July Newsletter 2017
Welcome to the July edition of our newsletter!
On Monday we had our very successful ‘Smarter Strata’ owner seminar at the Grand Central Room at the Mercure Hotel in Sydney’s CBD.
We had a full house with over 100 people attending this information session. We organised this event to help owners understand how the Strata Reforms introduced late last year, may impact strata living.
We would like to thank Adrian Mueller (JS Mueller & Co Lawyers), Monika Jandrek (J Lawyers), Daniel Radman (Grace Lawyers) and Aylie Brutman (Economos Accountants) for their contribution in making this event such a success!
Last but not least, we would like to thank you, our loyal customers, for your ongoing support of Premium Strata.
Leanne Habib, CEO
Inger Brettle, COO
What is new at Premium Strata?
Deferral of Strata Building Bond Scheme to 1 January 2018
Find out more about the delay in the implementation of the NSW Residential Developer Bond and Defect Inspection Regime. This ‘Developer Bond Regime’ was to be introduced by the new Part 11 of the Strata Schemes Management Act 2015 (NSW), which came into effect on 30 November 2016.
Q&A Can We Terminate Because We Don’t Have a Licensed Strata Manager?
Leanne Habib, Premium Strata
Question: What are the implications of not having a licensed strata manager? Can a termination of a contract signed with a licensed agency be legal because the Strata Manager they put in place was not licensed?
Is there enough money in our sinking fund?
Blake Rooney, Leary & Partners
We regularly receive this query. Most owners are aware of the importance of the Sinking Fund Forecast (now called Maintenance Plans or Capital Works Plans in some states) but how much sinking fund is enough?
Q&A Smoke Alarms in Strata Units NSW
Peter Berney, Solutions in Engineering
Question: In NSW, who is responsible to ensure the smoke alarms in strata units are operational? Who’s responsibility is the cost of replacement and installation of new smoke detectors?
Q&A Chairperson Also The Caretaker – With No Binding Contract
Leanne Habib, Premium Strata
Question: Can the Chairman of our Strata Committee take on the role of “caretaker” for our complex without any written or binding contract agreed to by the lot owners?
Latest News
Better organise your lift emergency phone lines now!
Rex Henning, Equity Elevator Management
No one wants to be trapped in a pitch-dark lift with no light or emergency phone. The chances of this happening are not as remote as you may think. More than 20% of lifts we inspect have no emergency light and/or phone that works when the mains power goes down despite it being legally required and a critical safety feature too!
NSW Strata Buildings with Aluminium Cladding – Read this
Inger Brettle, Premium Strata
In the wake of the devastation of the London Fire, NSW Fair Trading is taking action concerning non-compliant aluminium cladding.
Strata building by-laws restricting short-stay letting, including Airbnb, declared ‘invalid’ by Fair Trading
Jimmy Thomson, Domain
Only weeks before the discussion paper on new holiday letting legislation is released, Fair Trading has modified its Strata Living handbook to warn strata committees and owners corporations that they can’t pass by-laws restricting holiday lets.
How NSW Strata Apartments can install solar polar
Inger Brettle, Premium Strata
It has been difficult for people in who live in apartments in NSW to install solar panels. This is often due to a fear of bureaucracy and resistance from the strata committees.
Leave us a Review
If you are a client of Premium Strata, we would greatly appreciate if you could leave us a google review of your positive experience about our team and work. If you have any feedback or require any assistance, please do not hesitate to contact us.
