The first time I encountered body corporate was our first property purchase. A townhouse in a triplex. In my eyes it was a large running cost with little gain / benefit. We could not see what the body corporate was doing to deserve such a large fee. We paid an excess fee for lawn mowing which we knew personally did not even happen as we were living in the property. I vowed then to never buy a body corporate property again.
Fast forward 6 years and we did it again. This body corporate was even more painful then the last! This townhouse was in a complex of 40. Now nothing ever happened as it takes so many people to approve the motion blah blah blah. To make matters worse most of the owner occupiers were stubborn and resistant to change. We gave up going to the meetings as they were an utter waste of time.
4 years on and we have gone down the same track again. All I can say is I hope this body corporate it better then the last.
How can you avoid a property with a body corporate? The only way is to buy a house! If you want I can look at your borrowing capacity and we can see if you can afford a house. If your borrowing capacity is a bit low for a house in your ideal location you might need to consider moving further away from the city / beach. In some cases if you want the location say beachfront that you will be most likely to purchase a unit with a body corporate.
Do not despair Body Corporates are not all bad! There are positives such as they look after the building insurance, they should have a sinking fund for money to use for repairs, they should maintain the gardens. If you are an investor this is ideal. Managing the garden with a Tennant is not an easy thing to do.
Although I cannot help you pick and choose your body corporate. I can look at the costs of buying a house v’s a starta unit. We can look at your borrowing capacity and ensure you can pay back the loan and afford costs such a body corporates. Need to know more feel free to contact me.
Today I am having a meeting with my neighbours to discuss new balconies. Here is the thing to remember you can’t just change your house or fix the outside of your house without the body corporate agreeing. Today we are going to see if we can all agree on a new design for our balconies! Wish me luck!