Mike Spencer – Platinum Global
Hello Unclear Reader,
The purpose of the Ombudsman is as a court of last resort, when all the steps that are presently allowed for in the Sectional Titles Act have been followed but there is still a feeling that things are not being done properly.
For example, when there are trustees under the current Act who are applying different rules to different people (discriminating on whatever grounds) and a member or members cannot get them to stop doing this.
An example of this could be that they allow some people to have a dog on a property that has a rule clearly stating “no animals allowed”.
This is especially problematic when they enforce this rule against some other owners but allow a “favourite” owner to have a dog.
Under the new Act, it would be possible for an owner or owners to take the matter to the Ombudsman providing that they had followed all the rules in the building.
The Ombudsman will not consider any case unless the complainant has taken reasonable steps to get the problem sorted out.
The Ombudsman will not take sides where one owner is unhappy with a decision by the majority and wants to go in another direction.
The Ombudsman is there to step in and assist where rules, ethics or good governance practices are being flouted.
I must say that I am surprised at how much frustration there is from people about HOAs and virtually nothing about sectional title schemes.
We run a large number of sectional title schemes and there are very few complaints about enforcement of the rules. Our biggest problems tend to be from people who have forgotten to buy pre-paid electricity, noise issues, and people not security conscious enough.
Our body corporates are run with open meetings which always end with a general section that allows any owner to raise a concern. Our budgets are discussed at a trustees’ meeting, to which all owners are invited, the month before the start of the new financial year.
Everyone gets a copy of the minutes of general meetings and trustees’ meetings. All owners get an owners’ newsletter, and residents a residents’ newsletter after every meeting so that nobody can say they did not know.
Perhaps the lack of communication in HOAs is the real problem.
The Landlord
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