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Strata News & Information
Hello <<First Name>>

Welcome everyone to this edition of Strata News.

We are very pleased to announce LookUpStrata has just published our 400TH blog post! Congratulations Bannermans Lawyers for being the 400th article on the site: Our two cents – Creditor fails to obtain bankruptcy orders for non-payment of one cent. Keep the articles coming everyone & a huge thank you to all of our contributors.

Strata Questions: we are still receiving quite a few strata questions coming in from members - which is fantastic! We do our very best to help when and where we can. Unfortunately, sometime we do not have the resources available. We do try to get back to everyone as quickly as possible and ask for your patience and understanding in any delays. We have been creating blog posts out of the most interesting questions so everyone can benefit from the answers. We hope you enjoy these posts.

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Our community grows from word of mouth. If you enjoy our newsletters, please forward them on to others who may be interested or simply tell them about LookUpStrata. We thank you for your support!

Take advantage of our growing traffic stats & talk with me about becoming a site sponsor or listing a Strata Job.

We are keen to talk with people who are interested in contributing quality strata articles to our blog.
Present your strata knowledge to the Strata Community.
Contact me for more information - nikkij@lookupstrata.com.au
Home Warranty Insurance

NSW: Be aware of your statutory obligations when selling your property or carrying out DIY building works

Pierrette Khoury, Turnbull Bowles Lawyers
If you are carrying out renovation work to your property, the Home Building Act 1989 requires that you obtain Home Warranty Insurance in respect of any residential building work where the value of that work exceeds the prescribed amount of $20,000.
Read More
Overdue Strata Levies

QLD: Where my overdue strata levies fees charged in error & can I get a reimbursement?

LookUpStrata & Lisa Rutland, MyBodyCorpReport.com.au
Being stuck with overdue strata levies fees due to a mixup with addresses can be costly - so who is in the wrong and are the overdue strata fees recoverable?
Read More
watch the dog

NSW: Beware thy Neighbour (& their dog )


Adrian Mueller,
J. S. Mueller & Co Lawyers

NSW Supreme Court recently held that a couple could not pull out of a contract when purchasing a strata property even though substantial changes had been made to a common property garden before settlement of the purchase.
Read More
Contents insurance

A Guide to Contents Insurance for Strata Properties

Whitbread Insurance Brokers
Living in what insurers call a “strata title unit”, doesn’t remove the need for property owners to protect themselves from loss and / or damage to their possessions. If you live in a Strata property, Contents Insurance is a must.
Read More
Strata security systems

NSW Owners Corporations, Security Systems and Privacy – What do you need to consider?


Allison Benson, Kerin Benson Lawyers
With increasingly sophisticated security systems having more capacity at a lower cost than ever before many strata and community title schemes are installing security systems and surveillance devices such as keyed swipe passes, smart lighting and closed circuit television (CCTV) systems. What many schemes do not consider is the use of these systems and their legality. Privacy is, rightly, a key concern of many lot owners and occupiers.
Read More
Pets in strata qld

Pets in Strata Qld

LookUpStrata & Kelly Borell, Tower Body Corporate Administration
When it comes to pets in strata qld, can my body corporate really flatly refuse permission for animals on the grounds that they hate pets?
Read More
Bankruptcy orders

NSW: Our two cents - Creditor fails to obtain bankruptcy orders for non-payment of one cent


David Bannerman and Ben Robertson, Bannermans Lawyers
Bankruptcy orders: Creditors should ensure that bankruptcy proceedings are not commenced for any trifling amounts to avoid disappointment & incurring legal fees.
Read More

Interesting Discussion


We are having a discussion in our LinkedIn Group, specifically about sunset clauses and more generally about what purchasers need to know when they buy strata anywhere in Australia - either existing OR off-the-plan. Have a read or contribute:
Buying property off the plan Survey from NSW Fair Trading
 
Strata Management Records

NSW: What Documentation Should an Owners Corporation Have in the Strata Management Records?


