Apathy Most Common Cause of Strata Living Strife 7/10/2008 If you are an owner, becoming involved with the management of your buildings’ strata management team can keep you living amidst an extremely happy setting.
Apathy, on the other hand, can end as an invitation to disaster. Owning a strata-title property and avoiding involvement with its administration can come with an endless array of hassles, but need not to according to a leading authority in this field.
Mr Richard Tooker, the director of one of the State’s largest strata management organisations, New South Wales Strata Management, believes the road to peace begins when owners throw their hat into the administrative ring.
“The lack of interest by owners can pave the way for others to exert undo influence on the administration of a building. But owners can solve this problem by involving themselves in the year to year operation of the complex.”
Mr Tooker says the first line of action applicable even to a new owner is attendance at the next scheduled annual general meeting.
“If your purchase has been made in a small complex, say a building with six to eight apartments, the next AGM may be some months away, but tick it on your calendar and plan to attend, because this meeting will be important to you.”
New South Wales Strata Management is currently responsible for hundreds of strata management schemes situated throughout the greater Sydney region, each scheme often quite different from the next.
Mr Tooker says he has seen the effect of owner participation and recommends that owners not only attend and voice their opinions at annual general meetings but also seriously consider their involvement in affairs by becoming a member of the executive committee. This group, he says, is the true leader of the pack, who adjudicates over such things as levies and schedules repairs and maintenance.
“Notice must be given at least two weeks in advance, signalling to all owners when an annual general meeting will occur.
“Importantly, the Annual General Meeting will provide the platform for owners to discuss a wide range of things, from finance to by-laws. And the views expressed by owners can provide valuable input, helping the assembled group obtain opinions from as wide a base as possible.”
New owners, he says, need to know that all members of the buildings’ executive committee have to renominate and stand for re-election each year, providing the opportunity for new blood to join the administrative team.
Mr Tooker says that it is the role of the professional strata manager to provide professional oversight to these administrators, ensuring that committees act in accordance with all aspects of the Strata Title Act.
New South Wales Strata Management (formerly Gilmour Strata Management) commenced business in early 1991, as a member of the highly respected J A Gilmour & Sons group of companies. Licensed solely and specialising only in strata management services, the company has steadily grown to become one of the largest such organisations in New South Wales.
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