Dealing with high strata/body corp numbers

I've been doing a round of inspections for a new PPOR, and curiously we've come across a few unit blocks with a huge number of strata units. A few with 20-something units, and even one with over 200!

I'm not talking about highrise apartments, but detached units/villas, often over 300sqm, with your own backyard. In some cases the strata covers multiple streets (feels like a gated community without the gate). The strata fees seem lower than apartments/flats, but having never dealt with these big strata blocks before, I'm a bit cautious.

Just wondering if anyone else has had experience with these big strata blocks before? I've only dealt with small strata blocks (usually less than 10), so I'm not sure what to expect. Lots of bickering? Machiavellian politics? A property group buying up 50% of the units to control the strata?

Or should I just avoid these sort of places altogether?

 

Some/few may not be covered by council....
So you pay for garbage collection/water/sewage as estate fee's ($$$'s)

 

We owned an IP in a complex of 80 - low rise apartments, car parking under then two levels of apartments. No gym or lifts but two pools.

A very successful property, almost tripled in value in about 10 years.

Advice?

In a big complex, make sure the property you buy is one of the best located within the complex - views, aspect, light, noise etc. Most of our tenants came from within the complex as our apartment was in a choice position.
Sales people will tell you that the cheaper (less desirable) apartments command almost as much in rent, but what they don’t tell you is that the “better” ones are taken first even if a bit higher rent.
In a big complex there are often several vacancies at the same time, so it pays to be first choice. In the 10 years we owned the property we had about 14 days vacant.

And the bigger the complex the harder it is for any buyer/group to get a controlling interest.

 

i own a townhouse within a gated community in GC and I tind in general strata fees are very high owing to scope of common area anf therefore issues. Not so much politics but i find there needs be good owner occupier involvement with the strata like owner corporation otherwise you get taken for joyrides by management company. its hard to do Due Diligence from documents alone but suggest you read thru strata minutes/AGM minuted and check if most are proxy (i.e. owners cudnt give a darn) or good physical attendence by owners.

during covid era these gated community values shot up so i am glad i held on.

 

Would becoming an active committee member negate a lot of these problems like inactive owners, dodgy managers, etc? I've always been a fairly active member of my strata, but it's a tiny lot where you only need 1-2 owners involved to get stuff done, and the management company is fairly hands-off.

 

if I was an owner occupier I would. But when these are investment properties you don't want to spend any hassle on nitty gritty, unless one is retired and bored. I try not to get attached to my IP much, I treat this as entry on spreadsheet and the less I have to do with it, the better it is.

 

Its going to be a PPOR so I'll definitely get involved, I guess it's just worrying having too many units in the strata as it's unfamiliar territory for me. I've been reading through AGM minutes and most seem fine, but the bigger ones seem to have very little attendance (less than a quarter came, lots of proxy votes given to a few people), which makes me a bit worried.

 

It is in your best interests to keep a close eye on your properties. Ignoring BC issues means you are not aware of potential problems that early action will minimise.

Disinterested owners can result in run down, poorly maintained buildings with resultant loss of value, particularly when timely maintenance is involved.

We always took an interest in the running of complexes where we owned apartments, and we were far from “retired and bored”!

 

I’m in a townhouse village of over 300, these have big yards and double garages etc. I was cautious to buy initially but the managers keep the place looking perfect and it’s like living in our own seperate friendly community. Voting numbers are low and I think most residents are just happy so they leave the decisions up to the minority. It is a care fee lifestyle and body corps are approx $3500 a year which is pretty fair considering we have 4 pools, 2 tennis courts and lots of gardens.

 

I have a unit in a block with 9,812 units .
So 200 is pretty small.

 

if i can do it all over again i would just avoid anything with bodycorp. vanilla house and land is by far simplest

 

That's what drew me to these places too, from talking to the resident they seem to be a pretty friendly bunch, and it's a nice feeling to know your neighbours have an interest in keeping the place safe and tidy. Would you say there's any downsides, or anything to watch out for?

Wow, that's practically a whole suburb! Is this one of those planned regional towns?

What would be the reason? Have you encountered issues with body corp before? Just curious, as I'm trying to learn a bit about the downsides so I can be prepared.

 

if you remember doing group project at uni with 6 ppl with different views, you know how hard it was? or at work with all diff department want different approach... thats body corp. basically get involved on matters beyond your control.

i also find body corp are just money grabbers. its hard to find good body corp that looks after owner interest

 

We found the opposite. Our apartments were in well run complexes with minimal input from us apart from keeping an eye on body corporate matters.

Properties were rented through on-site managers who dealt with just about everything to do with the tenants. Because of this they were very particular about just who they rented to, as they would be the ones dealing with any problems the tenants caused, both with the actual property and also wider issues such as problems with neighbours.