Author: Lindsey

Strata One’s motto: “strata management is not only about bricks and mortar, it’s about people” provides insight into the company’s DNA as well as the reason why they won the award for best medium-sized Strata Community Management business for 2019.

With 20 years of experience, licensee-in-charge, Peter Brisbane knows perfectly what the challenges in this business are.

“For us, it is more about managing people than just managing property” he says, adding that it’s also about how to deal with multiple personalities and behaviours in order to create long-lasting and reliable relationships with various stakeholders.

“We prefer to call a client instead of writing or emailing and arrange to meet and talk”, Peter says.

For him the most important aspect is to know the client in order to build a bond and create connection. Communication is the key to being successful and having clients continue to trust the advice and service provided.

Peter is a passionate strata advocate and lives and breathes the values of Strata One which are to take initiative, communicate, be a team player and be respectful and trustworthy.

“We encourage ethical behavior by instilling the values of Strata One within our team members and to every touch point in the Strata One Business such as clients, trades and service providers”, Peter says.

To provide a high level of customer service, the company applies a practical hands-on approach to ensuring decisions are made in the best interests of all, in four different ways:

1. Acting as mediators
2. Empowering client decision making
3. Being proactive
4. Focusing on sustainability and environment protection.

The best evidence proving these strategies are working over the last 12 months the company’s business experiencing significant growth.

According to Peter, Strata One “has employed three main strategies to achieve this growth which include; reputation/word of mouth, updating our schedule of charges/services provided and recently development of a marketing strategy.”

Strata One is proud to say that they have lost less than ten buildings in the eight years since they commenced operating.

Regarding the recent success at the Strata Industry Awards, Peter very enthusiastically says that this is the result of a group effort and that engagement of the whole team is what helped them succeed.

“Empowering and training our team so they can do their jobs and enjoy them is a very powerful thing.”

In order to contribute to team training, Strata One has invested in three main areas:

• Supporting the team to complete qualifications relevant to their position
• Developing training sessions with external companies to keep the team abreast of relevant changes and their CPD points up to date

• Mentoring and supporting the team to enable them to perform at their best

It has a significant positive impact on the culture within the business and it aligns well with Peter’s professional experience as a mentor and leader in the strata industry. The employment turnover is just 10 percent over the last year as a result of the above initiatives.

The best piece of advice to being successful, however is to follow Peter’s advice which is to treat people the way you want to be treated!

 

 

Words by Helene Guyon

Strata issues, along with SCA (NSW) have featured a lot in the news lately. Here we bring you a round-up of stories, so in case you missed them, fear not, we’re here to help:

“’No one will loan me money’: Mascot Towers owners can’t afford to pay levy” Sydney Morning Herald, 9 September 2019.

Mascot Towers owners have been hit with a $7 million special levy for rectification works but around 35 percent are unable to pay their share of the levy. They have written to the Minister for Better Regulation and Innovation seeking help. Applications to extend mortgages have been declined and owners who are retired are on limited means.

Well-respected writer on all things strata, Jimmy Thomson, has written an article on “Why strata mediation is not the quick fix you’re looking for” in the Australian Financial Review on 29 August 2019. In it he says that “Many apartment residents go to mediation thinking they are going to get a ruling from a strata referee. They probably won’t. So what’s it all about?” The process is long and tricky at times so its best to be well-informed about the steps and not to think that things will be resolved immediately.

Also in the Australian Financial Review was the article “Combustible cladding will ‘test the owners corporation model’”, on 3 September 2019. The article states that “Fixing combustible cladding will require technical skills and understanding beyond some owners corporations – especially in smaller buildings – and could prompt a rethink about the best way to manage housing stock”. Read on to find out more.

 

 

 

We’ve all come to realise the dreadful impact that plastic waste has on our environment. Who can forget the images of birds choking on plastic bottle rings or the ocean heaving with all sorts of plastic materials.

We need to be more thoughtful about our plastic use. According to the City of Sydney (CofS), only 9 percent of all plastic gets recycled. So thanks to the Cofs guide here are some tips on how you can reduce your plastic use. The key is looking for more sustainable alternatives.

• Use a refillable coffee cup and water bottle – lots of cafes offer discounts if you bring your own cup and places like Bundanoon in the NSW Southern Highlands have banned plastic water bottles selling only ones that can be refilled.
• Banish the plastic utensils and carry your own that can be taken home and washed (or washed at the office).
• Say no to plastic straws. Many places offer paper straws (ladies you don’t have to leave a lipstick mark on your cocktail glass) and you can always invest a few dollars in a metal or bamboo one of your own.
• Ditch the plastic bags. Yes, even the ‘reusable’ ones. Who are they kidding – they’re still plastic. Cloth bags are great as they can be washed.
• Bamboo is your friend – increasingly its being made into toothbrushes, cotton buds, straws. The more we demand them the cheaper they will become, and bamboo is sustainable.

