In a recent case a residential apartment building in Rhodes, Sydney claimed damages against Walker Group Constructions, inferring they had breached statutory warranties.
However, after a five day hearing, the referee came to this surprising conclusion: Were Statutory Warranties Breached?
For NSW strata legal or levy collection advice please contact us here or call 02 9562 1266, we’re happy to assist.
Are you aware that it’s now less than 12 months before owners corporations must comply with another new law?
That’s right, in NSW, window locks must be installed on windows by 13 March, 2018. Otherwise, owners corporations will face hefty fines if requirements are not met by the due date.
According to Westmead Children’s Hospital around 50 children fall from windows and balconies every year. To reduce the risk of these incidents occurring the Strata Schemes Management Act (for existing buildings) and the Building Code of Australia has been amended (for newly constructed buildings).
To ensure you comply by the due date we suggest taking this approach:
Did you also know?
Remember, leaving it to the last minute places your scheme at risk of not complying by the due date. So, to avoid incurring a hefty fine, ensure it’s an agenda item at your next meeting (if you haven’t already done so).
For further information on the new window lock requirements visit – Fair Trading NSW.
For NSW strata legal or levy collection advice please contact us here or call 02 9562 1266, we’re happy to assist.
It’s the Gold Coasts crumbly ‘faulty tower’ with almost 1,000 building defects. Building experts have described the building as life threatening.
Only seven years old and the apartment block may have to be demolished. Literally sick of living with leaks, rust and mould the long-suffering strata residents of the Silverstone apartment complex are taking ASX-listed property developer Villa World, seeking $20 million in damages.
View the full strata mould article here Silverstone Apartment Defects
For NSW strata legal or levy collection advice please contact us here or call 02 9562 1266, we’re happy to assist.
As the notion of living a healthy lifestyle continues to become increasingly prominent within contemporary society on a global scale, smoke-free environments are now being enforced in the form of strata by-laws.
While it is clear that Australia adopts strict smoke-free regulations within public areas and indoor workplaces, restrictions within apartment buildings and/or other multi-unit residencies are a fairly new phenomenon. This can be attributed to the increasing growth of community concern in relation to the harmful health effects that arise as a result of exposure to second-hand tobacco smoke.
Should strict by-laws be adopted?
One of the primary justifications as to why smoke-free strata by-laws have come into effect is due to the drifting of second-hand smoke into non-smoking residential property. The Cancer Council NSW offers a ‘Smoke Free Apartment Living Kit‘ and substantiates such claims by informing community members that their concerns are valid by stating “Scientific studies have measured significant levels of tobacco smoke contaminants in the apartments of non-smoking residents who live in a building where people smoke in other parts of their building”.
Smoke has a tendency to drift throughout a building within apartment lots and common property. Drifting may occur through various mediums including but not inclusive to air conditioning systems, stairwells, balconies and elevator shafts. Resultantly, individuals living within apartments and other multi-unit residencies are placing pressure on owners corporations to pass strata by-laws to prohibit smoking and encourage living in a smoke-free environment.
If smoke-free strata by-laws do come into effect there is no doubt that various positives are apparent. For example, non-smoking individuals will have a reduced exposure to second-hand tobacco smoke and thus reduce the possibility of encountering potential health risks such as asthma. Financial benefits are also evident as smoke-free environments contribute to a reduced risk of fire and cigarette related damage including burn marks on furniture, benches, carpets and walls; equating to reduced cleaning and maintenance costs. Most importantly, individuals living within a smoke-free environment may feel peace-of-mind within a residency that takes preventive measures to improve the health of all.
Or…should people have a right to smoke?
On the contrary, smoke-free by laws have sparked a great deal of fury, particularly towards individuals who prefer to adopt a smoking lifestyle. Smokers believe that such by-laws take away a right of one group at the expense of another and feel it is a denial of their legal rights, believing they should have a right to smoke within the boundaries of their lot. Subsequently, many questions raised include: Are my legal rights infringed? Will a designated smoking area be provided? Can a balance between smokers and non-smokers be struck? & How do I know if I live in a smoke-free environment?
Adrian Mueller, specialist strata lawyer with JS Mueller & Co, says, Strata buildings have the ability to enforce by-laws prohibiting smoking. Existing strata schemes that do not have smoke-free by-laws can bring them in, but only if a 75% majority vote is obtained ”.
Adrian continues by saying, “There are available options to address the problem of smoke drift within apartment blocks. The level of detail within a strata by-law prohibiting smoking will vary due to individual circumstances. The by-law might ban smoking on any or all of the common property, a lot’s outdoor areas and even a lot’s indoor areas.”
For NSW strata legal or levy collection advice please contact us here or call 02 9562 1266, we’re happy to assist.
Key reforms to support residents living in nearly 2,200 community, neighbourhood and precinct schemes in NSW have been unveiled in a new community schemes law reform position paper.
A snapshot of the proposed changes includes:
To find out more visit the review of the strata and community scheme laws where you can read the positioning paper giving details on the reforms.
