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FAQ
Our team at SSKB has compiled the following answers for the most frequently asked questions. We have listed the most frequently asked questions by unit owners, to which we have added explanations and references to the requirements under the Body Corporate and Community Management Act 1997 (Qld).
CHANGE OF ADDRESS
The legislation requires that all address changes must be notified in writing. This is the responsibility of the owner and can be completed in one of two ways:
Via the SSKB Portal
You can access the SSKB Portal by going to www.sskb.com.au and click Portal Log In using the email address on the Body Corporate Roll associated with your lot. First time users will receive an email which will direct you to create a password. Once created, you can log in using the same email and your chosen password. Go to the ‘My Info’ tab on the SSKB Portal and selecting ‘My Details’. Your updated details are submitted to SSKB automatically.
Via the Online Form
Click on one of the following links:
QLD Change of Address
VIC Change of Address
NSW Change of Address
Further Options
Email to: rollchanges@sskb.com.au
Facsimile: 07 5504 2001
Post: PO Box 8319, GCMC QLD 9726
The following information is required:
Community Name
CTS Number
Full name(s) of owner(s)
Lot Number
New mailing address for correspondence, notices minutes
New mailing address for contribution notices if different to the above
Telephone Number
Fax (if applicable)
Email Address
Date
Signature
Written communication assists in ensuring that correct details are recorded.
CHANGE OF OWNERSHIP
A Form 8 is an information form to update the Body Corporate Roll and is specific to BCCMA Legislation. The form is obtained from your solicitor at the time of settlement.
This form is required to update the Body Corporate records to reflect your ownership and is to be completed by the purchaser/s with the relevant details regarding date of transfer of ownership, the name/s or entity that the lot is held in and the address for service of notice (where your contributions and correspondence is to be sent).
The Legislation requires that the purchaser is to provide this information in writing to the Body Corporate. Your solicitor should be able to assist in this matter.
The Legislation requires that all address changes must be notified in writing and is the responsibility of the Owner. Please refer to our FAQ titled ‘I need to change my address. What do you require?’ for ways to update your address.
CONTRIBUTIONS IN ARREARS
Without contribution payments, your community cannot meet its financial commitments for essential maintenance and services.
Your body corporate is entitled to institute recovery action and, after a certain period of time, is required by the Act to institute action to recover any payment in arrears, including interest accrued and reasonable costs involved in recovery of the overdue contributions. Additional costs are incurred by your body corporate in recovering late payments as budgets are calculated only on funds required to maintain the common property and meet its contracted commitments.
An arrears notice is forwarded when your body corporate has not received payment for your community (body corporate) fees (usually) from the previous period/s by the due date. This arrears notice is sent out under authorisation of your committee. Dates for payment of contributions are set out in the minutes of your annual general meeting forwarded to you each year.
You will need to complete an application for submission to the committee requesting the discount be re-instated and why. Please send your application to SSKB who will submit it to the committee on your behalf.
No, you – the owners – make up the body corporate. SSKB is your community manager. Our role is to work with your committee to ensure that your community runs smoothly in accordance with the Act and regulations that apply to your scheme.
Your committee instructs SSKB on matters relating to arrears.
CONTRIBUTION FUNDS
Administrative Fund – contribution entitlements The Administrative Fund covers expenditure required to cover the cost of the daily running and general maintenance of the common property and body corporate assets. This includes all repairs and maintenance that would occur to buildings, plant and equipment, electrical, gardens and grounds, pools, etc. (This applies if it is a building format plan). It would also include contracted fees, such as caretaking fees which are for the building manager to clean and maintain parts of the common property as per the caretaking agreement, a lift maintenance contract and contract for body corporate management.. It would also include community power for the running of pumps, lights, lifts etc. If the body corporate is a lot in another scheme the administrative fund will also include contributions to the other scheme’s administrative and sinking funds.
Sinking Fund – contribution entitlements This is a separate fund to the Administrative Fund. The amount owners contribute is based on a sinking fund forecast. A Sinking Fund Forecast is usually prepared by a quantity surveyor. It is a 10 year forecast of major expenditure, which covers such items as painting the common property (including the exterior of the building), major repairs and refurbishment to lift cars, and other common property items. These items are considered as capital, or non-recurring major expenditure, and therefore need to be contributed to by all owners over a period of time. The purpose of this fund is that, for example, if you owned your lot for 5 years and the re-painting of the exterior of the building is due in year 10, your lot has contributed for 5 years towards the painting of the building. Your individual contribution to the Administrative Fund and Sinking fund is based on your lot’s contribution entitlement and is used to calculate administrative and sinking fund contributions as well as the lot’s share of utility charges not able to be measured.