The CofS has other tips as well. These are just some that you can adopt immediately.

 

We all have them lurking in the kitchen, bathroom or laundry cupboards -household chemicals. And they can be very, very nasty.

As this City of Sydney article states it’s confusing to know what to do with them. How do you dispose of leftover paint, old motor oils, batteries and household cleaners? You can’t put them in the yellow bin and never, ever pour chemicals or paint down the drain.

Luckily the NSW Environment Protection Authority and most local councils band together to provide residents with Chemical CleanOut days where you can take your nasties and they will dispose of them correctly.

According to the City of Sydney “over the past decade, inner city residents have safely disposed of 240 tonnes of household chemicals at these events.”

The EPA says that “Many materials collected at CleanOut events can be recycled or reused with special processing. By coming along to Chemical CleanOut, residents will not only work towards reducing pollution, they will also be helping to recycle.”

Check with your local council as to when the next Chemical CleanOut day is near you and get rid of those nasties correctly and safely.

 

 

A recent article in Smart Property Investment “Everything you need to know about Sydney’s strata by-laws” provides a good explanation about some of the most common by-laws.

If you’re new to strata it may help you to understand that community living, which is what strata is, can only be successful if there is a regulatory framework that provides residents and owners with some assurances about their property.

By-laws, in essence, promote harmonious communities if they are observed and are not onerous.

Most strata schemes will have adopted the model by-laws set out in the Strata Schemes Management Act 2015. Since the new legislation took effect in late 2015, the new model by-laws provide guidance around issues such as pets, parking, parties and smoking as well as other matters that affect common property.

NSW Fair Trading also has information on its website about by-laws. It says that “a by-law must not be harsh, unconscionable or oppressive”.

By-laws should be regularly reviewed by the strata committee to ensure they continue to meet the requirements of the scheme. Where changes to by-laws are needed they must be put to a special resolution at a meeting of the owners corporation and must be agreed to by no less than 75 percent of those eligible to vote.

By-laws must not be contrary to the Act and are required to be registered with NSW Land Registry Services.

It’s always best to seek professional advice when considering changing or adding by-laws. Solicitors who specialise in strata law can assist with this.

Remember everyone – owners and residents – must observe the by-laws and breaches can attract a legally enforceable fine.

 

 

Winner of the 2019 Strata Community Manager – Rising Star award Megan Parkins has a unique approach to her role that looks beyond the traditional management of books and records for a scheme.

“I believe the industry is evolving to the extent that managers need to be able to provide more than accurate advice to the client with regard to statutory processes and procedures”, she says.

New to strata business, Megan is combining her amazing people skills (being one of a family of nine brothers and sisters helps) with her previous experience as a Business Development Manager within the construction industry.

This ability to bring everyone together to move forward is Megan’s main objective in her position, and is also a major strength. From her point of view, it ensures she can “act as a trusted advisor to our owners who look their manager to guide them through best practice not just statutory processes.”

Mostly Megan’s focus is on undertaking regular reviews and enhancement of her clients’ existing processes and protocols to ensure the schemes she is involved with are more than just well-maintained buildings.

On a daily basis, Megan manages a large and prestigious portfolio of multi-tiered residential, commercial and mixed schemes with over 1,500 lots across 26 plans. The portfolio comprises of 9 schemes over 80 lots and 8 Building Management Committees (BMC) with a combined asset value of over $1.8 billion and standard management fees exceeding $600,000.

For Megan, attention to detail is what makes a proficient strata manager and she has some tips that she is happy to share, which are:

• Being able to design communication protocols
• Ensuring that you are on top of everything
• Providing the same attention for everyone

In winning the award, Megan feels proud to be recognised so early in her career. Even with that, her portfolio appears to be her best achievement. Commencing as an Assistant Strata Manager to Dynamic’s two most senior strata managers in early 2017, she was promoted to the role of strata manager responsible for her own schemes in 2018.

This has afforded her a level of exposure and experience in highly complex schemes and meeting procedures rarely encountered by entrants to the industry. As a result, she has recently commenced participating in the company internal succession planning by mentoring a number of existing assistants to assist in their development into more senior roles.