For NSW strata legal or levy collection advice please contact us here or call 02 9562 1266, we’re happy to assist.
Disputes between neighbours take many forms. This paper will consider the law relating to some of the most common and challenging types of neighbourhood disputes that affect owners corporations and strata managers. These are: disputes about access to neighbouring lands; hazards such as collapsing retaining walls, landslips and rock falls; dividing fences and tree disputes.
In modern cities, neighbourhood disputes involving strata schemes are commonplace. And these disputes are likely to increase as the drive towards urban consolidation literally pushes neighbours closer together and into greater conflict.
It is therefore important that participants in strata schemes, from owners corporations to strata managers, have a basic understanding of the most common types of disputes and the laws applicable to them.
Click here to download the full paper – Neighbourhood_Disputes
For NSW strata legal or levy collection advice please contact us here or call 02 9562 1266, we’re happy to assist.
Neighbouring properties often need temporary or permanent access to a strata scheme in order to develop their land – neighoubouring land access.
The usual scenario is that the neighbour contacts the executive committee or the strata manager, offering a simple form to sign to expedite the process. The neighbour will not voluntarily make any mention of liability, indemnities, compensation or other costs.
Most types of access only require an ordinary resolution at a general meeting. However, the registration of an easement (such as drainage easements, easements for services etc.) requires a special resolution, in accordance with section 26 of the Strata Schemes (Freehold Development) Act 1973.
Click here to download the full paper – Easements and Neighbours Accessing Strata Schemes
For NSW strata legal or levy collection advice please contact us here or call 02 9562 1266, we’re happy to assist.
Commencement of the Swimming Pools Amendment Act 2012 has now been deferred for 12 months to 29 April 2015.
For details of the legislation and its ramifications for owners corporations refer to the following article.
Click here for the full article – Swimming Pool Legislation
For NSW strata legal or levy collection advice please contact us here or call 02 9562 1266, we’re happy to assist.
Historically, with each of the individual states and territories throughout Australia having their own strata legislation, the downside has been that the lack of national uniformity has presented significant challenges with interpretation and enforcement of the relevant legislation across different jurisdictions.
There are currently three principal jurisdictions throughout Australia − New South Wales, Victoria and Queensland − each having introduced strata laws during the 1960s, with New South Wales leading the way in 1961. However, over the decades, each of the states has replaced and consolidated legislation at differing times, with regular, ongoing reviews of strata and community legislation taking place at a different pace across the country as governments endeavour to harmonise communal living environments and address issues which arise as communal living density increases.
Three law firms in these principal state-based jurisdictions have formed an alliance, aptly named Strata Lawyers Australia, comprising one law firm from each state which specialises in the practice of strata and community title law. The purpose of this alliance is to combine the local expertise of each firm in order to provide a quality, nation-wide legal service which will maximise the effectiveness of strata law services for stakeholders in the strata industry in each state.
Sydney-based firm, JS Mueller & Co, is an active member of this strategic alliance and draws on local expertise to provide industry-leading legal services and advice, enabling them to operate across state borders and provide the most relevant and comprehensive legal service possible.
Recent developments within the strata industry across the country have meant that the implementation of a national alliance of strata law firms will have a direct and meaningful impact on the efficiency and delivery of legal services in this industry. Indeed industry growth and consolidation have seen an emerging trend of strata management businesses operating across multiple jurisdictions.
A number of other states and territories, particularly the ACT, have recognised the need to modernise regulatory arrangements for the strata sector and are keen to see the various jurisdictions brought into line.
JS Mueller & Co strata lawyer, Adrian Mueller, says that, for example, “ACT strata laws are quite different from strata laws in other jurisdictions. The ACT Unit Titles Management Act has some unique provisions”.
Adrian’s extensive expertise has seen him deliver ground-breaking papers and seminars to strata lawyers and managers throughout the country − a definite asset to the services offered by the Strata Lawyers Australia alliance.
It is Adrian’s recommendation that comprehensive legal advice is always obtained from a specialist in the relevant jurisdiction when dealing with contentious strata issues, particularly in light of the significant variations nation-wide.
National consolidation in the strata industry will see growth in the number of strata management businesses and law firms operating across borders including through strategic alliances such as Strata Lawyers Australia. And consolidation of national licensing is expected to bolster confidence among strata managers and make strata communities a more viable option for our ever-expanding population density, but will almost certainly require continual monitoring and ongoing legislative reform well into the foreseeable future.
For NSW strata legal or levy collection advice please contact us here or call 02 9562 1266, we’re happy to assist.
Surveyors are not perfect. They can make mistakes when drawing strata plans.
But what happens once a strata plan containing errors is registered? Are the errors able to be corrected? A recent Supreme Court case confirms that the answer is “yes”.
Click here for the full article – Supreme Court Corrects Strata Plan Error
For NSW strata legal or levy collection advice please contact us here or call 02 9562 1266, we’re happy to assist.