Terrace Strata Management is a locally owned and operated strata management firm specialising in new developments.
Their Words
Our ethos is centred on creating and nurturing great culture within the body corporates that we manage – we’ve experienced first-hand the sense of community that owners or their tenants enjoy when things are set up right from the outset.
We’ve put together a package to make sure your development has it all. We help you and the body corporate comply with the Strata Titles Act 1998, and to enhance the liveability of your development once it’s completed. We work with you throughout construction, and at settlement. We liaise with your real estate agent and prospective purchasers, and we provide the necessary requisition documentation at settlement. We prepare the proposed budget and call the first AGM with you as sole member of the body corporate so that we have everything in place for the new owners.
Ideally, you’d engage us before you start selling so that we can provide your purchasers with the proposed budget and by-laws. This shows your market that you’ve thought ahead about strata living and the well-being of your purchasers.
Your purchasers will get a clear understanding of their rights and obligations from the comprehensive set of by-laws, which bring together the relevant parts of the Act, the model by-laws, the council planning permit, and anything else that is specific to your development. They’ll be written by a land information consultant who’s had 30 years with the Land Titles Office dealing with disputes, so you can be sure that he knows how to prevent problems.
We are the first point of contact for anything that crops up, including repairs or maintenance on common property as well as within the units, and we are a neutral third party if ever there are issues between the residents.
On behalf of the body corporate, we undertake the following activities to ensure compliance with the Act:
Accounting
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Setting up the bank account
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Keeping the financial records
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Preparing annual financial statements of income & expenditure
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Issuing notices for fees
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Paying invoices and insurance premiums
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Reconciling the bank account
Insurance
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Arranging the Strata Insurance through Insurance Solutions Tasmania Pty Ltd
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Arranging a building replacement valuation as required
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Lodging and managing insurance claims
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Providing certificates of currency upon request
Documentation
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Maintaining the roll of owners
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Maintaining the Register of the Body Corporate
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Recording of all correspondence
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Preparing and supervising the use of the common seal
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Keeping of records including minutes, budgets etc
Annual General Meeting
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Convening, attending and chairing the AGM
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Submitting a budget for consideration of the Body Corporate
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Recording and distributing the minutes
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Reporting our activities at the AGM
Maintenance & Guidance
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Arranging minor maintenance (up to $1,000) or repairs of body corporate property
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Assisting the body corporate in carrying out its obligations and in its decision making
More from Terrace
Thank you for your interest in what we offer, we’d love the opportunity to work with you.
As you may be aware, a body corporate is automatically created when a strata scheme is registered, even when there are only two lots, and the Strata Titles Act 1998 imposes obligations on you as the developer, and on the body corporate. We offer a streamlined package to assist you in complying with the Act, and getting your body corporate set up properly from the outset.
What’s in it for you?
- Maximise your profits – A strata scheme with a properly established and active body corporate is more appealing to purchasers, especially interstate and informed purchasers, which helps maximise profitability
- Create a Lifestyle - Terrace creates a harmonious and cohesive culture within a body corporate from the outset and we encourage developers to “create a lifestyle” for their purchasers. Our process reduces the likelihood of disputes and assists our bodies corporate in keeping the development compliant with the Act, well maintained and liveable
- Protect your investment – we arrange strata insurance as soon as your certificates of occupancy are issued. Not only does this comply with the Act, it ensures that your finished development is properly protected.
- Comply with the Act – The Strata Titles Act 1998 imposes obligations on you as the developer and on the body corporate. We take on those obligations so you can focus on what you do best (see a summary below)
- We’re the first point of contact – we are happy to talk to real estate agents and prospective purchasers about what’s in place, how strata works and what the costs are. We provide them with the necessary paperwork, and we liaise with solicitors at settlement. After completion, we have an established process in place to handle defects
- Deadlocks – even lot bodies corporate have an inherent risk of deadlocks, which makes it very difficult for decisions to be made. As a neutral, impartial party, we can provide the pros and cons of the proposal to assist owners in reaching an agreement
- We run the first AGM – as developer, you are required to call the first AGM as soon as possible. We run this with you as the sole member of the boy corporate to put things in place ready for settlement of the contracts
- Requisitions – the conveyancing lawyers require requisition documentation for settlement of the contracts. We provide these immediately upon request to ensure settlements proceed on time. Our fee for these is covered in our set up fee.
What is common property? Common property includes anything outside the lot boundaries such as common driveways and gardens. It also includes service infrastructure such as cables, wires, pipes, sewers, drains, ducts, plant and equipment by which water, gas, electricity, sewerage, storm water drainage or telecommunications are provided.
What are the costs? We charge a set-up fee which covers the costs of tailored by-laws, and the requisition certificates issued for settlement of contracts and liaison with your real estate agent, prospective purchasers and the land surveyor.
The by-laws - we have these drafted by a consultant who worked in around the Land Titles Office for more than 50 years. In our experience, these by-laws are the cornerstone of a cohesive and effective body corporate – they clearly set out each owner’s rights and obligations, and we can draw on them to address any issues that arise. They also allow us to conduct business electronically, so we can deal with issue as they arise rather than having to wait for a meeting.
When do you engage us? As soon as possible – we will get the by-laws drafted as soon as the planning permit is issued, so that you can provide them to your purchasers. By investing the time and money to set things up ready for the body corporate, you create the culture of the body corporate and simplify life for the purchasers.
Once title is issued, we undertake everything required of you or the body corporate to comply with the Strata Titles Act 1998, including
- Management of the strata insurance policy in conjunction with Insurance Solutions Tasmania Pty Ltd
- Opening a body corporate bank account
- Explaining and enforcing by-laws (which would include improper use of car parks, and parking issues)
- Developing a budget for body corporate approval to cover the costs of complying with the Strata Titles Act 1998
- Issuing levies
- Paying bills
- Facilitating the maintenance and improvement of common property including perimeter fencing
- Convening, chairing and recording annual general meetings
Levies average out between $1,300 - $1,500 per unit per annum. They can be paid monthly, quarterly or annually. Budgets include
- Strata insurance
- Management fee
- Gardening of common property (optional but recommended)
- Building maintenance (optional – unusual in the first few years)
- Sinking fund for future capital maintenance of common property
Please visit www.terracestrata.com.au to learn more about what we do.
