The Strata Schemes Management Act 2015 (SSMA) and Regulations outlines the role of the Strata Committee and their authority to act on behalf of the Owners Corporation. The Strata Collective sees the development of the relationship with the Strata Committee and the Strata Manager as one of the key areas of their management.
The Strata Committee may make any decision of the Strata Scheme except for decisions that the SSMA says it cannot make. The decisions that the Strata Committee cannot make are called "restricted matters". This means that the Strata Committee can do anything that is otherwise within the power of the strata scheme, except for the following matters that can only be decided at a general meeting:
- Striking levies or special levies. In most instances, the Strata Committee should understand and agree (as a majority) to the proposed budget
- Changing the by-laws Major renovations including all bathroom renovations that impact the waterproofing
- Appointing a Building Manager
- Appointing a Strata Manager Borrowing money on behalf of the Strata Scheme
- Altering common property
- Agreeing to a License or Lease over common property
Restricted Matters that the Strata Scheme at general meeting has determined may only be considered at a general meeting Any matters set out in the Act as requiring an ordinary resolution, a special resolution or a unanimous resolution Legal action costing over $13,000 Payments to a member of the Executive Committee (honorarium)
The type of decisions that a Strata Committee would normally make include:
- Appointing contractors such as cleaners & gardeners
- Approval of minor renovations (those that don't require a General Meeting approval)
- Accepting quotes for work to the building
- Accepting quotes for insurance
- Reviewing the budget and making recommendations to the owners for future Strata levies
- Review of the Financial Statements prepared by the Strata Manager
- Compliance matters such as by-law breaches and Office of Fair Trading mediation
- Reviewing requests from Owners and the suitability of each request
- Investment of surplus funds into Term Deposits
The Strata Collective is proud to provide our Strata Committees with a training programme to ensure that they are equipped with the tools to proactively manage their Strata Scheme. Please contact our office for more information on this service.