Insurance Contribution – interest entitlements The “Insurance Reimbursement “is a separate payment for paying the Building replacement and reinstatement insurance premium. Although, in most instances the Insurance premium will be included in the Administrative Fund Budget, some bodies corporate are required to have it as a separate amount when the lots in the scheme have varying interest entitlements. If applicable to your body corporate, your individual contribution to the Insurance Reimbursement is based on your lot’s interest entitlement. Interest entitlements are also used to calculate the unimproved value of the lot and for the purpose of calculating local government rates and charges. Bodies corporate are usually titled in one of two ways, as a Building Format Plan or as a Standard Format Plan. As a Building Format Plan, the body corporate is responsible for the insurance of the building and the common property. As a Standard Format Plan, the body corporate is responsible for insuring common property only. In this instance, individual residences are the responsibility of the owners. In a Standard Format Plan, common property would include any gates, light poles and infrastructure which could be damaged or need replacing under an insurance claim. The cost towards the Public Liability and Office Bearer’s Liability portion of the premium is always included in the Administrative Fund.
CONTRIBUTION NOTICES
A Contribution Notice bill will be received if you are a lot owner in a body corporate. Contributions are the body corporate levies paid by the owners to give the body corporate the funds to operate and maintain the common property. The amount and the frequency of the contributions required to properly run the body corporate are decided by your committee in order to maintain your community. The budget is proposed by the committee and submitted for all owners to vote on at the AGM each year.
A Contribution Notice bill will be received if you are a lot owner in a body corporate. Contributions are the body corporate levies paid by the owners to give the body corporate the funds to operate and maintain the common property. The amount and the frequency of the contributions required to properly run the body corporate are decided by your committee in order to maintain your community. The budget is proposed by the committee and submitted for all owners to vote on at the AGM each year.
Administrative Fund: For day to day running of your building
Sinking Fund: for non-recurring items or capital expense
Insurance: where lots have varying interest entitlements, this amount is for the replacement cost of the building
Heading | Explanation |
---|---|
Account Period | The dates from and to, for which the contribution applies. |
Due Date | Date contribution payment is due. |
Amount | Gross amount for the period for your lot. |
Discount | Discount amount applying if applicable to your body corporate. |
Received By | The date the body corporate should receive the funds into their bank account for you to receive any applicable discount. |
Net Amount | The amount after discount, if applicable. |
Amount Payable | This is the net amount of the contributions due and may include any bought forward |
Community contributions are set and based on the financial situation and commitments of the community and may vary from one body corporate to another. Budgets are adopted at a general meeting of the body corporate at which time the contributions and dates for payment are also determined. All Owners are sent a voting paper to vote on these motions prior to the meeting. Each owner’s contribution is based on their contribution entitlement and, if applicable, interest entitlements which is each Owners percentage of the whole for the scheme.
Your contribution is pooled with other owners’ payments to maintain your community and common areas to meet regular expenses such as:
- Electricity
- Building Manager (if applicable)
- Administration (SSKB typically 5% or less)
- Insurance, including public liability
- Gardens and pool (if applicable)
- General maintenance and repairs
- Fire equipment
- Security
- Lift (if applicable)
- Sinking Fund for items of a capital nature
Your money is deposited into your Community’s own bank account controlled by your committee and spent in accordance with the budget approved by your committee and adopted by all owners at their AGM each year.
The 1st and 2nd periods are adopted at the previous year’s AGM and levied based on the previous year’s budget. These pre-issues are deducted from the new financial year’s budget and will include an increase, (usually. CPI).The 3rd and sometimes 4th levies will be the balance of the new budget for the financial year adopted at the AGM.
Your committee has appointed SSKB to help manage your community’s administration, including collection of the contributions.
Every year, prior to the AGM, your body corporate committee decides how much is required to maintain and run your community for the next financial year and takes into account CPI adjustments and increases in such items as electricity and maintenance costs.
It is not SSKB who make the decision to increase body corporate fees. SSKB is not a voting member of your community. This decision is made by you, the owners. The motion to increase your contribution is determined by the budget put forward by your committee, and included in your AGM Notice. The motion to adopt the budget and contributions is voted upon at your AGM and recorded in the minutes of the meeting. These minutes are then circulated to owners by SSKB.
As your contribution notice was not paid by the due date stated in the notice, and has remained unpaid, SSKB would have been requested by your committee to instigate legal action to recover outstanding contributions, interest, solicitors fees etc. These are additional fees incurred over and above the budget adopted at the AGM by the body corporate.
