Question: Our multi purpose building consists of 4 strata schemes. The balance between the voting rights and proportion of levies leads to stalemates and no decisions. Is there a solution?
We live in a 20-year-old multi-purpose building consisting of a tavern, hotel accommodation, short-term tourist apartments and residential apartments. There are 4 strata schemes that make up the Building Management Committee (BMC) governed by a BMC statement. The BMC voting rights are 1 vote for each Strata, however, the residential strata pay the majority of the building costs as per the BMC statement ‘Relative portion of each strata lot’.
This is very restrictive when trying to reach an agreement and especially building maintenance where two of the stratas don’t agree, resulting in a stalemate and no decision. We have looked into amending the BMC Statement, but that appears prohibitive and will cost a lot in legal fees. There is a clause for dispute resolution.
Is it possible to amend the actual value of a BMC voting right based on the percentage being paid for each item being voted on; similar to unit entitlement apportionment?
Answer: Assess whether the issues constitute a dispute pursuant to which you may exercise the dispute resolution provisions in the Strata Management Statement.
As the number of votes are prescribed by the Strata Management Statement, the mechanism for amending the number of votes is likely to be the same as amending the statement generally, which you have already looked into and have found the legal costs to be prohibitive.
In any case, from a costs perspective, if agreement cannot be reached between the 4 members in relation to building maintenance, it could be assumed that the other 3 members are unlikely to agree to an increase in your voting power which would result in a decrease in their voting power.
If agreement is not able to be reached due to a voting deadlock, you should review the Strata Management Statement for a deeming provision which provides that a deadlock is deemed to be a dispute. Such a provision will usually direct the members to proceed in accordance with the dispute resolution provisions. Even in the absence of a deeming provision, you should assess whether the issues constitute a dispute pursuant to which you may exercise the dispute resolution provisions in the Strata Management Statement.
The fact that the residential stratum scheme is paying the majority of the “building costs” does not necessarily mean that it should have equivalent voting power. The amount the residential stratum scheme pays towards the building costs are prescribed as percentages in the shared facilities register. The percentages should have been calculated based upon a particular valuation method (which may differ depending upon the type of facility) and if you are concerned that the percentages are not reasonable or correct, you should start by looking into the method of valuation which has been used.
If your concerns relate to the lack of maintenance of the shared facilities, it may be best to start by obtaining a report from a consultant proving the necessary maintenance requirement are not being satisfied, the consequences of this (i.e. ongoing damage, safety issues, etc.), and the costs to implement the maintenance requirements (a quotation is better than an estimate). Often if maintenance is not being undertaken there is also insufficient funds in the sinking fund. Keep in mind that if the residential stratum scheme is paying the majority of the “building costs” it is probably required to pay the majority of the contributions into the sinking fund.
You will need to review the Strata Management Statement carefully to assess the requirements for placing a motion on the agenda to resolve to undertake the maintenance. If a majority do not vote in favour of the motion, you should then enquire into the reasons and assess whether the failure to resolve to undertake the maintenance work constitutes a breach of the Strata Management Statement.
If legal fees are prohibitive, it may be best for you to spend some time studying the Strata Management Statement in detail and seek to utilise the provisions within the statement to your advantage as opposed to attempting to amend or challenge the statement. You may be able to place the residential stratum scheme in the position where it will have a strong case to prove the other members are in breach of the Strata Management Statement.
As I have not reviewed the Strata Management Statement, I can only provide general comments however with the right legal advice and representation the residential stratum scheme may be able to procure the result it wants by establishing non-compliance with the Strata Management Statement and placing the other members at risk of paying costs if legal proceedings are instigated.
I do not suggest that you cannot, or should not, look into changing the number of votes allocated to the residential stratum scheme however, as I have attempted to explain above, this may not be the best course to adopt and there may be more cost effective means of achieving a satisfactory outcome to the issues you are experiencing.
Shane Williamson
Williamson Lawyers Pty Ltd
E: shane@williamsonlawyers.com.au
P: 0404 045 605
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