How can a strata manager help a strata committee?

We explain how a strata manager can help your committee by absorbing some of the more time-consuming and specialised responsibilities

A strata manager is a trained professional with thorough knowledge and expertise. A strata manager can help your strata committee by ensuring proper and timely compliance with the legal, meeting, record keeping, accounting and financial, insurance and safety requirements relevant to a strata property. By engaging a strata manager, you have additional assurance that they will act objectively and ethically without favour or bias.

An owners corporation can choose the responsibilities of their appointed strata managing agent when negotiating the contract with them (excluding any owners corporation’s obligations that cannot be delegated). For instance, an owners corporation may wish to handle their financial affairs but have meetings arranged by the strata manager.A strata manager can help your strata committee by taking on these duties and responsibilities, among others:

1. Record keeping
2. Financial management
3. Insurance management
4. Meeting management
5. Maintenance management
6. Compliance management
7. General guidance and counsel

Record keeping

Engaging a professional strata manager means getting the benefit of record-keeping systems and processes.

A strata manager will maintain all records required by legislation, including:

• Written and electronic correspondence
• Proxy forms and voting papers
• Notices and minutes
• Compliance certification
• Accounting records and financial statements
• Copies of all contracts entered into by the owners corporation
• Registered strata plan and any relevant management statement, by-laws or building rules
• The strata roll, the access control register, and facilitate the inspection of records of the owners corporation and retrieve records from the archives when required.

Financial management

A good strata manager will have the experience, contacts, and know the history of the strata property to be able to help an owners corporation forecast budgets and allocate funds accordingly.

The financial duties and responsibilities of a strata manager include:

• Establishing trust accounts
• Bank reconciliations
• Issuing reminder and final levy notices
• Managing the debt collection of unpaid levies
• Arranging audits, preparing GST & BAS statements
• Budgets and levy contributions
• Financial reporting
• Providing relevant stakeholders such as owners or prospective buyers with financial information
• Keeping you updated about legislative changes and deadlines when fees need to be paid to ensure your property remains compliant.

Insurance management

Having the right amount of insurance cover is pivotal for any strata property.

A strata manager can arrange quotations for insurances required under legislation and assess whether other insurances such as worker’s compensation or additional insurance cover are necessary. They can also pay insurance premiums, prepare and lodge routing insurance claims, liaise with loss adjusters, and maintain insurance records on the strata committee’s behalf.

Meeting management

Meetings of a strata property require a great deal of coordination and management, and certain legislative requirements and protocols need to be adhered to.

A strata manager can help guide meeting requirements such as the preparation of agendas and meeting notices and recording minutes. They can also ensure meetings are compliant with relevant legislated protocols, co-ordinate pre-meeting voting, facilitate nominations of the committee, act as chairperson, and action resolutions of the owners corporation or strata committee.

Maintenance management

One of the many benefits of enlisting a strata manager’s help is access to their database of licensed and insured tradespersons.

They can ensure tradespeople and other contractors are licensed and certified and meet the necessary work, health and safety requirements before issuing work orders for common property repair and maintenance.

Compliance management

Ensuring a strata property is compliant with relevant legislative and safety requirements is among an owners corporation’s main responsibilities. Failure to comply may lead to heavy penalties and serious consequences such as loss of life.

A strata manager can help minimise risk by assisting with the management of the following:

• Annual fire safety inspections
• Periodical maintenance and testing of fire apparatus
• Providing certificates of fire compliance to the local council and relevant state fire department
• Arranging annual inspections and compliance certificates for air-conditioning towers and cooling systems and lifts
• Ensuring maintenance logs are maintained and that all tradies are Workplace Health and Safety and WorkCover compliant.

General guidance and counsel

A good strata manager may have a broader industry perspective as well as local expertise. They can provide owners corporations with legislation updates and local government changes or initiatives such as savings on energy and water usage.

A good strata manager should also offer clarity on by-laws or building rules, and the processes involved in commencing legal action, mediation or Tribunal order.

• Annual fire safety inspections
• Periodical maintenance and testing of fire apparatus
• Providing certificates of fire compliance to the local council and relevant state fire department
• Arranging annual inspections and compliance certificates for air-conditioning towers and cooling systems and lifts
• Ensuring maintenance logs are maintained and that all tradies are Workplace Health and Safety and WorkCover compliant.

Having set up the very first strata scheme in Australia back in 1948, we’ve come a long way in our knowledge and experience across a variety of property types. Whether you are new to strata management or an active committee member, we have developed an extensive library of resources to assist you. Click here to download our FREE Community Living guide on committee management. For a consultation to review your current by-laws with the Kemps Petersons Legal team, click here. To find out more about the services we offer, click here for a free strata assessment.