“This initiative has provided me with my own professional development as a future leader, and also provided excellent opportunities with our team to further their careers within the organisation and had a really positive impact on team culture.”

For the aspiring contestants of next year who want to follow in Megan’s footsteps and fast progression into the business, you should follow Megan’s of advice: “don’t be afraid of big and complex issues: you should always try and not be scared of them”.

Words by Helene Guyon

Nick was introduced to strata by a family friend three years ago right after he obtained his business degree. From that moment on he has been fully committed to maintaining an exceptional level of service.

As a strata manager at Bright & Duggan Sydney Olympic Park branch, Nick says, “the key challenge is to maintain the same level of service that my previous manager achieved”.

Nick manages a substantial portfolio comprising 40 buildings divided into 3259 lots. Half of his portfolio includes over 100 lots, of which the largest is composed of 383 lots. He defines his current position “as a liaison point for owners: acting on their behalf and representing their best interests as well”.

Providing advice, consultancy and supervision of the Building Management Committees, Nick deals with large and complex relationships between members of the strata scheme in order to reach the best possible outcome.

Nick regards communication skills to be a key factor to successfully establishing exceptional and durable working relationships with his external clients. Nick also uses his communication skills on a daily basis to boost office morale and foster a positive work environment:

“My sense of responsibility and ability to communicate with others in the workplace contributes to a healthy working environment with the aim of sharing and learning,” he says.

Nick has also mentored his assistant who now chairs his own strata committee meetings all within six months of commencing at Bright & Duggan. Nick also spends time working with other assistant managers to develop their careers.

“‘I see this as a way forward, a way of learning and becoming more attuned to the various aspects of strata management. The company has an agreed relationship with the customers, and it is up the strata managers to accept the portfolio and to make a positive contribution to the company and to the customers”.

Being nominated for the Strata Community Manager award was a privilege and a true honour for Nick. His own piece of advice for the future contestants is threefold: transparency, accountability and again communication!

“Accountability and transparency are now at the forefront of the strata industry. The growth of the industry will continue and as legislation continues to be implemented those in the industry are more and more expected to have integrity and to be ethical in all of their dealings.”

Good communication seems obvious especially today, but it is an essential part of Nick’s work. As such, Nick always tries his best to respond to all his emails in order to stay up to date at any time. Simple! Yes! But this is also how Nick reinforces the fundamental values of the Bright & Duggan culture and delivers a professional customer relationship always with courtesy.

Words by Helene Guyon

 

In early July, the NSW Parliament commenced an inquiry into the “Regulation of building standards, building quality and building disputes”.

SCA (NSW) made a submission outlining the state of the strata sector from the viewpoint of both those living and working in the sector.

In the submission SCA (NSW) highlights that, “There is a strong case for retrospective legislation to deal with builders and suppliers who have shut down companies and started new ones to avoid their responsibilities.”

At the end of the submission a seven-point plan is presented which, if adopted, will go a long way to restoring confidence and dealing with the worst impacts of past failures:

1. 1. Reintroduction of a robust and accessible Home Owners Warranty Insurance scheme for all levels of strata development, removing the current four-story exclusion.
   2. Increasing the two-year statutory warranty period to at least three years.
   3. Along the lines of the precedent now established in Victoria, provide an assistance package for cladding and structurally affected schemes. This may include a combination of subsidised loans, rate/taxation relief and other financial assistance.
   4. Legislate within the regulatory framework for builders, developers, designers, and certifiers a clear duty of care to owners and owners corporations.
   5. Legislate a statutory chain of responsibility through the entire design and construction cycle.
   6. Introduce mandatory supervision of private certification.
   7. Introduce a record of occupation certificates accessible to owners’ corporations that is separate from the Office of Fair Trading. This will avoid any conflict of interest with its regulatory functions and enforcement of compliance, licensing and administration of home building compensation fund.

SCA (NSW) was given the opportunity to present in person at the inquiry before the Public Accountability Committee, which is Chaired by the Hon David Shoebridge, MLC, and includes a former Minister for Fair Trading (as it was then), the Hon Matthew Mason-Cox, MLC.

The first day of public hearings was 12 August 2019 with SCA (NSW) invited to appear on Friday, 16 August. A copy of the transcript from the hearing will be made available as soon as it’s been provided by Parliament.

Information about the inquiry, including the Terms of Reference, is available here. Check the website for details.

SCA (NSW) previously advised that the NSW Government intended to appoint a Building Commissioner.

