ACT strata bodies have welcomed the government’s Inquiry into the Management of Strata Properties – but they have notes. Photo: Michelle Kroll.
Ahead of public hearings for the Inquiry into the Management of Strata Properties starting this Monday (30 June), peak bodies have backed a strata commissioner for the ACT, but slammed proposed funding as woefully inadequate.
The Strata Community Association (SCA) and the Owners Corporation Network (OCN) have presented a united front in calling for a properly resourced strata commissioner to support Canberra’s growing population of strata-titled property owners.
In its submission to the inquiry, the volunteer-run OCN ACT – widely seen as the independent voice of strata title owners – noted “with alarm” the proposed $160,000 remuneration for the role over 2026-27 and 2027-28.
“Ridiculous. That will not employ a qualified person to do the commissioner’s job,” OCN ACT president Gary Petherbridge said.
“An enormous task lies ahead for the strata commissioner – this is not a job for a solitary public servant. The commissioner will need an organisation around them, comprising knowledgeable people from organisations like Access Canberra, the Justice and Community Safety Directorate and the Environment, Planning and Sustainable Development Directorate.”
Mr Petherbridge warned that without proper funding, the role risked becoming symbolic rather than functional, failing to deliver dispute resolution or education support – and disproportionately impacting vulnerable owners.
“It’s the people in one- and two-bedroom units and older people who’ve downsized to strata complexes who will be hit hardest in terms of the money they will have to pay to stay there,” he said. “Many of them can’t afford to address the issues they’re facing.”
SCA ACT president Chris Miller said the inquiry was not a crackdown but a chance, sparked by a years-long push from within the industry, to shape a more effective and responsive strata framework.
“There seems to be a perception in the media that this inquiry was a response to the poor behaviour of strata managers – that they’re being scrutinised to address dodgy operators,” Mr Miller said.
“In fact this inquiry is not a consequence of misbehaviour or a process to hold strata managers to account, but directly related to proactive efforts in this area.”
He said despite good faith disagreements in certain areas, SCA and the OCN had largely enjoyed a collaborative relationship for many years and teamed up on areas of agreement. Both organisations have long been vocal about the need for a strata commissioner and welcomed the inquiry.
Mr Petherbridge said a public forum hosted by both groups before the 2024 ACT election saw unanimous support for a strata commissioner from all candidates.
“I think this inquiry in part is a follow-up on the agreement produced in that forum,” he said.
“The energy both our organisations have put into proactively meeting with and lobbying local government reflects our belief that there’s a great deal of work required from government to reform the strata sector.”
OCN’s Gary Petherbridge says the proposed initial funding is inadequate. Photo: Dominic Giannini.
In its submission to the inquiry, the SCA said the commissioner should focus on dispute resolution and education.
Currently, all disputes go to the ACT Civil and Administrative Tribunal (ACAT) – a costly and slow process. The SCA proposed a qualified commissioner could mediate minor disputes between owners, strata managers and executive committees, alleviating bottlenecks.
“I would say the vast majority of disputes making their way to ACAT stem from misinterpretation or, frankly, an unwillingness from owners often to trust the interpretations of their executive committees or strata managers. That is compounded by a real crisis of faith and credibility between owners and strata managers,” Mr Miller said.
“We need a trusted, credited third-party authority who could independently look over the issues and lend some confidence to the person making the complaint that there isn’t anything nefarious going on or, conversely, instruct a strata manager or executive committee to take a particular action. That resolves many disputes before they reach ACAT.”
The SCA also called for a major uplift in education and training standards across the sector.
No Registered Training Organisation (RTO) currently offers strata-specific qualifications.
“It’s usually bundled in as an offshoot of real estate and that’s not sufficient. It won’t advance a person’s capacity to do the job well. So we are calling for incentives for RTOs to develop those courses,” Mr Miller said.
“The lack of professional development is a key challenge facing the industry and a major barrier to achieving good customer outcomes because improvement is dependent on having competent, skilled people who remain fairly stable in their strata roles.
“We think the government should set a fairly bold and ambitious minimum education standard framework, but at the same time invest in the resources required to deliver that education.
“At the same time we want sensible implementation to avoid a whiplash effect with sufficient time to adjust and recognition of prior experience.”
Mr Petherbridge said the education component should extend to owners.
“The strata landscape has been tipped around the wrong way for many years, in the sense they need to realise management is a team effort between them, their employed strata manager and the executive committees they elect,” he said.
“Owners need to take more responsibility via their executive committees and not place all their expectations on strata managers who are sometimes managing thousands of units.”
Gary Petherbridge and Chris Miller are both scheduled to speak at the public hearing on Tuesday 1 July.
