Columns » Owners Corporation Law
Building dispute resolution centre not in the business of resolving disputes lately
Domestic Building Dispute Resolution Victoria (DBDRV) was set up by the state government to provide homeowners with access to a free service to resolve building disputes without having to first go to the courts or tribunals and endure the high costs and long-time frames associated with those jurisdictions.
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Are you a new unit owner? Make sure you attend the first annual general meeting
For a long time in Victoria, it was a common practice for the developer of residential towers to ensure that they arranged their affairs to benefit them before they settled on the lots and handed over control of the owners’ corporation (OC) to lot owners.
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Embedded networks review by Victorian Government not comprehensive enough
The Victorian Government announced back in October 2018 an election commitment to ban embedded networks in new residential apartment buildings, with appropriate exemptions for buildings that use renewable energy microgrids to deliver low-cost renewable energy to apartment buildings.
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Got a remedial works contract coming up? Who’s the super?
During COVID, a number of owners’ corporations (OCs) deferred major remedial works projects that were due to be undertaken.
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VCAT determines that monies paid by an insurer to an OC for a lot owner’s claim are held “on trust”
A VCAT decision released last month confirmed the position that any lot owner in a building may file a claim against the owners’ corporation’s (OC’s) policy of insurance.
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Victoria’s new “Airbnb tax” only benefits Airbnb, and once again unit owners lose out
The Victorian Labor Government has announced a new 7.5 per cent tax on short-stay accommodation, being the first and only Australian state to do so.
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When an owners’ corporation needs to access someone’s apartment
Lot owners and tenants need to be aware that an owners’ corporation (OC) has a lawful right to serve a notice to gain entry to private apartments, in order to carry out repairs, maintenance and other remedial works.
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Joining the electric vehicle bandwagon
In 2022, the sale of electric vehicles (EVs) in Australia accounted for only 3.8 per cent of total sales. However, that number is tipped to soar over the coming years.
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Strict time limitation periods for bringing a building defect claim means OCs cannot sit on their hands
An owners’ corporation (OC) owes a strict duty to repair and maintain its common property, and this duty can be enforced by any member of the relevant OC.
Read MoreThink twice and sleep on it before firing off that email complaint to the owners’ corporation chairperson
A Court in Sydney has awarded damages of $120,000 to the elderly chairperson of an apartment block, after a tenant sent an email to him and the other owners in which she asked him to stop emailing her about locking her mailbox.
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Trials and tribulations of OC members
A siren song calling for fair play
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