Our education seminars are run by Strata Choice to offer our clients a chance to gain more insight from industry professionals, as well as address any questions and concerns that may arise in the process of strata scheme management.
We are currently running seminars on the following two topics, with additional seminars being considered for introduction.

1. The Role of the Executive Committee: A seminar geared towards Executive Committee members that may have less experience than other members, and would value greatly from additional insight into their roles, responsibilities, and rights within strata management.

2. By-Laws and Disputes: A seminar designed to give Executive Committee members a better understanding of the purpose of By-Laws, and how and when they are used. It also covers dispute resolutions and how an owners corporation may deal with By-Law breaches.

Strata Choice conducts its Executive Committee Education seminars all year round and you may register online at http://www.stratachoice.com.au/ec_education.

This year Australia’s No 1 Building & Renovation Expo (HIA Sydney Home Show) will be held 10am to 7pm, from Thursday 31 May – Sunday 3 June 2012, at the Darling Harbour Exhibition Centre, Sydney.

There will be over 300 exhibitors showcasing the latest trends in renovation, building, furnishing, home improvements, sustainable options and outdoor living. With such a large range of home related products and services available, visitors will get the opportunity to shop and compare prices all under the one roof.

Tickets may be purchased online at a reduced rate and more information may be found on their Website: www.sydneyhomeshow.com.au/index.htm

To achieve improvement in consumer outcomes, CHOICE has investigated six commercial energy switching sites that claim to help households find more competitive deals and their research has uncovered significant issues with transparency, accuracy and the range of deals offered by some operators.

Some sites are not displaying basic information about terms and conditions on late fees and pay-on-time discounts, whilst others appeared to only offer a small selection of the market. There have also been situations whereby more savings could be made if consumers used one switching site compared to another, and when the same data was entered into the sites, there were recommendations for different plans.

The Super Complaint system is based on a super complaints system operating successfully in the United Kingdom. The project will allow CHOICE to present evidence to NSW Fair Trading that a feature of a market for consumer goods or services is, or appears to be, significantly harming the interests of consumers. Fair Trading will then liaise with a range of agencies and regulators to research and assess the issue and report on actions that may be taken.

This is a welcomed initiative with the increasing numbers of consumers turning to these sites to relieve the impact of rising energy prices and the carbon tax

View or download the Choice report “Between a door-knock and cyber-space: The problems with electricity switching sites” at www.fairtrading.nsw.gov.au/pdfs/About_us/Problems_with_electricity_switching_sites.pdf

This year, Earth Hour is on Saturday 31st March at 8.30pm.

During Earth Hour, people throughout Australia and around the world will turn off their lights for one hour to represent their concern and commitment to address climate change.

Supporting Earth Hour is part of a powerful global message that action is needed on climate change now and is a positive message to all to make a change towards living a more sustainable lifestyle.

Earth Hour is hosted by WWF and this year they will also be hosting the WWF Earth Hour Awards to unearth and recognize inspiring stories of Australian’s who are “Going Beyond the Hour” and are leading by example and inspiring others to do the same. For more information go to www.wwf.org.au/earthhour

In recent times, the media has been reporting on a number of falls by children from windows and balconies in apartment buildings as well as houses.

In an attempt to avoid such tragic accidents, the Australian Building Codes Board has now ruled that all windows in new homes and apartments, that are more than two metres from the ground, must be either fitted with window locks that stop the window being opened more than 125mm, or must have reinforced screens.

The changes will be included in the National Construction Code from May 2013.

It is important to note that these changes will only be effective when adults remember to lock the windows and check that the reinforced screens are in good order.

At this stage, these rules do not apply to existing buildings. Therefore it is important for adults to be vigilant in ensuring beds and other easily climbed items are not placed under open windows or near balcony railings. Better still, keep such windows and balcony doors locked when there is any doubt of not being able to supervise children at all times near such dangerous situations. Do not trust those regular styled flyscreens.

Under the Environmental Planning & Assessment Regulation 2000, the owner of the building (in this case the owners corporation) must ensure that each of the items listed in the Fire Safety Certificate have been assessed annually and are still installed and operating to the relevant standard.

An Annual Fire Safety Statement (AFSS) must then be submitted to the Local Council and NSW Fire Brigades, as well as a copy being prominently displayed in the building.

The majority of items listed on the AFSS are usually common property and the responsibility of the owners corporation. However, smoke sensors/detectors may often be the exception.

If the smoke detectors are connected to a common fire board/panel, then they are the responsibility of the owners corporation to repair and maintain.

If the smoke detectors are stand alone and are NOT connected to a common fire board/panel, then they are the responsibility of the owner to repair and maintain (similar to light-fittings). This is the case regardless of whether they are battery operated only, or hard-wired to the lot’s electricity with a back up battery.

The Summer 2012 E-Newsletter has just been released. It includes the following articles:
- Welcome to Strata Choice E-Newsletter
- Home Building Legislation Amendments, what does it mean for you?
- Strata Choice – Gold Sponsor at Griffith University Conference
- Digital Television

If you are not already registered to receive our quarterly E-Newsletter, please register here www.stratachoice.com.au/newsletter

To view all articles in this edition please click here

New national Work Health and Safety (WHS) laws have been developed to replace the existing state based Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) laws. The WHS laws mean that the same safety protection and the same penalties for safety offences will apply across all locations in Australia, starting from 1 January 2012 for all States except Victoria, Western Australia and Tasmania.

Nature of work has changed over the years. Places of work have varied greatly and it is becoming more common for some workers to work from their home. Alternative employment arrangements such as labour-hire, contractors and the use of volunteers are also becoming more widespread. The national WHS laws have been developed to reflect these changes and information can be found on the Safe Work Australia Website at www.safeworkaustralia.gov.au.

Owners corporations need to demonstrate due diligence by creating systems and processes so that they may be seen to be doing things to improve health and safety within their strata scheme.

The NSW Government recently announced plans for a review of strata and community title laws in 2012 and is providing an opportunity for anyone involved or interested in the strata community to provide input to support the reform.

Global Access Partners (GAP), which is an experienced facilitator of online community consultations, is hosting on Open Forum, which closes on 29 February 2012.

This is a prospect not to be missed to raise your concerns or offer suggestions. Log onto www.openforum.com.au/strata where you will find a range of questions to comment on.

Every child drowning is a tragedy as most are preventable!

In an endeavour to increase the safety of very young children around backyard swimming pools, the Division of Local Government has issued a Swimming Pools Act 1992 Review Discussion Paper and is seeking from pool owners, local councils, and all stakeholders an indication of their support on a range of proposed amendments to this Act and other relevant legislation.

Some suggested amendments include:

1. New requirements for private swimming pool owners (which will include multiple dwellings) to register their pool with their local council and to self-certify the pool barrier’s compliance with the Swimming Pools Act;
2. New requirements for councils to undertake private swimming pool inspections within their local government areas; and
3. Increase to penalty amounts for most offences under the Act.

Submissions are invited by 5.00pm Friday 24 February 2012.

Further responsibilities and obligations on owners with swimming pools have also been addressed in recent amendments to the Conveyancing (Sale of Land) Regulation 2010 and the Residential Tenancies Act 2010.

Further information may be found on the Division of Local Government Website:
http://www.dlg.nsw.gov.au/dlg/dlghome/PublicTopicsIndex.asp?mi=0&ml=10&id=12