Some great advice for small strata corporations to make things work with their strata manager!
This excellent article was written by Brent Anderson
Small stratas are in a tough position.
They often receive poorer service, and more often are terminated.
There is an easy fix to all this.
Protect your strata manager!
It is an unenviable position for a small strata (<40 units) to be terminated and have to seek new management.
There are three reasons to terminate a client:
- Low revenue
- Generate more work than is reasonable
- Create unnecessary headaches
Many companies will tolerate 2 & 3 if a property is generating high revenue, but If you’re checking off all three on the list, that’s a fast track to a google search for new strata management companies.
Where council comes in is to keep points 2 & 3 to a minimum.
Under point 2 this looks like
- Stop copying the manager in on all council email conversations
- Stop asking for multiple quotes for low dollar value projects
- Stop withholding vendor payments for completed works
- Obscene amount of violation letters to be sent
Under point 3 this looks like - Stop being petty. Your manager was at your property 3 months ago solving a fire alarm panel issue but last week the minutes were late a couple days
- Stop bullying behaviour. A rude person can be asked to leave a store. On a council they cause other members to quit, but your manager is still stuck with them. Stick up for your manager.
- Stop asking them to do work unsupported by majority council decision
- Stop condescending to them because of their age or gender (yes this happens)