Giving your strata scheme a lick of paint not only helps to modernise and freshen up the whole building, giving it a whole new lease of life, it can also increase the building’s value. It can also influence owners and tenants to stay longer plus help reduce the number of complaints about the building’s visual appeal.
Why paint your strata scheme?
There are many reasons why you should consider painting your strata scheme. These include:
- Give your building a refresh or colour change
- As part of general maintenance and repair work
- Building renovations
- Annual maintenance
- Protection, membrane and waterproofing
- Help to increase real estate value and rental returns
- Make it easier to find rental tenants or sell an apartment lot
Do you need approval to paint?
Before any painting of common property areas can commence, you first need approval from the strata committee and owners corporation at a committee meeting. Any external painting and the overall colour scheme need to be first approved before any work can start. Keep in mind that there may also be specific by-laws and regulations for the strata scheme that needs to be checked and adhered to.
Cosmetic painting work such as retouching within individual lots, however, is up to the lot owner.
Who organises the painters?
It is up to the owners corporation to organise the painting work. However, they can delegate this task to the strata committee or strata manager instead who can search for a painter, organise a time and date for the work to be done and be the project go-between. Before any work can commence, all owners need to collectively agree on any changes to the initial painting plan, which can be voted at during a committee meeting. It is also important to discuss how urgent the painting work is and the timeframes around the expected completion date.
Who pays for the paint job?
Any major paint jobs should come out of the strata capital works fund, whilst smaller jobs like touch-ups can be paid via the administrative fund. Any major painting jobs should have been budgeted for in the previous year’s financial annual plan so should be expected. If there is not enough money within the capital works fund or administrative fund, the total cost of the painting job can be split evenly between all of the lot owners instead.
When obtaining quotes, try to get a schedule of costs which can include details such as:
- Day rate per painter
- Metre² rate per render repair
- Scaffold cost per day
This can help with comparisons and budgeting when it comes to choosing a painter for the work.
How to choose the right painter?
When looking for a painter for your strata scheme, it’s wise to get quotes from around two or three different painters or painting companies. Your strata manager can assist with recommending painters if you need help with this. When choosing a painter, keep in mind the following:
- Good communication skills
- Positive reviews from previous clients
- Experienced team, particularly within the strata industry
- Check company accreditations, licenses, insurance and ABN
- Check with industry associations such as SCA NSW and Master Painters NSW
- Review the quote and its inclusions – you may prefer a cheaper quote, but this tends to use low-quality materials and produce a poorer result
- Check preparation levels – washing down, sanding relevant areas and applying undercoats
- Check timeframes, budgets and expectations
- Good recommendations on colour schemes and paint samples
How are residents affected by common property area painting?
Depending on the size of the strata scheme, painting external walls and common property areas can be a lengthy and time-consuming task. This can involve painting doors, corridor walls, staircases and the lobby, shared communal spaces such as laundry rooms, gyms and more which can provide some inconvenience to owners and tenants. To keep disruption to a minimum, it’s recommended that a notice is displayed to tenants in advance on the communal noticeboard, whilst notices can be delivered through letterboxes to give prior notice of when painting works will commence. Work can also be scheduled over numerous days to concentrate on different areas of the building as well as time the painting to occur outside of peak hours when there is less heavy foot traffic.
Get in touch
To learn more about painting your NSW strata scheme or to find experienced painters for your next paint job, contact The Strata Collective today.