The role of the Strata Manager is often misunderstood, and this can cause unnecessary conflict.

At Emerson Raine, we go above and beyond traditional strata management duties to give our clients the best possible experience, however there are still some things that we legally cannot do.

 

We are here to make your role as a council member or experience as a lot owner as easy as possible within the confines of legislation, whilst empowering you to make decisions about how you believe the strata scheme should be managed.

​​

Four fundamental things to remember are:​

​

• That the council of owners are the decision makers! YOU decide how you want your scheme to be managed, not us. It's your investment and your money; you tell us what you want and we help you make that happen.

​

• That we are not engaged to be a regular onsite presence, therefore we are not engaged (nor are we qualified) to routinely observe and advise on the condition of the complex.

​

• That we are not qualified experts in associated areas such as legal, accounting, building or engineering. Sometimes, proper management of a strata scheme requires expert advice in these and other areas. When specialist advice is necessary, it is our job to make you aware of that and help you to source advice from an appropriate party. Our declination to take these tasks on is to protect you and us. It is imperative that you receive the right advice and are covered in the event that incorrect advice is received. A strata manager's professional indemnity insurance will not provide cover if the strata manager has acted outside of their level of qualification. Be wary of any strata manager that offers to carry out these specialist tasks on your behalf.

​

• The quarterly strata levy contributions/ strata fees that each lot owner pays is not the strata manager's fee, nor are they determined by the strata manager. These fees are determined by the owners at their Annual General Meetings and are paid into a bank account for your strata scheme. The funds are then used to pay all expenses for the strata scheme such as insurance, maintenance, and the strata manager's fee, in accordance with a budget that has been approved by owners at their Annual General Meeting.

​

In summary, our role is as follows:

​

• Guidance: Provide the council with the information they need to make informed, compliant decisions, and provide guidance on due process to help facilitate decision making;

​

• Act on Instructions: Act on the council's instructions and facilitate the outcomes of their decisions;

​

• Complete Actions: Once the council has made a decision, it is our job to manage the resulting tasks through to completion (unless otherwise instructed);

​

• Administration & Bookkeeping: Fulfil the duties of the Secretary and Treasurer, including all administrative and bookkeeping duties;

​

• Management: Handle all day to day management that does not require a council decision or input;

​

• Communications: Manage and respond to enquiries from owners and other stakeholders;

​

• Organisation: Assist the council with staying organised and on top of what requires attention.

​

​

For a more detailed view of what Emerson Raine's strata management services include, click here.