After the flurry of Christmas and New Year, it’s tempting to take a moment, put the feet up, and relax. But it’s just at this point in time that a bit of careful planning can make for a happy and peaceful year ahead.
Here’s a handy guide and reminder of some of the key issues that may confront you over the next 12 months.
1. You are not the body corporate police.
A resident manager should report breaches of by-laws that they become aware of to their committee. However, that is not the same as enforcing those by-laws. If the occupier of Lot 1 is swimming in the pool at one o’clock in the morning, and the by-law says no swimming after 9pm, that’s a matter of letting the committee or the body corporate manager know the next morning.
Education should top enforcement. A polite reminder of by-laws about swimming or parking in the visitor carpark will likely get a better result than any attempt at immediate strict enforcement.
2. The body corporate cannot change your management rights agreement without your consent.
A management rights agreement is a contract. It is no different to the contract for buying a property. There is no ability for one party to unilaterally force the other to agree to a change unless that is documented in the contract itself. It’s important for managers to know their rights and to stand up for them.
3. Managers should give master keys to the committee.
Most management rights agreements provide that the manager will hold master keys but ultimately those keys belong to the body corporate. If the committee wants them then the manager should provide them. The good news is that starts to lower the manager’s risk profile. If the keys are misused, that then becomes as much about how the committee managed the security of the master keys as anything else, whereas if the manager is the sole holder, that rests fairly and squarely with them.
4. A body corporate cannot deduct monies it claims are owed from caretaking remuneration.
The correct forum for any dispute of this nature is the Queensland Civil and Administrative Tribunal or a specialist adjudicator through the Commissioner’s Office over the nature of the duty itself.
It is not appropriate for the body corporate to suggest a manager undertake or arrange a duty and then, in the absence of an agreement, simply deduct the costs from the manager’s remuneration.
5. A body corporate normally can’t refuse to consent to an assignment of a management rights agreement.
If a management rights sale or purchase is on the cards for you this year, know that unless a body corporate has reasonable grounds to do so, it can’t refuse to consent to an assignment of a management rights agreement. That isn’t to say that a committee can’t be difficult to deal with during the process. Assignments tend to be more of a problem where the current management rights arrangements have not been a happy experience for the committee. It might seem that a committee would be happy to move on someone they don’t get along with and welcome some fresh blood, but some want to inflict a bit pain on the way out as well.
What this means for you
If a manager is looking for a New Year’s resolution, a good place to start would be undertaking a thorough understanding of their agreement and knowing their rights under that contract. Any concerns or potential misunderstandings should be discussed with a strata law specialist.
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