Tenant complaint about plumbing leakage to garage

[albertwt]

Hi All,

I have problem with the bathroom in my unit that is currently leaking to the garage.

Does the body corporate able to cover this repair under the sinking fund ?
or
Do I have to repair this out of my LOC account then keep the receipt for tax deductible ?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks.

 

[Aaron_C]

Is your property a townhouse, apartment, unit, high-rise?

 

[albertwt]

It is Townhouse.

 

[Aaron_C]

The walls and floors of a townhouse would normally be your responsibility as it's not common property.

 

[twobobsworth]

However if it's a plumbing issue from the bathroom it's often the strata resposibility - unless you have done renovations to the bathroom.

 

[Scott No Mates]

Generally speaking BC would only get involved if the leak was coming from an adjoining property/warranty issues. ie they don't want to know if your 20 yr old bathtub leaks onto the downstairs ceiling.

 

[twobobsworth]

I would have thought it would have been more a BC issue if it was a 20 year old or original bathroom. If you renovate the future liability is then yours.

Looking at my strata notes from different managers they generally say "maintain everything inside your unit except the floor of your shower recess, the ceiling above the paint, the floor below your floor coverings and doors, pipes and glass within the walls that form the boundaries of your unit"

 

[travelbug]

I would have thought it would have been more a BC issue if it was a 20 year old or original bathroom. If you renovate the future liability is then yours.

Looking at my strata notes from different managers they generally say "maintain everything inside your unit except the floor of your shower recess, the ceiling above the paint, the floor below your floor coverings and doors, pipes and glass within the walls that form the boundaries of your unit"

Yes that is correct where you own a unit and someone else owns the unit under you. As it is a common wall/floor. However the OP is in a townhouse where he owns the bathroom floor AND the garage under it. So it is not common property. ie it is INSIDE his property.

 

[twobobsworth]

I think it would be wise to still question it with the strata manager. The above extract was from a townhouse complex. Looking over the last financial statement from the AGM included repairs to:

- remove wc pan and clear blocked sewer - deducted from admin
- remove shower screen, strip shower floor tiles, waterproof floor - deducted from sinking

 

[Don K]

With my experience if leaking from a main drainage pipe which is shared with several units then BC will pay otherwise it is your responsibility. But seems vary depending on BC. Speak to your BC manager and if you have to pay for this, at least you do not have to pay when other units have the same issue.

 

[Scott No Mates]

I have also found that things like smoke detectors, the responsibility for repair, replacement and annual certification falls on the owner of the unit/townhouse but the responsibility to collect and certify the system servicing all units/townhouses falls on the body corporate/strata manager (the little things that you don't know may come back to bite you).