Seven signs it’s time to employ a body corporate manager

It can often be a difficult choice between self-management or using a body corporate manager in your strata scheme. While each has its pros and cons, there are seven signs that will help you realise when it’s time to use a strata manager. You’ll know it’s time to employ a body corporate manager if:

You’re stressed trying to keep up with the demands of managing the building

It’s an enormous job staying on top of building maintenance and upkeep requirements. You’ll also have to look after the financial, legal and communication requirements. Whoever takes on this task needs to be prepared for a great deal of work, time and stress. Do you feel like all the enjoyment is being sucked out of your life? Are you finding yourself stressed and agitated? Then it’s high time you looked at employing a strata manager.

The right manager will take care of all the property management and maintenance. This will make life easier and more enjoyable for everyone living in the building. All the headaches and hassles will ease when you have a professional in charge. You can afford to relax, knowing that the issues and problems are being taken care of.

All your free time is taken up with building management issues

Weekend? What weekend? If your free time has become a thing of the past due to building management and maintenance pressures, it’s definitely time to find a competent body corporate manager. There’s a lot involved in keeping a strata complex running smoothly, from finding contractors, dealing with unpaid fees, late-night emergencies, chasing up paperwork and repairing damage. And that’s just for starters. These tedious and time-consuming tasks can quickly swallow your free time. Unless you enjoy dealing with all these problems and tasks, it might be time you got your freedom back.

Once you hire a body corporate manager you can hand all those necessary but dull tasks over to be taken care of. Instead of micromanaging a property you can reclaim your free time to spend how you wish.

You’re not sure your building is staying compliant with all the current legislation – in fact you’re not quite sure what the current legislation says

Body corporate legislation and regulations are complex and specialised. It’s quite difficult for your average layperson to stay current. Being unaware of legislation can leave your building exposed to considerable legal and financial risk. If you’re not sure you’re getting it all correct, or you’re not even sure where to start, it’s time to call a professional.

A good body corporate manager will be knowledgeable about the different laws, requirements and regulations that will apply to your scheme. They will also be on top of amendments and changes that may affect it. You’ll be able to enjoy the peace of mind that comes with knowing your property is in compliance at all times.

Relationships in your building are strained or broken down and communication is poor

Trying to organise a diverse group of people to work together to run a building is quite a challenge. Working and interacting with a wide variety of people that you also live in close proximity with can cause problems. Disputes between lot owners and breakdowns in communication are common. This is especially true when individuals have different agendas and viewpoints.

Managing relationships is a sensitive area. It’s even harder when the people you are trying to manage are also your peers and equals in a scheme. If you’ve been trying for years, it’s probably no surprise to discover how much time it takes to correspond and communicate effectively within a strata scheme. Expert handling is required to ensure positive outcomes for everyone.

Effective communication takes time and effort, but doing so is key to your building running smoothly. A good body corporate manager can optimise all your communication – both written and verbal – so that everyone is on the same page and working together. It’s useful to have an objective and neutral party around to deal with disputes and clashes. An experienced strata manager will deal fairly with all parties and help maintain good relationships between all members of a scheme.

You’re having trouble getting tenants to pay levies on time

It can be quite difficult to ensure that all tenants are paying their levies on time. Dealing with unpaid fees can also be a sensitive task, and one which is calculated to destroy relationships. This is not ideal when you need to live and interact with these people.

An objective party can more easily deal with levy recovery issues that someone involved in the scheme. If you’re struggling to keep your administrative and sinking funds afloat, it’s time to get a professional to step in. Not only will your manager handle these issues competently, they will also prepare financial statements, manage the body corporate’s bank account and deal with tax returns and audits. And all while keeping relationships between occupiers of the building intact.

Invoices are often unpaid or paid late

It’s a sad reality that many body corporates fall into the trap of paying their invoices late – or forgetting to pay them at all. It’s all too easy to let such jobs slip through the cracks, especially when there are other pressing matters to occupy time and attention. This inefficient and unprofessional manner of running a body corporate can have plenty of negative consequences for unwary schemes. Not paying your bills in a timely manner can result in overdue fees, services being lost and tradespeople becoming unwilling to work with you.

An efficient and organised body corporate manager can optimise this task and ensure that body corporate schemes stay on top of their financial obligations.

Projects often run over time and over budget

If you find that projects are dragging on and on and end up costing much more than expected, it’s time to find a body corporate manager.

A good body corporate manager will be able to keep projects on track and running smoothly. They will:

• Arrange for quotes and repairs
• Hire contractors
• Prepare budgets
• Plan and implement schedules
• Oversee the work
• Act as an intermediary between all parties

Is it time?

It’s logical that a body corporate manager can perform all these tasks more easily than you can. After all, managing buildings is their entire job. They have plenty of time, energy and experience to devote to the task. A body corporate manager focuses on making your strata building a pleasant – and efficient – place to live.

If you think it’s time to start using the services of an experienced body corporate manager, contact the team at Capitol BCA here. Our managers are based in the Brisbane and Gold Coast area and can offer you expert knowledge on how to get the most out of your body corporate scheme.