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We have bought a unit in NSW and have learnt that our neighbour is going to enclose their balcony. One of the reasons why we bought the unit was for the view and by enclosing their balcony we will lose about half of that view and some sun. However it seems all body corporate and council approvals are in place.
We have asked for compensation but this has been refused on the basis that the body corporate and council approved the work years ago. (Other owners in the building don’t care as they live on the other side of the building so aren’t affected). The strata manager says that we would need to take the council, the body corporate, and the original owner who obtained permission (unit has been bought and sold twice since approval), to court if we want to pursue the matter.
A realestate agent told us that the value of our apartment will drop about $50,000 once that view is gone.
Do we have a leg to stand on if we pursue the matter?
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Might be worth finding out whether the council approval had a time limit? It might be that the neighbours would need to go through the whole process again and when they do they might need to consult the current neighbours. Certainly ask for written evidence of the owners corporation and council approvals.
Have you seen a copy of the AGM / EGM minutes where the special resolution was passed? I have had situations in the past where someone has claimed permission, and Strata Manager or SC member even vouched for this, but with a little digging I found it either did not exist or was invalid.
You definitely do. Where we lived several balconies were turned into extra rooms which impacted the building and other owners in many ways. A legal firm produced an agreed compensation plan for all owners affected. It turns out even the strata scheme was entitled to compensation because of all the possible implications.
It was a win win situation for all as compensation was based on the increase in value of those apartments and not necessarily the day to day impact. As values ncreased by about 30% impacted owners received up to $40k(1 received $80k but other reasons were included).
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