Question: Our scheme has washing machines. The maintenance of the machines has been outsourced to a contractor and charges for use have been introduced. Can residents be charged a fee to use items of common property?
Our scheme has washing machines. Over time the strata company has introduced and now increased the price of using the machines. The maintenance of the machines has been outsourced to a contractor.
When I purchased my unit there was no mention of any additional costs above my levies. There is no bylaw about additional costs associated with the washing machines.
Can residents be charged a fee to use items of common property? Where can I find information about the decision making process to adopt this practice in our building?
Answer: Without passing a by-law, I would argue that the scheme cannot charge owners to use the machines and the strata company needs to budget for this expense in the levies.
The scheme should introduce a by-law and as the by-law would relate to the payment of money by an owner, it would likely be classified as a governance by-law under the definition in section 3 of the STA.
The scheme has a positive obligation under Section 91 to keep in good serviceable repair, properly maintain and, if necessary renew and replace common property and this would include the washing machines, assuming they were originally provided as part of the scheme on registration.
I’m also assuming that the strata company made a decision that rather than maintain the machines and thus pay for this expense through increased levies, they removed this expense by outsourcing the provision and/or maintenance of the machines to a third party. The third party provides this service by charging residents for the use of the machines. Without passing a by-law, I would argue that the scheme cannot charge owners to use the machines and the strata company needs to budget for this expense in the levies, regardless of whether all of the owners are subsiding this cost for only a few users of the machines.
This post appears in the October 2022 edition of The WA Strata Magazine.
Scott Bellerby
B Strata
E: scott.bellerby@bstratawa.com.au
P: 08 9382 7700
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