Strata Reforms [NSW] Update 1: Policy considerations & objectives
What are we actually trying to achieve with our strata laws ...
Let’s think a bit harder about some policy considerations and objectives for our strata laws to better influence what the latest reforms should be doing.
The stated objectives of NSW strata laws [as specified within them] are very generic and subjective. After all, what I think provides ‘for the management of strata schemes’ [as described in the Management Act] is likely to be quite different from what you might think.
We need something better to help guide stakeholders making submissions and the regulators deciding about the reforms to avoid the trap of simply reacting to the latest problem or a special interest group’s hobby horse.
I wrote about this very issue in relation to the 2011-2015 NSW strata law reform discussion processes on the Open Forum Consultation platform saying:
‘Today, we have the choice to simply tweak things some more and fix the annoying issues, or actually rethink strata laws so they suit the future of strata development, ownership, use, and management. To be honest both things need to occur.’
So, not much has changed and it will be difficult to assess proposed and possible reforms against objectives and policies if they don’t exist, are general or vague, or can’t be articulated.
Existing government policies
I’ve tried to discover what current NSW government policies, objectives, plans, or roadmaps are for strata title with very little success.
The best publicly available material is as follows:
The NSW Department of Fair Trading has [via the NSW Fair Trading agency] a Roadmap for 2019-2022, But apart from inclusion in general plans for the property sector that plan doesn’t specifically mention strata title.
The NSW Department of Customer Service has a 2019-2020 Annual Report, which refers to a few things as follows:
the use of its digital platforms to support the administration of building bonds for strata title buildings and the implementation of the Design and Building Practitioners Act 2020 and Residential Apartment Buildings (Compliance and Enforcement Powers) Act 2020,
reporting on strata plan registrations, and
funding for a few strata projects including expert review for Mascot Towers and the Strata (Collective Sales) Advocacy Service.
The NSW Office of the Registrar General doesn’t publish any roadmap or plan but does provide support materials and statistics about strata plans and renewal processes.
The NSW Liberal Party has a 2020 platform and ‘Our Plans’ webpage but they don’t include any specific policies or plans about strata.
NSW Labour has a 2017 policy paper but, apart from promoting solar electricity in apartments, there are no specific strata related policies there either.
Since there’s no state election until March 2023, I also doubt either major political party will publish any new policies soon.
As a result, I’ve reached out to the NSW regulators for more information about any non-public policies and plans they may have and will update this newsletter if I find out more.
My suggested policy objectives
In the absence of any guidance from regulators, I’m suggesting the following broad objectives for strata titling and strata operations laws and regulations.
I’ve drawn these ideas from my experience of working with strata stakeholders over the last 30+ years and the considered views of many other people who are smarter than me on these issues.
So, you’ll also find a reading list for informative strata policy materials at the end of this newsletter.
MY IDEAS ABOUT STRATA OBJECTIVES
A. Titling should permit flexible and innovative development and redevelopment options for new and existing strata complexes whilst ensuring certainty for land titles, boundaries, and core binding property documents for all stakeholders.
B. The different property title regimes for medium and high-density real estate need to be merged so that they operate consistently. There’s no good reason why owners’ experiences in strata buildings should differ from community title or part strata.
C. Strata governance models and hierarchies need to be re-thought and re-structured based on clear policy positions about decision making, authority, and accountability [such as whether owners should always overrule elected committees and majorities should always overrule minorities].
D. Strata information collection, retention, sharing, and access needs to be upscaled so that complete information is more easily available to owners (and other stakeholders) about what has, is, and will happen in strata buildings.
E. More flexible options for discussions, debate, and decision making by strata owners and stakeholders need to be permitted so that engagement levels increase from the current minimums and decisions better reflect owners’ views and interests.
F. Long term (non-owner) residents’ interests in strata buildings need to be better recognised. They form almost half the strata residents in NSW and are critical to its strata’s economic and social future.
G. The construction and maintenance standards of the strata buildings need to be improved and guaranteed (at construction, for the first owners, and in the medium and longer term) by improved approval, disclosure, checking and re-checking systems, and remedial rights.
H. Differences between the experience (and cost) of property ownership between free-standing and medium/high-density real estate needs to be reduced or eliminated so that strata property is not and does not become a ‘second-rate’ property option.
I. Up to date core information about strata buildings should be publicly accessible so that stakeholders can find it and effectively communicate with those buildings.
J. The position of non-owners who assist strata corporations [like managers, contractors, advisers, and regulators] needs to be better defined as traditional roles and business models change to meet new owner, committee, and building needs.
K. Bugs in strata laws need to be identified and fixed more routinely by smaller-scale amendments [and not as part of major strata law reforms every 5-10 years] as typically occurred during the 70s, 80s, and 90s.
Francesco …
Jan 18, 2021
STRATA POLICY READING LIST
UNSW City Futures Research Centre - Research Report: Living Well in Greater Density [2010], Easthope, H & Judd, https://cityfutures.be.unsw.edu.au/research/projects/living-well-in-greater-density/
Springer Open Future Cities and Environment - Article: Sustainable urbanism: towards a framework for quality and optimal density? [2016], Steffen Lehmann, https://futurecitiesenviro.springeropen.com/articles/10.1186/s40984-016-0021-3
Swinburne University of Technology - Thesis Paper: Managing Medium Density Housing Development [2006], Thomas Alves, https://researchbank.swinburne.edu.au/file/c6a6b537-6bc1-44da-bc71-d86fa2fa069c/1/Thomas%20Alves%20Thesis.pdf
New Geography - Article: High-Density Housing Reflects Dense Government Thinking [2011], Tony Recsei, https://www.newgeography.com/content/002409-high-density-housing-reflects-dense-government-thinking
id the population experts - Blog: How dense is high density [2014], Simone Alexander, https://blog.id.com.au/2014/population/demographic-trends/how-dense-is-high-density/
UNSW Sydney - Article: It’s not just the buildings, high-density neighborhoods make life worse for the poor [2017], Laurence Troy, Hazel Easthope & Laura Crommelin, https://newsroom.unsw.edu.au/news/art-architecture-design/it%E2%80%99s-not-just-buildings-high-density-neighbourhoods-make-life-worse
Taylor Francis Online - Research Article: Does higher density housing enhance liveability? Case studies of housing intensification in Auckland [2016], Errol Haarhoff, Lee Beattie, Ann Dupuis & Ben Derudder (Reviewing Editor), https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/23311886.2016.1243289
PAD Partners - Conference Paper: Social Sustainability & High Density Development [2004], Liam Kavanagh, https://www.planning.org.au/documents/item/1177