- This topic has 5 replies, 5 voices, and was last updated 1 year, 11 months ago by .
-
Topic
-
There is a lot of damage done to common property at the complex I live in. The body corporate say they are fixing it but this was in July and nothing has been done to rectify the problem. The chair person of the strata got me to help him peg out an area that was going to be concreted and that was in October.
The body corporate say they need 3 quotes for concreting but I have not seen any concreters here .also I believe two units are doing drugs with a person from one unit smashing the windows of the other, physical fighting and abuse . The police have become a regular visitor to the premises but still it goes on.
I report the incidents to the body corporate who have now told me they are closing the case after they sent the owners letters because there was nothing they or me could legally do.
These people in these two units are dangerous with one verbally abusing me , not only is my health suffering from the fear from these two units but with the filthy conditions in the complex . I also believe the body corporate think because I am an older person I have nothing better to do but complain. Even old people have heaps to do unlike the people in the two units if concern who do nothing , don’t have a job but as I have said take drugs and possibly alcohol
-
Replies
-
This is a difficult area – strata law is generally about the building, and doesn’t really help with difficult residents. However there are some things you can do to help improve your situation:-
(1) Put it in writing. Complaints and so forth should be in writing, and so then become “official”. Basically send emails to your strata manager or strata committee, and ask for a response in writing too. Be brief, specific, and polite.
(2) Use shaming to get results. Put motions on the agendas of the strata committee and general meetings to shame the committee and strata manager to do the necessary work. Be constructive and polite. Rather than complain, request a specific result. Eg-
“Motion: the strata committee should report on progress with repairs to (WHATEVER), and advise the estimated cost, the estimated completion date, and any delays and the reason for those delays.”
“Motion: the Owners Corporation should carry out urgent repairs on (LIST CRITICAL PROBLEMS) within the following month, and normal repairs on (LIST LESS IMPORTANT ITEMS) within the following 3 months, and should try to obtain 3 quotes, but may accept 1 quote for the urgent repairs, and 2 quotes for the normal repairs.”Residents who are creating problems can’t really be dealt with under strata law. But the owners of the Units who house them, would probably not be happy with their behaviour, and likewise their agents. The strata register lists the agents and owners, and should include their phone nos, and email addresses. Again, report any problems to the owner and agent, again being factual, brief and polite, and remind them that the value of their investment is at risk. Check to see if the owners are financial (the AGM agenda will include that information), and if they owe levies, then propose a Motion to urgently recover the money owing, including putting debt collectors to work…
- This reply was modified 1 year, 11 months ago by .
strata law is generally about the building, and doesn’t really help with difficult residents.
Not sure about that. The model by-laws have clauses relating to noise and, more generally, “Behaviour of owners, occupiers and invitees” (below). Most schemes will have by-laws like this and if they don’t have them at all, then I believe the model by-law applies by default. Registered, valid by-laws are as good as strata law, when push comes to shove.
The committee or strata manager could send a warning to the residents that they are in breach of the by-laws and tell them the next notice will be an official “Notice to Comply” which carries potential financial penalties. But they could just send a Notice To Comply directly – there is not need to send prior warnings.
If they are tenants, then they should be warned they could be evicted as a breach of by-laws would be a breach of their lease agreement.
As far as damage goes, if the strata committee can prove it, they can send them a bill for fixing it and if they don’t pay, take them to court (not NCAT) for reparation.
6 Noise
An owner or occupier of a lot, or any invitee of an owner or occupier of a lot, must not create any noise on a lot or the common property likely to interfere with the peaceful enjoyment of the owner or occupier of another lot or of any person lawfully using common property7 Behaviour of owners, occupiers and invitees
(1) An owner or occupier of a lot, or any invitee of an owner or occupier of a lot, when on common property must be adequately clothed and must not use language or behave in a manner likely to cause offence or embarrassment to the owner or occupier of another lot or to any person lawfully using common property.
(2) An owner or occupier of a lot must take all reasonable steps to ensure that invitees of the owner or occupier:
(a) do not behave in a manner likely to interfere with the peaceful enjoyment of the owner or occupier of another lot or any person lawfully using common property, and
(b) without limiting paragraph (a), that invitees comply with clause (1The opinions offered in these Forum posts and replies are not intended to be taken as legal advice. Readers with serious issues should consult experienced strata lawyers.
Sympathies to you. I once had swift success in evicting near-by dope heads when I bought to the attention of the leasing realtor that the residents were regularly drugged off their nut, that should police raid the premises they would without doubt find drugs, and on doing so the owner of the property not just the resident would be considered as much at fault and at real risk of police action. Even stand-off owner’s don’t want that and the offenders were gone the same day. That was all based on news reports at the time in Qld where a land owner was actually charged because renters of his property were found to be growing dope there even though this was unknown to the owner. Don’t be afraid to push things to get your way and you can often act anonymously should this better suit you. All the best, C.
Jeggers, my sympathies to you. Regarding the concreting, if you are an owner, there’s nothing to stop you from obtaining the requisite quotes and forwarding these to the strata manager. Of course it’s their job to do this, but if you need it done quickly and the agent is useless, why not? It would also shame them and you could use this as an example to other owners as to why you need a new strata manager.
Regarding the problem tenants, under common law you have a lawful right to feel safe, free from violence and harassment, and to be able to enjoy your property in peace and quiet. In other words, you can sue. But you’ll need a lawyer and you need to balance the risks of failing the legal thresholds, and the risk of deadbeats not paying up, even if you win. For a legislative approach, under s153 of the Strata Schemes Management Act NSW, owners, occupiers and other persons are not to create nuisance. Other states may have similar laws. In NSW you could apply directly to NCAT to enforce s153. Make sure you diarise and document everything. Dates, times, who and what, whether you felt fear as a result of acts, recordings, photos, videos, etc.
You could also take the criminal approach. Again, you have to diarise and document everything in detail as above. You may need to install video cameras on your property running 24/7. Have the video on your phone running whenever you feel unsafe or threatened but don’t use it to intimidate the perpetrators. You are collecting the evidence to protect your lawful interests, not to infringe other’s interests. Familiarise yourself with the Crimes (Domestic and Personal Violence) Act (NSW) or similar legislation in other states. Note s13 of the Act. You could also apply to the local court for an APVO to protect you from violence if you have evidence.
Also familiarise yourself with the Affray and Assault provisions of the NSW Crimes Act. Once you have solid evidence, draft a statement of what happened, whether you were afraid of violence against you, and go to the police. The police may and try and fob you off, but if an offence has been committed and you have evidence, they must take your statement.
Good luck.
- You must be logged in to reply to this topic.