A community describes a group of people living in one area or sharing a standard living dynamic. The establishment of living communities, or strata, has arisen from the more modern property climate where apartment buildings are erected, and individuals purchase single units within the building. Whether they occupy the units themselves or use them as rental properties, the collection of owners and residents then come together to form a strata.
A community is formed at the same time a body corporate is established. The body corporate consists of owners of individual units who form a governing body for the community. The daily operation of the body corporate and the community is overseen by a community manager, the primary administrator.
Community managers are different from property managers. While one owner entrusts property managers to run one unit, community managers are responsible for the community and collectively comprise the property outside the apartments, including the interests of all owners. The duties of a community manager are varied but are primarily centred around three main categories: Social, administrative and financial.
Administration
The community or strata manager’s primary function is administrative. They are tasked with overseeing the day-to-day operation of the body corporate and the strata as a whole. This oversight requires the execution of such duties as:
• Monitoring and certifying that proper maintenance is carried out. Stata managers must perform maintenance on common areas like gardens and car parks to ensure they remain in peak condition through technicians and other professionals. Strata managers will also initiate requests for contractors and technicians while directing them to the areas that require attention.
• Strata managers are also the body corporate’s primary record keepers. They must store all records pertaining to the operation of the strata where they can be accessed by request either by owners or other authorities.
• Strata communities are covered by insurance policies which must be initiated and kept up to date. The strata manager’s responsibility is to certify that the community’s insurance policies remain current and follow up on any claims made.
Financial
Funds belonging to the body corporate are managed by one entity to maintain order and accountability. Once the strata manager accepts the role, they become responsible for these funds. Money collected by the community manager comes from fees and dues paid by the owners and other sources. The financial duties of the community manager include:
• Settling bills owed by the body corporate or strata such as maintenance fees, utility bills covering common property, lawyers’ fees, insurance premiums and many more.
• Creates budgets to cover the needs of the strata. Budgets are presented to the owner’s corporation for approval before implementation.
• Ensures that all fees due for payment by the owners are received in good time and paid in full. They also send reminders as needed should someone fall behind.
• Generates and accepts invoices then sees to it that they are paid out on time. These include contractors’ fees, repair costs, and others.
Social
Community managers interact with residents and owners alike to keep abreast of their needs at all times. Other social responsibilities include:
• Enforcing rules and regulations agreed upon by the body corporate. The community manager must see to it that residents and owners alike are kept compliant and are corrected when they have erred.
• Strata managers are also the primary communicators. Before they can enforce the rules, they must ensure that all residents are made aware of what they are. In cases where it is deemed prudent, strata managers can also amend the by-laws as long as the amendments are in the body corporate’s best interests.
• They act as mediators. In this role, a community manager can help to resolve disputes arising between owners, residents, or both. The strata manager should be unbiased to certify that the conflict is appropriately resolved.
• Strata managers also work to bring the community together through social events. They carry out the planning and communication of plans for the event. The manager may also use the occasion to gather information pertinent to the operation of the strata, taking opinions and suggestions from the residents then determining if they are valid and can be applied.
In addition to their core duties, community managers ensure that their allocated properties are compliant with local and federal safety regulations. These regulations cover the lifts and the buildings as a whole. Strata managers must keep abreast of the laws to remain aware of any changes made affecting the properties. They should then communicate these changes to the owner’s corporation, where final decisions on the actions to be taken will be agreed upon.
These are just some of the primary duties carried out by a community manager. The role continues to evolve with the changing face of strata everywhere. Their duties primarily serve the interests of the owners’ corporations, whose requirements for a strata manager are just as varied as the number of strata in operation today. At the end of it all, community managers have become crucial members of strata everywhere. In most cases, the success of the strata goes back to the competency of the community manager.
