For those of us who believe in law and logic, strata can be a bit challenging sometimes.
Take Flatchatter Anne-X whose two top-floor neighbours took advantage of work in the loft space on roof repairs to install additional rooms with ensuite bathrooms, all without so much as a “by your leave”.
Did they compensate the owners corporations for taking over common property? Nope – because they reckoned the roof space was of no use to anyone therefore it had no value.
Have they offered to take over responsibility for the common property that they have changed? Nope – this is a free lunch and they are going to tuck in, regardless of what the law says.
So the matter went to NCAT where the Member recognised the egregious nature of the land grab but declined to order the miscreants to reinstate common property.
Instead the Member ordered all parties to create a common property by-law which the owners corp must not unreasonably refuse.
They also declined to order the land-grabbers to compensate the owners corp for the annexed common property with which they have greatly enhanced the value of their apartments.
The owners corp drafted a by-law that – as is standard – passes responsibility for the maintenance of the common property on to the owners who are using it for their own purposes.
The renovators passed it back, with that clause removed. And guess what, common property by-laws can’t be made without the approval of all parties.
The upshot is, the owners corp is the only party that has restrictions placed on them – NCAT says they mustn’t unreasonably refuse to pass the by-law.
With the land-grabbers digging in their heels, our Flatchatter says she and her neighbours think they have made strata law history.
Build an extension to your flat without permission or compensation and, with any luck, the Tribunal will rubber-stamp it even when they know it’s wrong.
You can read the original post and comment on it HERE.
Elsewhere on the Forum
- Top floor owners (different ones this time) want to build on exclusive use roof space. Can they just do that? That’s HERE.
- New building Act means our excellent architect is technically underqualified to complete the job. Any tips for a low-cost workaround? That’s HERE.
- Is there a correct or best-practise procedure for forcing a Queensland committee to undertake repairs? That’s HERE.
- Are Victorian owners’ corps required to reveal owners’ email addresses if they have them on record? That’s HERE.
- Holiday lets are back again … but not without Covid-safe restrictions. That’s HERE.
How to ask and answer questions
Despite the Melbourne Cup trampling our correspondence underfoot, there are more posts than ever coming into the Forum every day. And now there are a couple of ways you can access them.
The best way these days may be to click on “Forum: Your Qs & A’s” on the top menu bar on a computer screen or on the drop-down menu (three lines) on the right of the screen on phones and tablets, under the Strata Choice ad.
Then click on the topic title that interests you, and off you go.
Alternatively, you can look at the list of “Your latest questions and answers” under the ads on the right of the page on a computer screen. Or at the bottom, after the ads and stories, on a tablet or phone.
Or you can go “old school” and go to the Forum Home Page and work your way through the topics there.
Whichever route you take to get there, the best way to keep up to speed with what’s happening is to register (if you haven’t already done so), then login and subscribe for free to the topics that interest you most.
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