Is compulsory voting the answer to strata apathy?

With allegations of ‘blind” voting exacerbated by language barriers at one blighted block in Melbourne, there have been calls for strata information and forms to be printed in the native languages of the block’s owners.

But the bigger question is surely, does anyone in strata read anything, anywhere?

The latest story on the Aurora building in Melbourne centres on the issue of communication, which is significant for all strata residents and investors.

The 1200-unit building, which is facing multiple legal and financial challenges, sees strata committee members accused by some residents of proxy farming (not a crime) in an effort to retain control of the block.

Proxy farming is where one owner or a power group in a building persuades individuals to sign over their votes on all issues, including the election of the committee.

The standard cap on proxy votes of 5 per cent per individual owner, applicable in most states, is easily side-stepped by distributing assigned votes around supporters.

In the recent ABC news report , one overseas investor claimed that many of the substantial numbers of foreign owners who supported the status quo at the Aurora didn’t realise what they were agreeing to when they signed proxy forms.

And that led to calls for strata information and, critically, proxy forms to be provided to owners in their native languages.

It’s not such an outlandish idea. The relevant website for strata in NSW has information in more than 70 languages, from Afrikaans to Yiddish.

Consumer Affairs in Victoria speaks in 34 tongues, from Amharic to Vietnamese, and the body corporate commission in Queensland offers links to translation services in almost 30 languages, from Arabic to Yumpla Tok.

Providing information is great but the real challenge is convincing apartment owners and tenants that they need to read it.

Too many owners, especially those who live overseas or in different states, have no idea of their rights and obligations in the place they have invested, and no interest in participating in decision making.

Attendance at annual general meetings is so reliably parlous that various state governments have had to introduce workarounds to their quorum rules so that meetings can go ahead with minimal attendance.

Owners and (especially) tenants tend not to read strata committee agendas or the resulting meeting minutes. This is even more significant when it comes to general meetings, where by-laws can be created, changed or deleted.

Ignoring proposed changes can lead to long-term damage if a determined minority takes advantage of general apathy to push through self-interested decisions.

Voting systems vary from state to state but, generally, by the time the majority of owners wake up to what’s been decided, the same minority can prevent their reversal by mustering 25 per cent of votes.

To be clear, in most cases the vote that counts is only of those who attended a meeting in person or sent a proxy – not all the owners.

The translation of strata documents into diverse languages wouldn’t do any harm but a more profound effect would be to find some way of making everyone aware of their rights and responsibilities.

How do you do that? Most strata owners and investors don’t even look at their by-laws until they’re told they’ve breached them or may be about to.

Too few strata residents read the agendas and minutes of their strata committees or general meetings until the building is in crisis – by which time much of the damage has been done.

What’s the answer?  A pop test at the AGM with a lavish prize for the winner? A multiple-choice test on the block’s by-laws, before you get the keys to your new abode.

Philosophically, our politicians are disinclined to interfere with the nuts and bolts of strata politics. In any case, what could they possibly do to get strata owners more involved? Introduce compulsory voting?

I was actually contemplating doing an “April Fool” saying that compulsory strata voting was going to be introduced. But then I thought it wasn’t such a foolish idea after all.

The thing is, if it worked in strata, then it might spread to local council, state and even federal elections … Wait a minute!