All purchasers, upon acquisition of their lot should have been made aware by their solicitor, through disclosure material supplied, of the contribution amounts and dates upon which they are due and payable. The legislation sets out that it is the lot owner’s responsibility to ensure that the address held by SSKB is correct. Any change of address must be sent to SSKB in writing.
As long as you have access to the internet anywhere in the world, you can also log in securely via the SSKB Portal – using your unique lot owner’s login and password to check your balance and account and pay your contributions. Alternatively, you may set up an email address to receive your notice and select another person to receive your notice by mail.
CABLE TV
Please send your request in writing to your committee for approval. If approved by your committee, this will be arranged by your building manager (if the service is available). Unfortunately, if your building is not connected to cable it may take some time. In the case of buildings that have not had cable installed, it requires access to common property and therefore body corporate approval is required.
This depends on the supplier of the cable TV. They may charge the body corporate or they may charge the owner, depending on the circumstances.
NATIONAL BROADBAND NETWORK
The body corporate will be advised when the broadband network is to be rolled out in their area. The body corporate will need to consent to the wiring within the building. If the committee is swift in providing consent after receiving notice, NBN Co can complete the work on schedule, which will be well in advance of the rest of the street. When the street fibre cabling is finalised, they can easily connect the building without issues. Workers would not need access to individual lots, as the work will be contained in common areas.
IMPROVEMENTS TO A LOT
Applications are required in writing addressed to the committee of your body corporate c/- SSKB. You must submit with your applications all plans and specifications. The application will be tabled at the next committee meeting. There are usually four committee meetings each year. You should also read your by-laws for any requirements specific to your building. This application may need approval via a general meeting. Please submit your plans to the committee for approval.
APPLICATION FOR A PET
An application will need to be made in writing to the committee describing the pet. An application form is available on the SSKB website which will be forwarded to the committee for their consideration.
CERTIFICATE OF CURRENCY
The insurance cover for the building is advised in the Insurance Report attached to the annual general meeting notice forwarded to each owner each year. A certificate of currency is a document required for an owner’s individual financial purposes which states the insurance which is current on the day. The requirement of this document is not a shared expense for all owners. A request in writing accompanied by payment of the nominated fee should be made. This can be ordered and paid for online at www.sskb.com.au/certificate-of-currency. (Present cost $30.00 incl of GST).
INSURANCE
The excess on each community insurance policy differs depending on the number of claims each community has made. The regulations referring to insurance excess provides that if the claim only affects one lot, and if there is an excess, then the lot owner is to meet that amount, unless certain circumstances dictate that it is a body corporate responsibility.
Insurance is charged progressively in advance either via an Insurance reimbursement or included in the Administrative Fund contribution throughout the year to enable funds to be available to pay the following year’s insurance. The developer pays the insurance for the first year. However under the terms of the unit purchase contract, the developer may collect an adjusted amount at settlement from each purchaser.
Body corporate insurance covers events which relate to accidental damage, vandalism, fire, and theft etc. Insurance claims do not cover maintenance. However, resultant damage can be claimed. The body corporate’s policy does not cover personal contents, such as carpets and curtains, stereos etc. Under a standard format plan, the owner is responsible for insurance cover on the building. The body corporate provides insurance coverage for common property and public liability only.
With some buildings, the interest entitlements differ from the contribution entitlements. The amount of each lot owner’s reimbursement is set according to the interest entitlements that attach to the lot. The Community Management Statement sets out each lot’s entitlements. The interest schedule entitlement has been calculated to reflect that owner’s relative market value of the lot compared to other lots in the scheme. As the name suggests, it must reflect the market value of the lots except to the extent that it is just and equitable not to reflect the market value. The interest lot entitlement is used to calculate each lot owners potion of the reinstatement and replacement insurance premium and is also used to calculate rates and the land tax for the scheme.
In each instance you would need to refer to the title or plan of your lot. The plan will indicate whether the boundary of your lot extends to the balcony doors or to the outer perimeter of your balcony, in which case the doors are inside your title and therefore your responsibility. Where the title is to the balcony doors, these doors then form the boundary of your lot and become part of the common property and the body corporate must maintain doors, windows and associated fittings situated in a boundary wall (common property).
WH&S REPORTS
Yes. This has to be attended to so that your community complies with Workplace Health and Safety Regulations and carries out its responsibility of maintaining common property. The WH&S Act requires the committee and body corporate to ensure that the common property is a safe environment. There can be penalties for non compliance in the case of injuries registered with the Regulator.