property items, such as wall tiles, toilet, shower screen, vanity, the owners corporation is responsible to repair or replace those items on a like for like basis in accordance with section 122(6) of the Strata Schemes Management Act 2015.
This post appears in the December 2021 edition of The NSW Strata Magazine.
David Bannerman
Bannermans Lawyers
E: enquiries@bannermans.com.au
P: 02 9929 0226
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