It all depend on what is set out in your Owners Corporation rules. Each Owner Corporation is different. You would have been provided with a set of rules when you took over your property. You should be able to find the answer in this document. If you have any trouble thereafter, your strata manager should be able to point you in the right direction. Strata Plan recommends registering your pet with your Owner Corporation to ensure our records are clear on which lots in your Owners Corporation have pets and which do not. Related Form: Pet Application form Related Articles: Keeping Pets Happy in Owners Corporation.

It all depends on what is set out in your Owners Corporation rules. Most buildings will govern the colour of the window or venetian blinds, but each Owners Corporation is different. You should have been provided with a set of rules when you took over your property. You should be able to find the answer in this document. If you have any trouble thereafter, your strata manager should be able to point you in the right direction. If you have any queries, fill out our Enquiry Form and be sure to include your building’s address and your lot number.

As a general rule, ‘For Sale’ signs are not permitted without prior consent but it is best to speak to your strata manager first. Related Form: Signage/Installation Form

There are certain procedures which must be undertaken before a dispute or complaint can be resolved. If the problem requires a lot of money to fix, it may need to go before the Owners Corporation committee to get approval by vote. This could be reason why it takes longer than expected to resolve.

The lack of maintenance on a building can be the result of many factors, but more often than not if it comes down to either a lack of funds or inadequate reporting from occupants. Consider the following: 

• Management: Collectively, committee members occupants and owners within a building have a duty of care to report defects or potential issues to the Owners Corporation or Strata Plan. Some buildings have a full-time or part-time onsite building manager which greatly assists in identifying issues immediately. If an Owner Corporation or Committee fails to address the incident, the building will deteriorate.
• Inadequate Contractors: The demise of a building can be contributed to contractors failing to perform their duty or service, i.e. gardener not attending to the gardens regularly or cleaners not fulfilling their roles or reporting issues back to the Strata Plan
• Lack of Funds: Like any organisation, it’s difficult to address an incident without funding. Unfortunately, this usually occurs due to inadequate budgeting or owners not paying their fees on time. The option thereafter are to either raise a special levy to rectify the problem, do nothing or let the building deteriorate.

Leaks can be one of the issues that present no straightforward answer. The following can be used as a guide.

• Identity: The cause needs to be identified. This is usually performed by the home owner, however if it is unreasonable to expect the owner to perform the task, the Owner Corporation may do so on the owner’s behalf.
• Cause: If the cause is a result of another property, for example a neighbour or common property, then the responsibility to fix the cause lay with that owner where the cause emanates from.
• Resolve: Once the cause has been fixed, the lot initially making the request is notified and if they choose to, may decide to lodge an insurance claim via the owners corporations of the affected lot’s contents policy.

The above assumes all parties will co-operate in the process and the cause has been found. What happens if it is not that smooth? – The hardest part of any leak incident is identifying the cause. This can be a complicated and costly procedure. Identifying the leak is generally a process of elimination and can affect both private and common properties. In Strata Plan’s experience, we have found that the majority of leaks are associated with membranes beneath bathroom, balcony tiles and flashing. Where a party (owner or Owners Corporation) is non-respondent in addressing the cause of the leak, the person affected by the problem, may initiate a disputes process which may see the matter referred to VCAT.

The caretaker has been contacted by the Owners Corporation and provides services at the property, generally to a scope of works as defined by their contract or agreement with the Owners Corporation. A typical scope of works includes: ensuring the tidiness of common property, replacing light globes in common areas as required, reporting any damage to common property to Strata Plan and supervising lot owners and/or tenants as they move in and out of the property. Individual caretaker scope of works may vary.

The Owners Corporation is responsible for maintaining and improving common property, which is jointly held property. Balconies, or any other property which lies within a lot as specified by the plan of subdivision, is the responsibility of the owner. Generally, boundaries of property are defined as interior facing, exterior facing, median or hatched on the plan subdivision. These boundaries define if the area/s in question are private or common property. Admittedly, this can be a bit of a grey area, so it is always best to investigate. At a high level, however, if repairs are for your exclusive benefit, they are your responsibility and not the Owners Corporation’s.

Several things can impact timely repairs, such as financial constraints of the Owner Corporation or the need to raise special levies to undertake works. If the decision making process of the committee is delayed and instructions to the manager to proceed is the delayed and instructions to the manager to proceed is delayed then there will hold up in works being completed. There may be an insurance claim process prior to works commencing or expert reports need to be commissioned. These and others factors can delay repairs and maintenance. For important maintenance updates and access to your Online Community Portal, please ensure Strata Plan has your most relevant contact details. Related Form: Contact Details Form.