OCN in the Media

OCN in the Media2023-12-20T18:36:38+11:00
27October, 2023

Buyers of defective Imperial Towers apartments in Sydney allowed to break contracts, recoup deposits in ‘radical’ first

27 OCTOBER 2023 Nearly 100 people who purchased defective apartments in a Western Sydney development will have their contracts rescinded and deposits returned under a landmark agreement. Key points: Government inspectors found "serious defects" in 2021 and stopped buyers from moving in Developer said "serious defects" had been rectified prior to the receiver being appointed Apartments can't be sold for 10 years, and future buyers must be alerted to any [...]

10October, 2023

Backroom deals in strata insurance and how they’re costing you

10 OCTOBER 2023 Long-standing conflicts of interest can have a big impact on premiums. There are a lot of moving parts when it comes to strata insurance, and a lot of the movement is hidden from the people who pay for it. Karen Stiles, executive director of the Owners Corporation Network (OCN), a not-for-profit strata owners' advocacy group, has long campaigned for the removal of insurance commissions and broker fees [...]

1October, 2023

This law was meant to solve Sydney’s housing crisis. It’s left owners devastated

1 OCTOBER 2023 The owners of apartments in crumbling old buildings who were offered multimillion-dollar sums by developers to hand them over for demolition and rebuilds have had their dreams dashed by loopholes in new legislation that was ironically intended to make redevelopments easier. Karen Stiles, executive officer of the apartment owners’ peak organisation the OCN, said repeated requests to reform the legislation had fallen on deaf ears. “The state [...]

28September, 2023

Strata committees can cause grief for apartment owners. Here’s where conflict starts, and how to avoid it.

28 SEPTEMBER 2023 There are almost 3 million apartments or townhouses around the country that have one thing in common: they're covered by a strata scheme. It means the people who own those properties pay regular strata fees to cover any costs related to shared space. Strata committees — elected volunteer owners — make day-to-day decisions about things like building maintenance, repairs, renovations and other big-ticket items.  They're important decisions. But strata [...]

16September, 2023

Telcos Have the Right to Install High Speed Internet on your Apartment Building Whether You Like it or Not

16 SEPTEMBER 2023 Recently, an ITC Lane Cove Chat reader asked if a Telco called GigaComm had contacted anyone living in an apartment complex about installing high-speed internet infrastructure in their apartment building.  With over 50% of Lane Cove residents living in apartments, this was an issue worth investigating. So, what do you do when a Telco contacts your owners corporation with an official notice stating the Telco will be installing fibre and [...]

13September, 2023

Three ways to prepare your unit block for an emergency

13 SEPTEMBER 2023 With extremes of weather, bushfires and strained infrastructure on the way, is your building ready for a crisis to become a catastrophe? OCN is hosting Strata Matters with three panel sessions on how to prepare for any hard times ahead. Read more:> HERE

12September, 2023

Preventing Conflict in Strata Communities

12 SEPTEMBER 2023 OCN spoke with Hilary Harper of Radio National 'Life Matters' about how to prevent conflict within a strata community and a strata committee. Listen:> HERE

29August, 2023

Strata debts sending more Aussie homeowners bankrupt

29 AUGUST 2023 The Business | ABC News A growing number of homeowners are being sent bankrupt because of debts owed to body corporates over the upkeep of building complexes. Consumer groups say it often starts as a small amount but quickly escalates once fees and charges are added, landing some Australians in court. Strata companies are facing calls to offer hardship arrangements. Watch the full video:> HERE  

29August, 2023

Collapsed developer Toplace ordered to fix another defective Sydney building

29 AUGUST 2023 The Business | ABC News Collapsed developer Toplace has been ordered to fix yet another defective Sydney building. Uncontrolled cracking has been found in the Kellyville apartment complex. It was the third Toplace development slapped with a rectification order in one week. Watch the full video:> HERE

25August, 2023

Big changes in store for apartment laws

25 AUGUST 2023 Major updates to NSW strata are being proposed, with working groups having recommended some bold regulatory reforms for the sector. Among the changes afoot is a recommendation to make the initial annual general meeting of new buildings a two stage process so that owners, especially first timers, cannot be railroaded into agreements that are not in their best interests, such as embedded networks [https://www.afr.com/wealth/personalfinance/howtostop-dodgymaintenancecontractsinyournewapartmentblock-20230801-p5dt3d]. Allied to the recommendation [...]

19July, 2023

Apartment owners face strata fee increases of 20 per cent as costs soar

19 JULY 2023 Strata levies paid by apartment owners are up by 15 to 20 per cent on average over the past year as the costs of insurance, utilities and repairs and maintenance outstrip even the rapid rise in general inflation. Apartment owners are facing an increase in strata fees on top of rises in mortgage repayments. Without any official source of strata levies, the evidence for rising levies is [...]

17July, 2023

Is Strata Mediation A Good Idea?

