Owner’s Corporations Benefit from Continued High Strata Standards 12/05/2009 For owners of strata titled properties it is important that the administrators of their building receive the support they require. The men and women who do this work are elected from amongst the owners and usually work for free. They are known as the Owner’s Corporation, whose jobs can be large or small depending upon the size of the building.
Even small buildings must be managed in accordance with law, and the fine print of compliance can be galling. Deciphering the complexities can get tricky, so people with specific expertise in this field are called in to help. These are licensed Strata Managers, the trouble shooters of the industry.
Mr Richard Tooker, the director of New South Wales Strata Management says that as of December 2008 there were around 1382 licensed Strata Managing Agents in NSW. He says it is their job to provide oversight assistance to Owner’s Corporations. He says these licensed agents are indeed specialists. Mr Tooker’s company has dozens on its payroll, who he says oversee the administration of hundreds of strata schemes in and around Sydney.
Mr Tooker says that because a strata scheme is a collection of individual properties on one block, each with their own separate title and a share in the common property, keeping everything on track can sometimes be difficult.
“Few strata schemes are exactly alike. I could say none are, but I hesitate to generalise. What isn’t debateable is that there is quite a lot of work out there.
By last count there were around 67,000 strata schemes in the State and around 700,000 individual lots. And the number is growing.”
All of the schemes are regulated under the Strata Act (the Strata Schemes Management Act 1996) and more than 62 per cent of these are said to utilise a Strata Managing Agent.
Mr Tooker says a year-long government review has just been completed to see if continued licensing of NSW Strata Managing Agents is of benefit to consumers. The findings said ‘yes’, adding that the NSW model could well be expanded to other states.
“Licensing and registration for Strata Managing Agents was introduced to protect consumers by ensuring that managers pass prescribed probity criteria and have sufficient professional training to undertake their work competently. NSW and the Northern Territory are the only states that currently require such licensing, but this could change.”
A Strata Managing Agent can be asked by an Owner’s Corporation to assist in a range of functions. These can include the preparation of estimates for administrative and sinking funds, assistance with the levying of contributions, the organisation of insurance, the receipt of monies to be held in custody, the arrangement of meetings, handling correspondence and the maintenance of records, amongst other tasks.
“Strata management is complex and requires technical knowledge and experience. Licensees are required to undertake professional development training each year to maintain their skills, with such knowledge and training directly benefitting Owner’s Corporations.”
He said that an Owner’s Corporation interested in finding out more about these services can contact New South Wales Strata Management direct on 9890 1841.
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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