Body Corporate Fences: Who Is Responsible For Maintenance?

Body corporate fences: No one seems to be too clear on who is responsible for maintaining them. Is it the body corporate or the lot owner? As with most things body corporate the answer is it depends. Not very helpful I know but that’s why there’s a whole article on this subject. Do bear in […]

Body Corporate Levies: Why Are They So Expensive?

One of the first questions people ask when they’re buying a unit is “how much are the levies?” It’s a smart question because it does no one any favours to buy a property they can’t afford to hold. The body corporate levies are a large part of those holding costs. Savvy buyers take the current […]

3 Common Disputes with Building Managers

One of the questions under the “Contracts” section in our Pre Purchase Strata Report is: Are there any disputes with the Building Manager? The question is there because disputes with Building Managers do come up, and they have the potential to be both very expensive and very damaging to the sense of community within the […]

3 Common Body Corporate Committee Issues That Will Affect All Lot Owners

It’s a common myth that the body corporate manager is in charge of a body corporate, so much so that it often comes as a surprise for those new to strata schemes that it’s actually a Committee who have the power and responsibility; well the Committee along with all the lot owners. One of the […]

5 Signs Of Poor Body Corporate Management

There’s nothing quite like that sinking feeling when you realise things have gone pear shaped when you weren’t looking. It’s particularly pertinent for strata schemes where most lot owners’ only brush with their body corporate management is paying levies and voting at annual meetings. Although there is “help” available when disputes arise there is no oversight to body corporate management […]

Case Study: An Ineffective Response To A Body Corporate Dispute

I did a search the other day that contained this item regarding a body corporate dispute: Tabled correspondence from the Caretaker complaining of by-law breaches by unit x (The Secretary)… There have been altercations between The Secretary and the Caretaker including physical and verbal violence. The committee discussed the matter (The Secretary was absent) and […]

What’s So Great About Body Corporate Records?

Body corporates have a lot of pluses and for me the greatest are the body corporate records. Buying any property is all about speculation. There is a reason the current owners are selling and sometimes that reason is because the property in question is a great big old lemon. If you’re buying a house you […]

Body Corporate Meetings: How To Keep In Touch

Something that comes up again and again in body corporate records is owners complaining about levies. Usually special levies, one off, or even multiple levies, issued to owners for a specific project. Inevitably someone complains “I knew nothing about it. How can you do this without letting us know?” Of course a body corporate can’t […]

5 Persistent Myths About Body Corporates

I read a lot of body corporate records. Those records comprise everything from official documents to professional reports, minutes and of course correspondence. I can safely say, after all this reading, people have some really strange ideas about body corporates.  Mostly those ideas are pretty benign, sometimes hilariously funny and in the end don’t make […]

The Hazards of a Poor Body Corporate Committee

For the vast majority of lot owners paying levies, observing by-laws and voting at general meetings will be the sum of their involvement with the body corporate. To a chosen few falls the task of leading and decision making. Management of a body corporate is a simple enough premise: all the lot owners combined vote […]

Body Corporate Management: Who’s In Charge?

Most lot owners experience of their body corporate management is levy notices, agendas and minutes in the mail. For others there may be some interaction with the onsite building manager. But who actually is in charge? It helps to think of a body corporate as a country, and a democratic one at that, ruled by […]

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