President / CEO Report – Autumn 2023

We have seen a momentous start to 2023 in our industry, kicking off the year in a flurry of activity and ambitious endeavours. Our goal in 2023 is to make strata famous, and we at SCA are excited, looking ahead to what will no doubt be another year of prodigious growth for our ascending industry.

The strata sectors in both Australia and New Zealand have experienced immense development in recent years. We know from our research that the benefits associated with strata living have never been more coveted, as more Australians and New Zealanders than ever before are living in strata communities, and participating in their management. As such, the services provided to strata residents have never been in more demand, placing a noteworthy spotlight on our industry.

As we know, strata is dynamic, with unique challenges, diverse stakeholders and ever-changing regulations across all jurisdictions. SCA’s primary goal is to ensure that as an organisation, we have a hand in shaping the direction of the strata industry, holding government to the highest standards of accountability and working cooperatively to ensure that the voices of our membership are heard.

As such, SCA has placed a primary focus on developing relationships within a variety of government departments and offices throughout Australia and NZ, in an initiative led by our policy teams and region presidents to ensure that SCA is the first port of call for all things strata. In 2022, this saw our teams meet with government at a higher frequency than any previous year in this organisation’s history.

Our recent engagement with government has largely been based in three core issue areas.

Improving the availability, affordability and transparency of strata insurance remains a crucial priority for the strata sector. The implementation of the Northern Australia Reinsurance Pool and our commitment to implementing improved disclosure forms serve as definitive markers of what progress has been achieved by our organisation so far, and the potential for what SCA can achieve in the future.

Electric Vehicles continue to gain popularity in Australia and NZ, and their successful integration into strata communities cannot be overlooked. Recognising the distinct information gap in this area of policy, SCA has proactively led the way, engaging with government at all levels to demonstrate the critical need for support.

SCA is determined to expand our resources, and invest better, education technology, software and data, to provide the appropriate level support, guidance and advocacy required for our members. The 2022/23 Strata Insights Report will serve as a core piece of this puzzle, allowing us to communicate to government with incredible accuracy just how far our industry has come in recent years.

The SCA team are working towards our application to become a Registered Training Organisation (RTO) to deliver tailored strata training to provide the key learnings for the future strata manager. We are making progress on the content writing of the Certificate IV in Strata Community Management and Diploma in Property (Agency Management) qualification specialising in Strata. This will enable us to deliver qualifications at a local level with strata subject matter experts and extended CPD courses.

Our Autumn edition of Inside Strata is a comprehensive catalogue of all the pertinent strata related news, issues and updates you need to know.

In this edition, we take a look at the recent reforms to the Queensland strata legislative environment, and what that will mean for lives of the more than 1.2 million people who live in strata title property in Queensland.

We investigate the recent controversies surrounding the Aurora Melbourne Central Owners Corporation, and how SCA (Vic)’s proposes to establish minimum education standards for strata managers and a state ombudsman or commissioner model would address the urgent need for Victorian strata sector reforms.

We take a deep dive into SCA’s Phase 2: Electric Vehicles in Strata Challenges Report, providing an all-inclusive summary of the contents of the report, and what to expect upon its coming release.

And finally, we identify the key advocacy activities undertaken by SCA in each jurisdiction across Australia and NZ, as well as taking a broader look at some of the universal issues currently facing our sector.