Finding out details of body corporate and services provided.

[absoluteproperty]

Hi all,

I am an owner in an apartment building in NZ and have been for the past 6 months. The property management is contracted out to a property management company, who allocate an off site building manager (two, actually).

Having lived in apartments all of my adult life, I know what is generally expected of a building manager and the body corporate.

A lot of what I see taking place in the building I have invested in is great, but some of the things I see being done (or not done) make me wonder a thing or two.

I have asked what the duties of the building manager and body corporate are (e.g. what is outlined in the property management agreement between the body corporate, the building managers, and the property management company), and I received a response from the current standing of the body corporate that "he is a nice guy, if you notice something that needs done just contact him directly" - my question was basically blown off. I am concerned that I am having my legal right withheld from me to know and understand how the body corporate (which I partially fund) and the agents for which it employs operate.

What would those of you "in the know" do next? I have concerns that issues which I have already identified may reduce the value of my investment over time unnecessarily.

[artemis]

Was it the BC chair you spoke to? I would put your request in writing to the chair and also ask to see minutes of BC meetings which should have some details at least. When is the next BC AGM? Suggest you raise issues at that meeting and ensure they are recorded in the minutes. If you are on the BC committee you will have more access to info. If you want to be on the committee, ask now to be coopted and nominate yourself for the next AGM.

[absoluteproperty]

Hi there Artemis,

Thank you for your response. The response of "he is a nice guy, just send him any issues you have and he will get it sorted" was from the body corporate chair, it is frustrating to know that I am not being told what my fees are (partially) paying the management company to do.

The next AGM is within the next month, and I will co-opt myself as you suggest. What is involved with being a member of the BC committee? I do not have a lot of regular time due to the nature of my work as a shift worker, but I do have a lot of dedication and down time at irregular hours. This is my single biggest investment for now so I want this to work.

[Ghouly]

Anyone who owns a unit in the complex is a member of the body corporate , and has the right to go along to the meetings. You can request from the body corporate manager a disclosure statement on the state of the body corporate, its funds, long term plan etc, although this does cost to compile as it is not a static document.

Hope that helps.

[absoluteproperty]

Thank you Ghouly,

Does the body corporate have a legal requirement to disclose the nature of the contents of the maintenance and upkeep contract with the building management company to its' members? I know of no other business in which it is considered ""OK" to refuse a business partner access to its' accounts, contracts and/or projection details.

[Maccachic]

This is the new Unit Titles Act 2010: http://www.legislation.govt.nz/act/p...LM1160440.html

From 79 onwards should provide you with some guidence.

[klauster]

In addition to comments above as body corporate member (unit title holder) you own a share of the common part of the building and the BC committee is obliged to answer questions to your satisfaction. You could ask the see the contract between building manager and body corporate. The financial statements tell you what the BC pays for repairs, maintenance and building management. Ask for the meeting minutes. The financial accounts should be at least quarterly attached.

[artemis]

Hi there Artemis, Thank you for your response. The response of "he is a nice guy, just send him any issues you have and he will get it sorted" was from the body corporate chair, it is frustrating to know that I am not being told what my fees are (partially) paying the management company to do.

The next AGM is within the next month, and I will co-opt myself as you suggest. What is involved with being a member of the BC committee? I do not have a lot of regular time due to the nature of my work as a shift worker, but I do have a lot of dedication and down time at irregular hours. This is my single biggest investment for now so I want this to work.

I'm not sure what would be required in your case as a committee member, but committee roles should be fairly straightforward if there is a management contract in place. I suggest having a read of the Unit Titles Act first up. You can find it here.

http://www.legislation.govt.nz/act/p...LM1160440.html

There are sections in the Act (subparts 12, 13, 14) setting out the BC's duties and responsibilities, and these will mostly be delegated to the committee and the management company. If you google the Act title you will find various useful summaries. Ask questions here if you need to. The DBH website has some useful summaries and forms too.

You will get a copy of the annual accounts before the meeting, so have a good look at them and take a list of questions to the meeting.

Do you have a copy of the BC operational rules? You will if you requested upon purchase an 'additional disclosure statement'. (If you didn't request this you should have, but you can ask for the info anyway.)

Ask the chair what the process is to be nominated for the committee, this will be voted on at the AGM. You may want to get a few other owner's on your side, including proxy votes. May not be necessary but committees and management companies can be very protective of their patch (contracts with the latter can be highly lucrative, so - follow the money!) so some advance support could be helpful.

Bit of a learning curve but not a bad thing to know about.

PS I chair, and run, a BC. But it is small, 4 units, and all owned by me and the family. So though I need to know about the requirements, they are much less complex than for a larger development.

[Maccachic]

You should also have a long term maintenance plan in place and a sinking fund to suuport it (unless they decieded against the latter).