What is Going on with OC Management Staff in the Industry
Have you noticed that no matter what Owners Corporation company you go with for your strata home, the managers are always changing.
“Owning a strata-titled townhouse myself, I had seven Owners Corporation managers in four years,” Sebastian Golotta states.
Why is this happening and What is really going on? Owners Corporation Management company staff are office people just like you and me.
The Owners Corporation Act delegates the powers and functions of an Owners Corporation to an Owners Committee for these reasons.
The committee is generally 3 to 12 people who run their building, capturing skills across many industries.
The expectation on Owners Corporation staff is that they should know everything about everything, from building, essential safety services, OH&S, facility management, cladding projects, building projects, building defects and upgrades, complex insurance issues, to plans of subdivision, the list goes on and on and on.
The reality is that Owners Corporation staff should know the Owners Corporation Act and guide the owners committee with guidance on the act to administer the records for the Owners Corporation.
Let’s not be mistaken, the Owners Corporation is the Owners (nominated committee) of the building. But the common misconception is that the Owners Corporation Management Company is the Owners Corporation, which is not correct and must not be mistaken.
What Else is Happening in the Owners Corporation Industry
Industry pricing
Andy Dawson, the owner of Engine Property Group, was invited to speak at the Residential Apartment Development VSummit.
Andy, a near 25-year strata industry veteran, leads Engine Property Group, which is market recognized.
We found Andy’s presentation interesting and more particularly his disappointment with his industry’s current approach to pricing and how he perceives hat will affect his sector’s ability to deliver on promises when it comes to both a developer's vision and indeed the realization of residents’ expectations.
With the latter carrying significant weight for a developer's ongoing reputation and legacy, we asked Andy to share some more of his views.
“Evolve” Andy Says
At a macro level, our industry has obviously experienced a “fall off” in development supply in the marketplace, with businesses now scrapping for business in a relatively constricted market.
What I’m disappointingly seeing is a “race to the bottom” on pricing, and of course, businesses choosing to participate in this, just creates the eventuality of dealing with income pressure, increasing costs and weaking balance sheets this all leads towards the inability for these businesses to invest in their own structure, people & processes.
These are concerning indicators to me as an industry, it’s just not the direction we want to be going.
A Broken Building Industry that is reflecting down into the Owners Corporation Industry
Builders are getting away with constructing buildings on the cheap that are defective and non-compliant. This is really putting pressure on Owners Corporation Committees and Management Companies.
In some cases, builders are going broke and changing their company names, denying or acknowledging that a defect exists in most cases. This leaves Owners distressed with large defect projects to manage, sometimes costing hundreds of thousands of dollars to investigate or rectify.
Purchasers really need to do due diligence on the builder when purchasing property in a Strata /Owners Corporation.
The risk involved. The heartache and trauma of an expensive defective building can leave customers exhausted, having an impact on their lives and people around them. If purchasers stay clear of properties that have been constructed by these builders, developers will learn not to use these builders very quickly.
How Can All This Be Managed by Owners Corporation Members
Once again, the pressures on the management company and the expectations that these managers are responsible or qualified in everything is unrealistic.
The Owners Corporation Act calls for owners with experience and great skills to manage their buildings as a collaborative committee. At Engine, we highly recommend that owners scrutinize/ screen all members that are nominating for the committee subject to skills and projects that are happening at the building in the year ahead, and revise this on the annual. Look at the projects happening around your building and really understand the skills required by the Owners Corporation committee to be successful.
With major defects rectification and building works, external project management companies and consultants must be engaged, as these professionals are qualified and insured.
Being a member of an Owners Corporation building requires you to be responsible as part of the Owners Corporation. Having a greater understanding of this will ensure that all owners are playing their part in a successful Owners Corporation building.
