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Jimmy-T, I read an excellent article by you in the Fin Review about the Opal catastrophe and in it, I believe you took a sideswipe at ‘self-certification’, if I understand properly.
We have an issue in our 60s Sydney block of 40 home units where an owner is planning to change the configuration of a three bedroom unit, turning it into a four bedroom unit and adding a tiny ensuite. They have already tried unsuccessfully to have an ‘electronic’ General Meeting vote on this where the plans and information were completely inadequate.
Now, they’re trying to have another General Meeting held even though the AGM is only bout 12 weeks away. A cynic might suggest this is to avoid having the full light of transparency shone on it at the AGM, whereas they might get lucky at another electronic EGM if they play their cards right.
Other trickiness includes, under the heading of ‘self-certification’, the owner says they either work or have worked (not clear) in town planing at the local council; the architect and engineer’s credentials are scant with just mobile numbers and post office box numbers, not even ABNs; the plans did not include anything about drainage or plumbing or incursions into common property walls. With respect to plumbing / drainage, the owner has been quoted as saying “Oh we’ll probably just run pipes round the edges or something” – unbelievable!
The Strata Manager, to whom all authority has been given by the Committee, simply says only ‘self-certification’ is required these days. A small band of concerned owners and residents are planing to insist on proper checking by an arm’s length, independent entity upfront, rather than wait to see what goes wrong, down the line.
We’re surely right, aren’t we? Any Flat Chatter suggestions, please, on how this could be handled?
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Fey Knows said:
The Strata Manager, to whom all authority has been given by the Committee, simply says only ‘self-certification’ is required these days.
Firstly, the strata committee can take back any delegated responsibilities from the strata manager whenever they choose, and the owners (at a general meeting) can take back authority from the committee.
The question of self-certification only applies to work that doesn’t, for instance, involve installing bathrooms. Your strata manager needs to have a look at the legislation and regulations regarding major and non-major works.
The owners corporation can set its own reasonable parameters for the permission for work that impacts on common property, but at a very basic level, the tradies must be certified and insured. These parameters include hours for noisy work (drilling etc), disposal of rubbish, parking of tradies’ vehicles and use and protection of lifts.
Be very wary of the builder issuing a document saying that the work is “complying” and doesn’t need council approval. We had a party-boy neighbour remove a room, which would normally require a DA as its changing the configuration of the floor plan. He got a builder mate to issue a complying certificate, our idiot strata committee accepted it at face value, the council accepted the strata committee had no objection, and told us they had no dog in the fight and to take it up with the builder. We eventually sold our unit because of the noise from the expanded lounge room.
So inform the council of the plans and tell them that they are not approved. Then go to the lot owners with a list of the conditions, guarantees and assurances you will require before approving the works by special resolution.
Or prepare to enter years of conflict as the “self-certified” work causes problems that can’t be fixed.
The 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.
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