When You Need A Helping Hand

Sydney Morning Herald

Saturday April 12, 2008

Susan Wellings

Strata owners with problems don't have to suffer alone. There are a lot of places to turn for assistance.

Your brand new off-the-plan apartment has more leaks than a whistleblowers' convention. Your building manager has been selling unit masterkeys on eBay. And pets are running riot throughout the common property. Who ya gonna call?

Many apartment buyers complain they don't know where to turn when they're having difficulties but there's a whole industry aimed at helping them out.

HELP! I NEED SOMEBODY!

One of the first people to call is your building's strata manager. "We're employed by owners' corporations and it's our job to give administrative help and pragmatic advice," says David Morris, president of the Institute of Strata Title Management.

"A strata manager's biggest strength is that he's probably seen a situation just like yours somewhere else, so it's a really good idea to pick his brains."

Some strata companies have additional services to help their buildings' residents. Strata Associates, for example, provides websites for its strata scheme clients. The sites include a confidential chat room for executive committee members and polling facilities for residents to register their feelings. The company can also supply digital noticeboards for common areas, so residents without internet access can see what's going on.

Strataman is an information website. "We started the site," says director Margaret O'Connor, "because there was very little information for the general public about strata and with so many people moving into apartments, they want to know how it works."

Another group is the Owners Corporation Network, the peak body for apartment owners, which is run by strata owners. The organisation provides information, networking opportunities with other buildings' executive committee members, lobbying and seminars.

The next seminar will be held on May 3 at the Museum of Sydney. It will be on the subject of Caring For Your Building, From Birth To Death and you don't have to be a member to attend (see www.ocn.org.au for details).

"As well as offering practical assistance, we're a reassuring presence for apartment owners who have problems because they know they're not alone," says strata lawyer Stephen Goddard, chairman of the Owners Corporation Network.

"The worst issues people have come to us with are potentially life-threatening building defects, such as missing fire dampers. Then there are lots of problems involving pets, common property and noisy neighbours."

HELP! NOT JUST ANYBODY

In some situations, there'll be no alternative to paying for legal advice from a specialist strata lawyer. Francesco Andreone of Andreones Lawyers says the earlier a strata lawyer is contacted, the better.

"It's better to get good advice about how to avoid disputes, rather than trying to resolve them later, when things have gone wrong and people are angry," Andreone says.

The NSW Government body that handles strata issues is the Office of Fair Trading but it doesn't have a specialist strata helpline. Often, staff there end up referring to the Fair Trading website or the booklet Strata Living, which can be downloaded from www.fairtrading.nsw.gov.au. Local councils can also be a source of information, particularly about certification and local zonings.

Often, a more popular helper is The Sydney Morning Herald's Flatchat columnist Jimmy Thomson, who receives up to 20 requests a week for advice from apartment residents.

"It seems to be growing too, as the numbers of people living in strata increases," Thomson says. "There's a real need for help out there."

However, the number of people providing more specialised aid is increasing, too. For new buildings with defects, David Adamson of Constructive Advice can help with pushing developers or builders to repair faulty work.

"I like to become involved from the very beginning, when I can make sure the specifications are appropriate, the finishes are what have been promised and the documentation is accurate and all in place," Adamson says. "Early input is better than trying to fix up a problem at the end."

Troubleshooter Strategic Strata Services does full audits of buildings in trouble, covering items such as the budget, levies, service contracts, security and building management. "The audit gives a clear snapshot of any problems," says director Allan Hoy, "and gives recommendations on what you can do."

YOU KNOW I NEED SOMEONE

On the financial front, lawyer Leon Cheneval of Total Strategic Solutions has found that many apartment owners are paying levies that are too high because they're based on wrongly allocated unit entitlements, which he challenges at the Consumer, Trader and Tenancy Tribunal.

This might happen when a developer keeps apartments and arranges the entitlements so he pays less, or sets the entitlements for the three-bedroom penthouse with stunning views at the same level as the studio on the ground floor facing a wall, in order to make it more attractive to purchasers.

"But the poor old strata punter out there needs to know they don't have to suck eggs when it comes to the entitlement," Cheneval says. "This is a problem that can be fixed."

When apartment owners don't have enough money in their coffers to rectify defects or to refurbish their building, Lannock Strata Finance can provide loans to cover the costs. With loans from $15,000 to $3.5 million already taken out, chief executive Paul Morton says it often makes far more sense than raising a special levy.

"Many people are halfway through a project and either costs blow out or it goes on longer than they planned," Morton says. "People most often take out loans for defects actions, fixing roofs, modernising lifts, replacing windows and solving concrete cancer."

For managing a buildings' drawings and records, the company e.law will come in and put them all in an indexed, computerised database. "It's important to keep them properly, rather than trawling through boxes," says Warren Dunn, head of e.discovery.

MAD AS HELL? JOIN THE NETWORK

Owners who rent out their apartments and parking spaces to tenants but who then insist on using the building's facilities - and car park - themselves. Water leaks sprouting all over the block. Noisy groups of backpackers squashed into single-bedroom units.

When Chris Demetriades was confronted with numerous problems in his 20-year-old, under-maintained 15-storey city apartment building, he knew he needed some professional knowledge and help. So, in the end, he joined the Owners Corporation Network.

"It really did help us," says Demetriades, who is chairman of his 154-unit block on Sussex Street. "They circulate good information which is relevant to all unit owners and members can ask questions of other owners who have been confronted with the same issues."

Demetriades, 78, also went to City of Sydney Council for assistance on compliance issues and says all the problems are slowly being ironed out. Security has improved and building management problems are being sorted.

"Our remaining problem is mostly about people having little idea about community living and ignoring the fact that the building is for all residents," he says.

"The network takes the view that strata title is about strata living, and I would recommend anyone struggling with problems to join."

WHERE TO GO

The ISTM 9904 8499 or www.istm.org.au

Strataman www.strataman.com.au

The OCN 9233 7700 or www.ocn.org.au

The Office of Fair Trading 133 220 or www.fairtrading.nsw.gov.au

Jimmy Thomson Flatchat mail@flat-chat.com.au

Constructive Advice 0419 706 057 or www.constructiveadvice.com.au

Total Strategic Solutions 1300 858 480 or www.totalstrategic.com.au

Lannock Finance 1300 851 585 or www.lannock.com.au

Elaw 9221 1366 or www.elaw.com.au

Strategic Strata Services 0437 571 572

© 2008 Sydney Morning Herald

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