Case Studies: Understanding Strata Schemes
Strata is the most common way of managing apartment or townhouse ownership in Australia. As these case studies show, utilising the services of a professional property manager with knowledge about strata schemes can help when issues arise.
As our Taylors Insight: A Strata Guide for Landlords points out, understanding landlord responsibilities, by-laws, levies and tenant rights in a strata scheme is essential.
The following two case studies exemplify the importance of understanding strata responsibilities, particularly when issues arise.
Case Study 1
When one of our tenants reported damage to the television aerial in the building, we knew that it was the strata’s responsibility to arrange for the repair as the aerial was on common property. The landlord of property also paid capital works fund levies to contribute towards the cost of repairs as they arose.
Once the repair request was received in writing, it became the landlord’s responsibility to ensure the repairs were completed as part of their obligation to the tenant. However, at Taylors, we do things a little differently. Rather than just passing on the request to the landlord and removing ourselves from any further involvement with the issue, we followed up with strata and the tenant regularly until the aerial was fixed.
Case Study 2
An invoice was received from a strata scheme, charging the landlord for the replacement of two security fobs. As there had been no previous notification received nor approval sought by the landlord to have them replaced, we contacted the strata on behalf of the landlord to investigate.
After pursuing the matter for a number of weeks, we were eventually able to receive confirmation via the building manager that the security fobs had been damaged by the tenant and replacements were required. Through communication with the tenant, landlord and strata, it was agreed that the tenant would pay for two and the landlord for one so that Taylors would have access to the complex as required in their professional management of the property.
The landlord valued our expertise and experience in property management and our ability to deal with strata, the building manager and tenant to achieve a positive result. It is also an example of how Taylors proactively caters for all our landlord needs, eliminating frustrations and worries and taking care of everything upfront.
Like To Learn More?
For more information about your rights and responsibilities as a landlord in a strata scheme, contact our team of specialists today or visit the NSW Fair Trading website.
