Recently we were talking about developers using dubiously obtained proxy votes to further their own interests – but they’re not the only ones playing fast and loose with the law. QUESTION: We have a lot owner (let’s call him Mr. A) who has been holding proxy votes to form his executive committee and control the building. [...]

Ban the barbies Most people agree that old attitude of “my home is my castle” has no place in apartment living … until it comes to barbecues.  In other parts of the world the very idea of having a barbecue on your balcony is greeted with questions about your sanity. Yet in Sydney, we’re expected to allow [...]

  OK, it’s a bit like saying we have the best cricket team in Belgium but I’m beginning to realise that here in NSW we have far and away the best strata system in Australia.    For instance, be very careful if your planned sea change is to an apartment in Queensland (Victoria is a whole [...]

If you’re in the market for a brand new apartment, especially one off the plan, there are some fairly major scams that you want to avoid if you possibly can. A current favourite is for developers to retain ownership of crucial areas of buildings then lease them back at ridiculously high rents.    We’ve heard of [...]