Whitbread Strata Insurance Specialists
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Our posts this week:

Don't miss our comprehensive .... and growing .... list of Upcoming Strata Events + Latest News + Have Your Say - found at the very bottom of the newsletter. 

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Looking for a strata lawyer, financial advisor, plumber, and electrician or maybe maintenance work is required?

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Latest Articles

Attending your AGM

AGM or Wine? Why You Should Participate in Your AGM  


Nicole Wilde, Tisher Liner FC Law
Why is it important for you to attend your AGM? Because you work hard to earn your money, and if you don’t participate in the democratic decision-making process of your Owners Corporation’s administration and the repair and maintenance of the common property in your building, then there is ample opportunity for inefficiencies and waste.
 
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Property Audit & Assurance
NSW Committee Powers

NSW: Q&A Strata Committee Powers: Cooling Tower Too Hot to Handle


Leanne Habib, Premium Strata
Question: An old cooling tower in our building only services a proportion of the apartments. What are the strata committee powers? The committee is proposing to replace the tower with ducted air conditioning to the affected units at the cost of the Owners Corporation.
 
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QLD Duties BM

QLD: Q&A Duties of a Building Manager & Providing Relevant Information

 
Frank Higginson, Hynes Legal
Question: We are experiencing unprofessional conduct from our onsite managers who are providing personal information about lot owners. The police have been involved. We receive no support from the Body Corporate Managers and Committee.

 
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Strata Partnering Servicecs
ACT Financial Statements AGM

ACT: Q&A Financial Statements for AGM – What Should Be Included?


Jan Browne, Whittles Strata Partners
Question: What financial statements for the AGM is the Strata Manager obliged to include with the Agenda papers? We do not have access to the expenditure report unless we specifically ask for a copy from the Strata Manager.

 
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NSW Conflict of Interest

NSW: Q&A Strata Committee Conflict of Interest Over Concrete Cancer Repairs?

 
Rod Smith, The Strata Collective
Question: We are in the process of an NCAT dispute over the Owners Corporation's failure to repair the common property. I also hold a general position on the strata committee. Does this constitute a strata committee conflict of interest?

 
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Supplied Newsletter

NSW: Strata Manager Advocates and Changes to NCAT


Bailey Compton, Leverage Group – Solicitors & Academy
The new Strata Schemes Management Act 2015 gives greater power to the NSW Civil Administrative Tribunal (NCAT) to hear matters. One of the unexpected outcomes has been that strata managers are being thrown into the role of solicitor.

 
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Last Edition's Star Article

NSW Strata Bullying

NSW: Q&A I’m Abused in Emails from Another Committee Member

 
Rod Smith, The Strata Collective
Question: What are my rights as a committee member who is abused in emails constantly with offending words and disrespectful terms about quotes and repairs for the block from another committee member?

 
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Recent Comments

Insurance Storage Cages

Strata Insurance doesn’t cover items in your storage cage…


Lia de Sousa, Whitbread Insurance Brokers
Question: There was break in to my storage care area in the basement of my apartment. The fence of the storage area has been cut open and I would like to know who covers the repairs or replacement of that actual fence please (not the contents in the storage cage area).
QLD Parking

QLD: Q&A The First rule of Visitor Parking in Apartments – umm, it’s for visitors!


Todd Garsden, Hynes Legal
Question: Would there be any legal problem with a Body Corporate installing boom gate entry access to a visitor parking area controlled by a Licence Plate Recognition (LPR) camera, and automatically denying access to the visitor car park to known resident vehicles using their licence plate numbers? Any vehicle licence plate numbers not on the resident list would be automatically admitted to the visitor car park, on the assumption they are bona fide visitors. The exclusion list would be updated as residents and their vehicles change.

This approach would seem to avoid the onerous processes needed to get a Commissioner’s order to get recalcitrant residents out of the visitor car park, by stopping them getting in in the first place.
NSW Accurate Minutes

NSW: Q&A Accurate Meeting Minutes + Venue for the AGM

 
Rod Smith, The Strata Collective
Question: We have issues every single time the secretary writes the minutes the EC have to ask for corrections be made because the secretary has taken creative licence to praise those EC members who they thinks are doing a good job and in particular when they are of the same view. Selective hearing on particular matters is evidenced in the minutes also where other contributions from EC members are not recorded if they don’t agree with a conflicting view. Should the secretary be asked if they are really suited to the job? They check everything through the chair who runs how the EC operates which is outside the scope of the role of the chair.

 
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ASSD
Strata Small Scheme Solutions

Strata Small Scheme Solutions

NSW: Do the right thing, do the best you can, always show people you care
We provide our service through using the most current strata specific industry program and latest in technology. Strata Committee members get higher levels of access and can access financial information and reports.
Leverage Group
Leverage Group
NSW: Leverage Solicitors | Leverage Academy
Everything from simple advice through to structure of business and the development of policies and procedure manuals can be undertaken by Leverage Solicitors.
Leverage Academy is highly sought after by Real Estate Professionals looking to gain qualifications and our results have made us leaders in the industry.

News of the Week

Smoke free housing

Guide for smoke free strata housing in Western Australia

acosh
The Guide for smoke free strata housing in Western Australia is a joint initiative of ACOSH and Cancer Council Western Australia. The guide aims to assist community members and strata managers to introduce a non-smoking by-law, reduce exposure to secondhand smoke and make conflicts easier to manage.

NSW: Have Your Say on Short Term Letting

A message from Karen Stiles, OCN:

State Member for Sydney, Alex Greenwich, has launched a petition to have short term letting debated in NSW parliament.  He needs 10,000 signatures.  They must be original signatures so people need to print, sign, and mail/drop off to his office. 
 
We urge NSW LookUpStrata readers to sign, put up in their lobbies, and share with their committees and other lot owners.

Independent MP Alex GreenwichThere has been a strong supportive response to my petition calling for owners corporations the authority to control short term letting in their building, including to place limits beyond state controls or to ban the practice outright. If you support this approach, please sign and collect signatures. Print petition HERE.

QLD: Have Your Say on BUGTA

A message from Department of Justice and Attorney-General:
 

Before making any decisions about possible changes to the BUGT Act, the Queensland Government would like to hear your views about QUT’s recommendations.

You are invited to provide feedback on QUT’s recommendations to harmonise some provisions of the BUGT Act and the BCCM Act to provide bodies corporate operating under the BUGT Act with a more contemporary body corporate legislative framework.

Consultation closes on 24 August 2018.

Find out more HERE.

WA: Have Your Say on Strata Fees

WA Apartment Advocacy is conducting a Survey on Strata Fees. 

This survey is for lot owners: both owner occupiers and investors.

The survey can be completed HERE. Results will be published via the WAAA site next month.

Upcoming Events

New South Wales

Western Australia

Queensland

Australian Capital Territory

Breaking News

Follow us for your most up-to-date and comprehensive stream of strata news.

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How can we stop building occupants wasting energy?

NSW:  Plans for first set of 11,000 units to go near Sydney Metro stations

 

QLD:  Developers Address Demand for Larger Apartments on the Gold Coast

Brisbane has 10,000 too many new apartments

'Spider-Man' thief's stunt after allegedly robbing apartment

One-bedroom Brisbane apartment sells for a staggering $2.6m


VIC:  Jitters as house prices fall for units, apartments in Melbourne’s property market


ACT:  Apartment boom fans fears firefighting capability not keeping up  
 

WA: Taking a look at the ‘year that was’ in WA Real Estate

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