Strata Reform: What you need to know

 

The Property Council has been working tirelessly behind the scenes to assist Landgate with the progression of strata reform. In the last 6 months, we have established a strata reform working group with membership from across the residential and commercial committees to provide advice on our strata reform submissions. In this time we have provided Landgate with critical industry feedback on dispute resolution, seller disclosure and staged strata and management of schemes.

Dispute resolution and staged strata development amendments bill 2017:

The Property Council has voiced concerns over the unfair treatment of developers in particular the inappropriate unlimited compensation without  time limitations against someone who may no longer be a proprietor. The Property Council also proposed that a list of documents tightly linked to the scheme could be prescribed for large complex projects as a framework.

Property Council also recommends that written notice of consent or refusal to staging/re-sub division of a scheme should be shorted from 30 to 20 working days.

The Property Council recommended that the regulations enable flexibility and more clarity surrounding what is not considered a material minor variation; and,  that SAT determine material or minor variations to a plan and for this to be dealt with in an additional section of the Act. 

Seller Disclosure:

Property Council has flagged that under the amendments proposed in the draft bill, contracts for the sale of strata title lots (and proposed lots in particular) are going to be larger and more cumbersome than they already are. This is due to the fact that the scope of information that is “notifiable” has increased.

In order to minimise this the Property Council has recommended a standardised form to notify variations but consultation with industry is still required with regard to the timing of when this proposed form will be used to notify buyers variations.

Management of Schemes:

The Property Council recommends the registration of strata mangers. This would assist in improving the professionalism and service standard within the industry and allow a better understanding of the number of strata mangers currently employed in the field. However, the Property Council would not seek this inclusion if it were to in any way delay the current Bill.

 

So, what’s next?

Landgate will release a Discussion Paper within the next few weeks to obtain feedback on options to amend the Strata Titles General Regulations 1996 relating to Management, Dispute Resolution, and Staged Development.  The amendments to the Regulations will be required because of the amendments to the Strata Titles Act covered in the strata reforms.

Drafting of the strata reforms continues and the next two Consultation portions of the draft Bills that will be released for comment will be the Community Titles Bill (creation of schemes) and Strata Titles Amendment Bill (lease hold strata).

To keep track of progress with the reforms go to the strata reform page on Landgate’s website and subscribe to the strata reform newsletter.  The link to the strata reform page is: https://www0.landgate.wa.gov.au/titles-and-surveys/strata-reform