Amanda Farmer shares top tips for peaceful apartment living
From noisy neighbours to Airbnb parties, Amanda Farmer is the go-to person for legal advice on peaceful apartment living. Here she shares her top tips.
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Covid and working from home has undoubtedly contributed to more conflict among neighbours living in apartment complexes.
Everything from illegal dumping to noisy neighbours and Airbnb parties can cause strife in the city’s communal blocks.
Strata lawyer Amanda Farmer, who has worked in the industry for more than 17 years, has shared her top legal advice to help promote a more peaceful apartment living experience.
With two units in Bondi, Ms Farmer said she’s definitely an “advocate” for apartment living.
“It’s good to go in with open eyes and with knowledge of the potential pitfalls.
“If you’re aware and get educated on how to deal with them you will have a smoother more enjoyable experience,” she said.
Ms Farmer said noise concerns was undoubtedly one of the “biggest issues” for unit dwellers particularly during Covid.
“I’m hearing about complaints of noise after 10pm, and kids who would usually be at school playing in the home,” Ms Farmer said.
To tackle the issue, she recommended door knocking and approaching the neighbour.
“To talk first is the best way. Seeing as it’s the community you live in as opposed to a workplace, having the best relationships with your neighbours’ is essential for peaceful living.”
She recommended following the chat with an email.
“That’s a good idea form a lawyer’s perspective because it sets a paper trail and marks a record.”
If that doesn’t work she said to get in contact with the strata manager to lodge a formal complaint.
However if you’re dealing with a neighbour who puts your safety at risk, she said calling the police should be the “first port of call.”
Most strata buildings have a set of rules known as bylaws which will include noise concerns.
In NSW, the model by-law states that “an owner or occupier must not make noise at any time within their lot or on common property that is likely to disturb peaceful enjoyment of another resident or anyone using common property.”
When asked if there were any rules on curfews, she said “no.”
Yet Ms Farmer said it was a “low threshold” and recommended making sound recordings.
“The rule is you can’t create noise that disturbs someone’s peaceful enjoyment that applies at all times.
“All that you all need to show if you’re the person suffering is to show that you’re peaceful enjoyment has been disturbed,” Ms Farmer said.
If notices from the strata manager falls on deaf ears, she said the next route was getting a lawyer engaged and taking the matter to the tribunal (NCAT), she said.
“They can seek an order from the tribunal that the person stops making that noise.”
She said renovations was also a sore point particularly for investor-owned units.
“A misconception is when people buy an apartment is that they can set about renovating the kitchen and bathroom straight away without any approval.”
Yet she said approval from the body corporate was required because renovations affected the “common property.”
She said everything from changing carpet to hard flooring, and installing an air conditioner to moving a washing machine to the kitchen needed approval.
“In strata, you essentially own only the air space. The minute you penetrate a wall, floor and ceiling you're affecting the common property and you have to get approval.”
From yappy puppies to unwanted odours, pets are also a point of contention for many unit dwellers.
In September, the law was recently changed preventing body corporates to have ‘blanket bans’ on pets at owner occupied units.
“Owners now can have pets if they want to. But if you’re a tenant you still need to have approval from your landlord,” Ms Farmer said.
Yet she said pets can still be banned if they were dangerous or “reasonably interfered” with the property or another occupier.
Meanwhile, Ms Farmer said failure to maintain and repair common property was “the bulk” of disputes she had to deal with as a lawyer.
She said common property including lifts, foyers and pools were the responsibility of the body corporate to repair and maintain.
“If there is an owner who lives in a penthouse and their roof is leaking, that is common property,” she said.
“If the roof is not waterproofed, that is the responsibility of the body corporate to repair.
“The owner is entitled to go to them and ask them to fix the roof. They don’t understand the law is on their side.”
She said repainting the exterior of the building, replacing windows, and fixing structural problems on balconies such as balustrades and concrete was also the responsibility of the body corporate.
On air-conditioning, she said it was considered common property only if it was installed when the building was constructed.
Yet if it was installed afterwards it was for the owner to fix.
Letting units for short terms rentals including Airbnbs was also a topical issue.
“Most concerns include leaving waste behind, using up garbage rooms, having parties and creating noise,” she said.
If apartment owners had concerns, she said it was worth checking the building’s bylaws.
“There has been a lot of reform of the laws in this area in the last few years. A building can now have a by-law that prevents investor owners from short term letting,” she said.
Yet the strata lawyer said that didn’t prevent owner occupied units to house Airbnb guests as a host.
Similarly, she said an owner who wanted to rent out their home while overseas for a six-month stint for example was allowed to do so.
From blocked chutes and overflowing bins, Ms Farmer said illegal dumping was also a prevalent issue particularly during Covid.
She said it was best to contact council for additional bins or collections as well as asking the body corporate to install CCTV in waste rooms.
Amanda Farmer will be hosting a webinar on the power of strata by-laws for apartment living at 12pm on October 27.
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