Paul Mulligan, Find Our Home
There are a number of reports that should form part of the Owners Corporation Strata Management Records. When conducting a strata inspection report, it helps when they are all included.
Read More
NSW Strata Reforms

NSW: Strata Title Overhaul A Step Closer


Media Release: Victor Dominello MP, Minister for Innovation and Better Regulation
Strata Schemes Management Bill 2015 & Part 10 of the Strata Schemes Development Bill 2015: reforms to the state’s strata title laws are a step closer.
Read More

News Story of the Week
Short stay

VIC: Apartment owners fight to shut doors to short-stay operators, Airbnb

Simon Johanson, SMH
Melbourne's apartment owners are forking out thousands of dollars in legal fees to fight short-stay operators as body corporates and building managers – worried about unruly behaviour, parties and property damage – try to evict them from their buildings.

Media


NSW: New Strata Laws One Step Closer 

Ben Fordham
2GB873AM

Sydney off-the-plan buyer discovers finished apartment is a bedroom short


Sue Williams, Domain
When excited first home buyer went to inspect the one-bedroom apartment he’d bought off the plan in Sydney’s CBD, he discovered something vital was missing: the bedroom.

Window washer records stomach-churning down Chicago building


Krystal Johnson,
The Western Australian
Extreme window washing is deemed as a terrifying job, well Michael Kelly can second that claiming that "it looks really hard, but it’s (actually) a lot harder than it looks."

 

Public Feedback Sought
Adequacy of the regulation of short-term holiday letting in New South Wales (Inquiry)


This inquiry is a current Legislative Assembly inquiry conducted by the Environment and Planning Committee.

The inquiry was established to inquire into the adequacy of the regulation of short-term holiday letting in New South Wales.

If you would like to prepare a submission about short-term lets, you have until 9 November to submit your thoughts.

See this Parliament of New South Wales page for details: Adequacy of the regulation of short-term holiday letting in New South Wales (Inquiry).

Congratulations on renewing your listing, Strata Vote!

OCT 27:
City of Sydney: Strata Skills 101 – The New Executive Committee Member: Individual need or the collective good?

OCT 30:
SCA (ACT) 2015 Whitbread Strata Community Awards

OCT 31:
Downsize with Style (NSW): Masterclass

Nov 2:
NSW Fair Trading: Residential Strata Schemes Information Session (Port Macquarie)

Nov 6:
SCA (NSW): Annual Convention

Nov 9 - 11:
SCA (WA): A100 SCA National Introduction to Living & Working in the Strata Community

Nov 10:
City of Sydney: Strata Skills 101– The Sinking Fund: A planning essential for strata

Nov 13:
(WA) Green Gurus – Sustainability in WA Housing Workshop
 
Visit our Strata Events Page

The most read article from our last newsletter?
short term

NSW: Free car parking: Tribunal upholds exclusive use car parking by-law

Carlo Fini, Nexus Lawyers
Croyden & Anderson v The Owners – Strata Plan No 1583 demonstrates that an exclusive use car parking bylaw can be hard to repeal.
Read more

Breaking News

For the most comprehensive stream of strata news in Australia - follow us on Twitter.


The RBA's warning on Australia's apartment boom Business Insider

New apartments luring buyers with rooftop gardens and music rooms Domain

NSW: Barbecue and tobacco smoke could fetch fines up to $2200 under proposed NSW strata laws SMH


NSW Strata Law Improvements Essential for Sector Growth Sourceable


Supply in strata market shrinks SMH


Strata reforms: welcome to the brave new world for apartment owners Domain


QLD: Brisbane City Council withdraws support for 'Giant Wall of Fortitude Valley' Brisbane Times

 

VIC: Increasing Investor Demand Fuels Vic Strata Retail Sales The Urban Developer

 

Work has begun on a giant skyscraper that will tower over the Melbourne skyline The Age


Lawyers pledge to back elderly gay couple who were ordered to take down gay flag in Port Melbourne The Age


Ganglands, not Docklands: new high-rises harbour the ganglands crowd The Age

Queensland Waters Down ‘Off the Plan’ Protection Laws - See more at: http://sourceable.net/queensland-waters-down-off-the-plan-protection-laws/#sthash.Y9OIcQxd.dpufVIC:
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