Your Strata Property With Amanda Farmer

Sam Hogg of PASG Projects joins me to explain the role of a project manager, sharing his tips to help reduce the pain of your next strata remedial works project.

A cardiac arrest is more likely to occur in a residential strata building than a fire, yet most communities are completely unprepared to respond to such an emergency. My guest this week, Kurtis Vuko, is on a mission to do something about that, bringing life-saving equipment into strata buildings across the country.

Karen Stiles, executive director of the Owners Corporation Network (OCN), joins me to share: - how strata owners are being overlooked in today's conversations about the strata industry, - the astonishing lack of consumer protections for those buying apartments, - the owners who ARE willing to pay more for good strata management, and - why Fair Trading needs to step up - including some ideas for how it might do that.

Lot owner Cate Morrison is fresh from (another) win in the NSW Tribunal. She joins me for this week's podcast to share: - as a non-lawyer, how she prepares her case for the best chance of success, - her cross-examination technique, - her top tips for other strata owners and committee members self-representing in the tribunal.

Reena Van Aalst joins me to discuss: - Building Management Committees (BMCs): do owners have the right to access records of the BMC? - can an owners corporation refuse to accept cash from an owner wanting to pay their strata levies?  - the benefits that a loyal referral partner can bring to your business. 

Having spent many years assisting owners, committees, and my own neighbours through large strata remedial works projects, this week I'm sharing my top 3 tips to help ease the pain for anyone doing the same.

Reena Van Aalst joins me to discuss: -why it's important to update the insurer at the conclusion of legal proceedings, -motions to keep quarterly levies rolling on at the same rate until re-determined: are they legal? -Reena's takeaways from her recent trip to Spain, and -how to transfer a case from a court to the tribunal, and why you might want to.

Strata owner and committee member Kareem Tawansi long ago made the choice to live in strata rather than a Sydney terrace house. In this chat, Kareem shares how the communities he is now part of are reaching new heights, including the recent approval of a $2.7m upgrade project.

Dr Nicole Johnston joins me to share her soon-to-be-published research, confirming what many in strata have known to be true for quite some time: owners are not meeting their legal duty to properly repair and maintain their buildings, and it’s probably time for some government intervention.

I’ve chosen three listener questions to answer, covering termites, security cameras and the strata manager’s authority to appear before the tribunal.

By popular demand, this is your short (12 min) summary of the Barnes case - including why the case is so important for NSW strata communities. This one delivered for you by a special guest. Tune in to find out who…

Amy Brand and Julie McLean join me, sharing your access to The High Life Expo, happening online and in-person over the next month. We discuss how the apartment market is already changing when it comes to the sustainability conversation - with purchasers demanding more, and how suppliers can best harness the many new opportunities available.

Reena Van Aalst brings us a (long!) list of deadline-driven tasks that a strata manager is legally required to complete on behalf of their clients, and I ask her the question: how do you run a profitable business?  I explain the limitations on spending special levy funds, and invite you to the inaugural Strata Impact Conference.

I'm taking you inside part of my LIVE in-person presentation delivered for The City of Canada Bay Council earlier this year, sharing how and why our strata committees should be engaging in the practice of radical transparency (which shouldn't be that radical...)

Bruce Minter, long-term strata committee member, joins me as we discuss the incredible resilience required to lead a strata community. Bruce explains how he helped his community shift its collective mindset and break "the curse of low levies". He shares lessons learned from the U.S. Founding Fathers, and his unique understanding that strata "is not a jam stall at a school fete. It's a business".

Daniel Holt, strata manager, joins me, calling out the 'gaslighting' that he says has been going on in the strata management industry, with the real cost of managing a strata building hidden behind sophisticated third-party payment arrangements extending beyond insurance commissions. 

In a week during which the media continues to wage war against strata managers, Reena Van Aalst joins me to provide her point of view. We discuss: - models of remuneration for strata managers, and what Reena says needs to change - the role of Strata Community Association - the murky arrangements between other strata "professionals" and service providers, overdue for investigation, and more.

Recorded before last week's ABC news story broke, in this interview Tyrone Shandiman of the Australian Consumers Insurance Lobby explains: - how a lack of informed consent around insurance broker appointments may be harming strata owners, - the commercial advantage that strata managers accepting commissions have over those who don't, - how unfair industry "standard" contracts are feeding the problem, - why we need more voices willing to speak up and share their stories, and more. If you've experienced a practice that doesn't pass the pub test, you're invited to fill in ACIL's survey here.

Allume Energy's Australian-made, world-first technology is expanding the benefits of solar power, past a building's common areas and into the homes of its occupants. Will Antsee of Allume joins me to explain how millions of apartment residents can reduce their energy bills, at a time when savings have never been more important.

Reena joins me to discuss: - who is responsible for paying the insurance excess on a claim arising from an owner’s burst flexi-hose, - meeting minutes: do our minute-takers have sufficient training? - another Tribunal win for a self-represented litigant and member of our online community.