OCN in the Media

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NSW state election 2019: Labor to introduce strata commissioner if it is elected

2020-10-08T12:49:38+11:00

5 MARCH 2019 A dedicated strata commissioner to protect apartment owners and residents against Opal Tower-style building defects will be introduced by Labor should it win office at this month’s state election. The opposition’s better regulation spokeswoman Yasmin Catley confirmed to Domain that Labor plans to create an office to oversee all strata issues, but with particular focus on defects in newly constructed buildings. “A commissioner solely focused on strata is [...]

NSW state election 2019: Labor to introduce strata commissioner if it is elected2020-10-08T12:49:38+11:00

Strata loophole leaves owners vulnerable even when NCAT is supposed to be on their side

2020-10-08T12:50:43+11:00

18 FEBRUARY 2020 Every time Jan Newland leaves her apartment in a building on Sydney’s lower north shore, she checks the sky for signs of rain. And if there are darkening clouds, she pushes her lounge room furniture into the middle of the room, rolls up part of her carpet, puts down containers and hopes against hope it doesn’t rain. Newland has had leaks coming through her ceiling since work to [...]

Strata loophole leaves owners vulnerable even when NCAT is supposed to be on their side2020-10-08T12:50:43+11:00

Parliamentary Panic Behind Short-Term Letting U-turn

2020-10-08T12:51:47+11:00

13 FEBRUARY 2019 Why talk with Alex Greenwich? Becasue his constituency has more high-rise apartments than any other in Australia. So this podcast is the first of two parts in which we discuss the strata issues of the day – Airbnb, cladding, defects … and pets. The highlight of the chat, for me, was his description of how a last-minute push by the Owners Corporation Network (and a few like-minded souls) [...]

Parliamentary Panic Behind Short-Term Letting U-turn2020-10-08T12:51:47+11:00

Election Connection as OCN Faces the Big Issues for 2019

2020-10-08T12:53:24+11:00

6 FEBRUARY 2019 Last year was huge for the Owners Corporation Network (OCN), the only significant body for apartment owners, run by apartment owners. Most notably, they were hugely instrumental in turning what would have been potentially the worst short-term holiday letting (STHL) laws in the country into what could well be the very best. But it’s a new year and that means new challenges, not least the Opal Tower crisis [...]

Election Connection as OCN Faces the Big Issues for 20192020-10-08T12:53:24+11:00

Unit owners punished for driving ACT’s economic growth: strata boss

2020-10-08T12:54:24+11:00

03 FEBRUARY 2020 Canberra apartment owners are being punished for helping drive the ACT's economic growth as the territory government "robs Peter to pay Paul" by increasing rates, according to the leader of the ACT's peak strata body. Strata Community Association ACT president Chris Miller made those comments after the territory government revealed it had no immediate plans to overhaul its rating system, despite calls from a bipartisan Legislative Assembly committee [...]

Unit owners punished for driving ACT’s economic growth: strata boss2020-10-08T12:54:24+11:00

ACT government ‘ignores’ call to ease rates pressure on unit owners

2020-10-08T12:55:20+11:00

21 JANUARY 2019 The ACT government has ignored calls to immediately overhaul the city's ratings system to help ease the burden of rising rates on Canberra's apartment owners, owners say, but it will review the system in the next two years. The government has promised to publicly review the system and is considering whether any such changes may be needed in either the 2019-20 or 2020-21 budget, and intends to announce [...]

ACT government ‘ignores’ call to ease rates pressure on unit owners2020-10-08T12:55:20+11:00

Opal Tower failure reveals “broken system”

2020-10-08T12:56:06+11:00

9 JANUARY 2019 Sydney’s Opal Tower has dominated headlines after cracks appeared along a concrete wall in the 38-storey Homebush building in Olympic Park on Christmas Eve. Building defects aren’t unusual in Australian construction, but what the crumbling Opal Tower highlights is the vulnerability of builders and subcontractors of defective buildings and the lack of protections for consumers who buy them. "This is a David-and-Goliath fight no owner expects, or should [...]

Opal Tower failure reveals “broken system”2020-10-08T12:56:06+11:00

Baptism of Fire: Opal Tower’s Challenge For Newly Formed Owners Corporation

2020-10-08T12:57:10+11:00

04 JANUARY 2019 Residents of Opal Tower heard the unwelcome news on Friday that the NSW government-appointed engineers needed more time before they would approve any repair – and hence a return – to the building. In a statement referring "design and construction issues that require further investigation", engineers Mark Hoffman and John Carter said it could take another week before they were in a position to say more. It's tough [...]

Baptism of Fire: Opal Tower’s Challenge For Newly Formed Owners Corporation2020-10-08T12:57:10+11:00
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