This article discusses individual water meter resolution, explaining whether a special resolution or a resolution without dissent is required to approve the installation of individual water meters in a body corporate scheme.
Question: What type of Body Corporate resolution would be required in order to proceed – a Resolution without Dissent, or a Special Resolution?
Our strata scheme is 26 years old. Hot water is individually metered downstream of the master meter, whereas cold water is not, with water charges being apportioned according to Lot Entitlements. The installation of individual water meters to each Unit is being investigated, with the intent that, as with other utilities (gas, hot water, electricity), Units will pay only for what they use, plus a share of the Common Property usage.
What type of Body Corporate resolution would be required in order to proceed – a Resolution without Dissent, or a Special Resolution?
Answer: Largely, this comes down to the quote you’ve gotten for individual installation.
Largely, this comes down to the quote you’ve gotten for individual installation. More than likely this will be an improvement to common property and where the improvement is more than $2,000 multiplied by the number of lots in your scheme, that will be a special resolution. My understanding is that the price of individual metering is such that it’s nearly always going to be more than $2,000 multiplied by the number of lots in the scheme.
You will need to bear in mind that the move to individual metering, while welcomed by some, may not be welcomed by others who may be financially worse off as a result. Care needs to be taken by the committee to ensure that the quotes for individual metering, together with the costs and benefits, are clearly presented at the general meeting.
This post appears in Strata News #514.
Chris Irons Strata Solve E: chris@stratasolve.com.au P: 0419 805 898