It is anticipated that mid 2018 changes to the NSW property licensing laws are planned to take effect, subject to NSW parliament approval, which means changes for some strata managers.

The new NSW property licensing laws have been designed to increase consumer protection measures and will include the improvement of entry requirements for the real estate and property industry, including strata managers.

The main reasons for these changes are to:

• Provide a clearer career progression for real estate and property industry professionals
• Avoid start-up companies by individuals with no experience
• Reduce the risk of misappropriation of trust funds

Strata managers who currently hold a licence will still hold a licence under the new legislation.

Post introduction of the new laws, to obtain a licence in NSW will require strata managers to have 12 months’ experience working in strata. Currently, there is no strata experience required.

Continuing Professional Development (CPD) will also change to ‘hourly’ rather than a ‘points’ based system.

In summary, NSW property owners can rely on the fact that every strata manager in NSW will have a strata property manager licence within four years of the new legislation coming into force.

For further information on these proposed changes please refer to NSW Fair Trading.

For NSW strata legal or levy collection advice contact us here or call 02 9562 1266, we’re happy to assist.

Short term accommodation, can it be stopped?

Does short term accommodation require Council approval or is it prohibited in most local government areas in NSW?

Is a by-law still an effective way to prohibit short term accommodation in a strata scheme?

We’ve prepared a short paper to help you understand the ins and outs of this area of strata law Short Term Accommodation.

For NSW strata legal or levy collection advice contact us here or call 02 9562 1266, we’re happy to assist.

Up until recently, there have been no reported cases of where the Land & Environment Court has dealt with an application to permit the collective sale or redevelopment of a strata scheme under the new strata laws.

That changed on 19 February 2018, when the Land & Environment Court issued preliminary decisions in two cases involving proposals for the collective sale of two strata schemes in Sydney.

So, what can we learn from the first two collective sale cases? To find out download this paper Collective Sales Cases Hit the Land and Environment Court.

For NSW strata legal or levy collection advice please contact us here or call 02 9562 1266, we’re happy to assist.

The deadline for owners corporations to review their by-laws has passed and most owners corporations have now completed their by-law reviews.

So what lessons can be learned from the by-law review process? And, more importantly, what mistakes have been made during that process and how can they be fixed?

Read this paper to find out common mistakes and how you can fix them  By-law Reviews – How to Avoid the Big Mistakes.

For NSW strata legal or levy collection advice please contact us here or call 02 9562 1266, we’re happy to assist.

Another new law

In 27 days owners corporations must comply with another new law – window safety devices (window locks).

In NSW, window safety devices must be installed on certain windows by 13 March 2018 otherwise owners corporations may face hefty fines if requirements are not met by the due date.

Frequently asked questions?

Can an owners corporation force lot owners to install window safety devices by making a new by-law?

Can the owners corporation force lot owners to maintain and repair window safety devices after they are installed if there is no by-law in place?

If there is no by-law in place, who is responsible for the installation, maintenance and repair of window safety devices?

And if there is no by-law in place, who is responsible for the costs associated with deliberate damage and /or removal of the window safety devices?

Be prepared!

A window safety devices by-law will ensure the rules are clear should any of the above circumstances and more arise.

For NSW by-laws advice please contact us here or call 02 9562 1266, we’re happy to assist.

To contact us during this period please leave a message and we’ll get back to you on our return.

Thanks Strata, as a wrap up here are some useful links from 2017…

• We shared our strata knowledge through our new resource library
• We listened to you and launched our new brand and website
• We developed strata by-law and meeting templates for the new strata laws
• We tweeted, 54 times sharing the latest in strata law
• We posted, 45 times on LinkedIn with the latest updates
• We collected for over 600 new levy debt recovery matters plus our regulars
• We expanded our team to better service the strata industry

We’re taking a break from 5.30pm 21 December 2017 and returning on 15 January 2018.

We wish you and your families a safe and happy ‘Festive Season’ and look forward to working with you in 2018.

For NSW strata legal or levy collection advice please contact us here or call 02 9562 1266, we’re happy to assist.

One year later… what are the 5 biggest impacts of the new strata laws?

In this interview with LookUpStrata, Adrian Mueller, partner, JS Mueller & Co addresses the top 5 new strata laws and the changes to owners corporation fines and how they’ll affect you.

Click on the video below to view Adrian’s interview with Nikki from LookUpStrata as he discusses the following:

1. New Strata Laws in Relation to the Way in which Owners will be Able to Vote at Strata Meetings
2. Prohibition on Proxy Farming
3. Renovations
4. Undesirable Habits
5. Removing Abandoned Goods

And, body corporate fines and the 3 main changes.

The full article can be viewed at LookUpStrata.

For NSW strata legal or levy collection advice please contact us here or call 02 9562 1266, we’re happy to assist.

Owners Corporations and strata managers in NSW sometimes wonder how they can recover outstanding strata levies from owners of strata units who have disappeared and are nowhere to be found. Well, do not be disillusioned.

Muellers has now given hope to owners corporations and strata managers and has proved the naysayers wrong acting in what has been widely reported as the first ever sale of a strata unit by the NSW Sheriff.

In the recent case of The Owners-Strata Plan No. 7396 -v- Siak Hong law (unreported), in which Muellers acted for the successful owners corporation, the Supreme Court of NSW ordered that documents be served on a unit owner who was unable to be found, via substituted service orders.

More importantly, the Supreme Court also ordered the NSW Sheriff to sell the owner’s unit by a certain date to ensure the sale of the unit and recovery of overdue levies was not delayed.

This case shows that overdue levies can be recovered from an errant unit owner and that it is possible to force the Sheriff to sell a strata unit to ensure that overdue levies are paid to an owners corporation.

The outcome we achieved in the case was the result of much hard work, sheer determination and a never say die attitude to demonstrate that even in the most difficult cases it is possible for overdue levies to be recovered.

Setting a precedent, the case was also picked up by mainstream media:

• Sale of apartment owned by monk who disappeared overseas sets legal precedent
• Merry chase for mystery Malaysian monk who renounced his ‘worldly possessions’

At Muellers that is the approach we take to all our levy collection matters and that is why we are widely regarded as the leader in strata levy collections.

For NSW strata legal or levy collection advice please contact us here or call 02 9562 1266, we’re happy to assist.

For NSW strata legal or levy collection advice please contact us here or call 02 9562 1266, we’re happy to assist.