Building works/strata investigation prior to purchasing an apartment
- Thread starter Jaz
- Start date
Take a look at the Strata Report/Sinking Fund. Depending on the report you may speak to the Strata Manager. I had a case recently whereby the investor was purchasing a unit - they looked at the report which stated that the vendor had illegally tiled their balcony. The strata manager had asked that this be removed. They also stated that there is a tree in the complex which needs to be removed. The cost was $20,000 which meant a charge of $5,000 per unit. Also you need to ensure that there is adequate funds sitting in the sinking fund.
very true - many vendors do a lot of illegal works.
and also there are times whereby the building is not managed properly and it impacts the overall owners.
Building inspections are usually a waste of time in apartments.
Pest inspections are usually a waste of time:
As per due dilligence it's always best to get a conveyancer/solicitor to have a look through the contract for you... Most will do this for free in hope that they get the business.
A few things to note though are:
Strata sinking fund
Strata Rates Paid up-to-date
Strata AGM notes - upcoming repairs? expenses? problems?
Council rates paid up-to-date
Water report - look for flooding issues/comments
Get familiar with contracts - when ever you're looking at a property ask for the contract - review it and make comparisons so you understand pro's and con's of each.
The reason: Quantity surveyors will only look at your apartment internally... Which you can easily do yourself - keeping an eye out for cracks or concerns.
Few building inspectors will look at the whole block for you - the one's that do are very expensive; and even if you do find something to fix it's usually out of your control.
Few building inspectors will look at the whole block for you - the one's that do are very expensive; and even if you do find something to fix it's usually out of your control.
Pest inspections are usually a waste of time:
The reason: Termites can't eat concrete. If it's a timber development, then it's a good idea but be aware that it's the body corps job to look after this for the whole block.
As per due dilligence it's always best to get a conveyancer/solicitor to have a look through the contract for you... Most will do this for free in hope that they get the business.
A few things to note though are:
Strata sinking fund
Strata Rates Paid up-to-date
Strata AGM notes - upcoming repairs? expenses? problems?
Council rates paid up-to-date
Water report - look for flooding issues/comments
Get familiar with contracts - when ever you're looking at a property ask for the contract - review it and make comparisons so you understand pro's and con's of each.
Novice question(s) on this topic:
1. Do you HAVE to pay for a strata report? Can this be requested from the REA at no cost?
2. I work as a Building Consultant and therefore would be happy to review reports myself, similarly with building and pest inspections I would undertake . Can I do this? I assume if something were to go wrong due to not reading info / inspecting properly then I have nobody to sue if it came down to that?
3. Finally, at what point to you contact a solicitor / conveyancer? Formal offer stage? Prior??
Thanks in advance
1. Do you HAVE to pay for a strata report? Can this be requested from the REA at no cost?
2. I work as a Building Consultant and therefore would be happy to review reports myself, similarly with building and pest inspections I would undertake . Can I do this? I assume if something were to go wrong due to not reading info / inspecting properly then I have nobody to sue if it came down to that?
3. Finally, at what point to you contact a solicitor / conveyancer? Formal offer stage? Prior??
Thanks in advance
Yes, you have to pay. If you want to go to the strata manager's office to view the records yourself the cost is $33ph (I think). You need to make an appointment. This is a statutory fee so has to be paid. If you pay for a report to be compiled on your behalf by a professional it will obviously cost a lot more.
Once you make a formal offer which is accepted you will need to provide solicitor details for the contract to be issued. It would be best to know who you are using, costs etc, prior to this point so there are no hold-ups.
Wake
Once you make a formal offer which is accepted you will need to provide solicitor details for the contract to be issued. It would be best to know who you are using, costs etc, prior to this point so there are no hold-ups.
Wake
Thanks for info Wake, appreciate it.
Some vendors will provide a strata search report but be make sure that they've included ALL pages when it's been passed on to you for perusal. I'd strongly recommend obtaining a strata search report asap once you've had an offer accepted on a property. PM me if you'd like the details for a terrific Sydney one at all. Very thorough and very generous explaining items of concern to our buyers afterwards (which not all seem to want to do). Best of luck with your purchase.