OCN Executive Director talks with Fran Kelly on ABC Radio 702 Mornings about the good, the bad and the ugly sides of mandatory mediation.

16July, 2023

The ‘extra obstacle’ for owners clashing with body corporates over building defects

16 JULY 2023 The number of people applying for strata scheme mediation has surged by 45 per cent in five years as owners clash with owners corporations over building defects and repairs. The average wait time for parties to meet with a mediator was three months, NSW Fair Trading confirmed, while it takes another four months on average for a resolution for those who escalated the issue to the NSW [...]

15July, 2023

NSW’s building industry is reforming after years of apartment defects, but comes too late for many owners

15 JULY 2023 Brian Tucker is forking out thousands of dollars on quarterly strata fees and paying down his mortgage on an apartment that's been uninhabitable for more than four years. So far this year NSW Fair Trading has issued more than 30 work rectification orders across building sites, including The Laneways Rosebery, which remains empty and has serious structural defects, and Toplace's Vicinity complex in Canterbury over "potential serious [...]

13July, 2023

Apartment owners fear multi-million-dollar repair bill after developer Toplace goes into administration

13 JULY 2023 Patrick Quintal was newly married and eager to begin a fresh chapter when he bought a Sydney apartment two years ago. Now the IT manager feels financially trapped, fearing a $180,000 repair bill after the developer of his apartment, Toplace, went into administration. Karen Stiles, head of peak residential strata body Owners Corporation Network, said the situation surrounding Toplace was "not a one-off occurrence". She said apartment [...]

12July, 2023

Premier urges fugitive developer to turn himself in

12 JULY 2023 Controversial Sydney developer Jean Nassif is being urged to submit to authorities as his company collapses, a month after a warrant was issued for his arrest. NSW Fair Trading this week said it was working with Strata Communities Australia and the Owners Corporation Network to help strata managers and owners in Toplace buildings. The agency advised buyers with deposits on off-the-plan Toplace sales to contact their conveyancer or [...]

11July, 2023

Patrick’s apartment block has defects. He has nightmares of being buried beneath rubble

11 JULY 2023 Every time IT manager Patrick Quintal leaves work to travel home, he feels sick with dread that his apartment building may no longer be standing. Each night when he goes to sleep, he dreams about waking up buried beneath rubble. The former chair of apartment peak body, the Owners Corporation Network, Stephen Goddard, says Vicinity has all the hallmarks of the Mascot Towers disaster. “At this stage [...]

9July, 2023

How strata schemes are letting down Sydney’s apartment owners

9 JULY 2023 When Eloise O’Connell joined the strata committee for her apartment in Liverpool, their first task was to raise the fees to prevent insolvency. “Whether your building can be well run is just by the sheer luck of the combination of people who put their hands forward,” O’Connell said. Head of the peak body for residential strata owners the Owners Corporation Network Karen Stiles said the strata management [...]

11June, 2023

‘Dob in a developer’ scheme extended as builders forced to fix defects

11 JUNE 2023 Builders and developers have been told to fix shonky work across 33 properties by NSW Building Commissioner David Chandler, as the government announces an extension to the building dispute resolution scheme. Project Intervene allows owners’ corporations to dob in serious defects in common areas of buildings, provided the buildings are four or more stories high and built less than six years ago, and have the commissioner negotiate [...]

12April, 2023

Demand for more EV charging stations across Sydney suburbs

12 APRIL 2023 Sydney’s North Shore and eastern suburbs apartment dwellers are stuck in a catch-22 where they can afford an electric vehicle but have nowhere at home to charge it. They say more education is needed for strata committees and while the Labor federal government is moving in the right direction, there is still much more that can be done to stop Australia being a “massive graveyard” for high-emission [...]

6April, 2023

Now is the Perfect Time to Fix Broken Strata System

6 MARCH 2023 The "opportunities" the new Minister has range from an out of control residential market to a stuttering strata complaints system, via an unprecedented housing crisis. One significant step forward the new government could take would be to support the Owners Corporation Network, which represents strata owners, with substantial guaranteed finance for the next four years, as it does with the Tenants' Union. Apartment owners are not the [...]

6March, 2023

Bold move to future-proof your nest egg and buy you freedom

6 MARCH 2023 As more Australians chase a new home ownership dream, these tips show why a smaller abode could better protect your interests. Experts suggest anyone planning to buy off the plan should do all the relevant research. Check the developer and builder, visit past projects and even knock on doors to ask residents about their experience. “It’s better to pay a premium for an apartment from a reputable [...]

13February, 2023

‘This is evolving quickly’: City of Sydney accelerates switch to electric vehicles

13 FEBRUARY 2023 The City of Sydney will require all new apartment buildings to accommodate electric vehicle chargers in car spaces and look to retrofit existing residential blocks with charging stations under a plan to spur the uptake of the technology as the council pushes to reach net zero emissions by 2035. Owners Corporation Network chairman Fred Tuckwell said apartment owners racing to future-proof their blocks by installing EV chargers [...]

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