On 7 August 2019, the Minister for Better Regulation and Innovation, the Hon Kevin Anderson, MP, announced that the government had appointed David Chandler OAM to the role of Building Commissioner.

Mr Chandler is a building and construction expert with more than 40 years’ experience in the industry. He is well-respected as a result of his experience.

According to the Government’s announcement, the Commissioner will be responsible for:

– the investigation and disciplinary action for misconduct in the building industry
– overseeing the end-to-end licensing and auditing across the building industry and
– driving legislative reforms of the building industry, including consultation with industry.

Mr Chandler is reported to have welcomed the opportunity to work with the Government to strengthen the building and construction industry.

He stated that “recent events have reduced community confidence in how buildings are designed and constructed and how they perform, but I welcome the leadership and commitment being shown by the Government to implement change that will strengthen the construction industry foundations in NSW.”

Mr Chandler started in the position on 14 August 2019 and has since appeared before the NSW Parliamentary inquiry at which he was highly critical of the building plans and design of Mascot Towers which he described as ‘poor’.

 

Strata owners are being encouraged to have their say on laws around short-term rentals.

The Department of Planning, Industry and Environment and Department of Customer Service are seeking your feedback on draft Regulations that have been proposed and are aimed at introducing a state-wide planning framework and Code of Conduct for short-term rental accommodation.

The proposed changes are outlined in a Discussion Paper, which also seeks feedback about introducing a new industry-led short-term rental accommodation property register.

The exhibition is open for public feedback until 11 September 2019.

The Department of Planning, Industry and Environment and the Department of Customer Service say they welcome feedback from the community, government agencies, councils, industry and other stakeholders during consultation. This will help them to better understand the opinions and concerns of the community, which in turn will inform the Government’s decisions.

To have your say, you need to complete an online submission form or send a written submission to:

Att: Director, Housing and Infrastructure Policy
NSW Department of Planning, Industry and Environment
GPO BOX 39
Sydney NSW 2000

Whatever way you do it, make sure you have your say by the due date 11 September 2019.

 

The NSW Land and Environment Court is set to approve the first ever sale of a strata collective sale under the Strata Schemes Development Act 2016.

The decision is the first time that the provisions of the Act have been tested where the sale or redevelopment of a strata scheme only requires 75 percent of the owners to agree. The Court is required to approve the application if a number of criteria are satisfied including that the sale is just and equitable.

The scheme itself is a 159 lot strata scheme currently operating as serviced apartments across 19 floors. It is now set to be converted into a new hotel for the CBD.

The original story was published by The Real Estate Conversation in early August.

It’s a great example of the new legislation in action and should be a good assurance for other schemes thinking of selling or redeveloping that this is possible.

There is a process to go through and any owners considering this major step should engage a legal professional to guide them through.

The benefits of redevelopment can include a new home in your old place. Some apartments built in the 1970s and 1980s are potentially reaching their use-by date and may benefit from a redevelopment which could incorporate new energy efficiency measures and better communal areas.

While the building industry does not have a good reputation at present, its anticipated that this will improve and so redevelopment may be a great option.

 

 

 

St Vincent de Paul Society NSW has a long-standing commitment to helping those who are experiencing homelessness. This year, the Vinnies Western Sydney Community Sleepout aims to prevent homelessness from happening in the first place.

Did you know?

• According to the Greater Western Sydney Research Report, housing stress is one of the biggest drivers of disadvantage in Australia.
• In Greater Sydney, 36.7% of households across the region are experiencing housing stress (where more than 30% of household income spent on rent or mortgage).

In Western Sydney, this figure is significantly higher, with 45.7% of households experiencing housing stress, giving them few options if something happened that impacted their ability to pay their rent or mortgage.

Across Western Sydney, Vinnies provides a range of programs and services to assist in preventing struggling families from experiencing homelessness. Our Community Hubs, which offer client-centred support and referral, are just one example of how we help people in need.

On a day-to-day basis, families who are experiencing financial stress, relationship breakdowns and medical issues are forced to choose between feeding their family or paying their bills. The Vinnies Community Hubs offer assistance by providing the support, information and connections these families need to get back on their feet.

The vital funds raised through this event will go directly to our programs to offer support to people experiencing disadvantage in our local communities.

St Vincents is asking you to join them on Friday 30 August at Western Sydney University Parramatta South Campus for a night of information, discussion and experiential activities, all before bedding down on the campus to experience just a taste of what it’s like to sleep rough for a night. By making the commitment to spend a night without the creature comforts of home, you’ll be helping to raise both awareness of the issue and much-needed funds to help those at risk.

To register click here.