The upfront costs of new utility infrastructure, like solar PV or central gas hot water, can be very difficult to get owner approval for. How then can you acquire the equipment, so that you can access the savings? Some utility service retailers offer long term contracts, with the supply of the new equipment thrown in. While you may think that makes the new equipment, or the utility service (gas, electricity etc) more expensive, if you do the numbers carefully you will find that is not necessarily so. The power of bulk buying plus the certainty of a long-term supply contract can generate sufficient savings to ensure that the offer is truly competitive; now and into the future.
Body Corporate - 101 Tips
Tip 55 – Body Corporate Managers – They’re not lawyers
While your body corporate manager is expected to be familiar with the Act and Regulation modules, they’re not lawyers. There’s a difference between (say) asking a body corporate manager for basic information or where to find something in the legislation and (in effect) asking a body corporate manager to offer a legal opinion on an issue confronting your body corporate. Savvy body corporate managers will refer you to real lawyers. Watch out for the ones that don’t.
Tip 53 – Records – Privileged records
Before releasing anything sensitive to anyone, consider whether the record is privileged. That is, legally privileged and not for example “private” under the privacy legislation. Legal privilege applies typically to (a) communications between the body corporate and its solicitors and (b) other materials that are produced in the expectation of, or during the conduct of, litigation. If you have any doubts, seek legal advice.
Tip 52 – Defects– Keep the insurer up to date
When you receive notice of defects, when you receive a defects inspection report, when you have acted on emergency defects – keep your insurer up-to-date. The insurer may choose to take over, or not. Keeping the insurer informed ensures you don’t prejudice your rights under the insurance policy and the insurer is able to make appropriate decisions about your cover and how it will handle each matter, if at all.
Tip 51 – Meetings–Follow the general meeting agenda
Preparation and circulation of the general meeting agenda is required under the Act. It’s normal practice to follow the agenda. While the order of motions can be changed by procedural motions passed at the meeting, it’s rare that is required. A well thought out agenda will minimise the risk of motions having to be ruled out of order and, as far as possible, will deal with business in a logical way. Usually (the most important) statutory motions first, committee and owner’s motions second, and in the case of an AGM, the elections last.
