Relief as ombudsman finally appointed

The recent appointment of a community schemes ombudsman was good news for the increasing number of homeowners in sectional title complexes and other community housing development as it meant they should soon have access to a user-friendly dispute resolution service.

The new ombudsman, Themba Mthethwa, has been appointed in terms of the Community Schemes Ombudsman Service Act, that aims to provide owners, tenants, trustees, directors and managing agents in sectional title schemes, home owners assosciations, retirement villages and shareblock companies with a means to resolve disputes cost-effectively and timeously rather than havng to resort to the courts.

Property management company Trafalgar, managing director Andre Schaeffer said this appointment meant the full implementation of the legislation was "on the way"at last and represented a significant improvement to the current situation in which the Sectional Titles Act provided for the arbitration of disputes ins ectional title schemes but did not cover other kinds of housing schemes with shared facilities, such as estates and retirement villages.

The move also provided for the act to become the custodian and quality controller of the government documentation relating to community housing schemes, and to monitor compliance and provide access to that documentation.

He believes the ombudsman would then be able to fulfil another mandate - to oversee and approve proposed changes to governance documents and management rules, while also monitoring compliance. "That promises to bring about a major improvement in the overall operation of community schemes, " he said.

On a similar note, Knight Frank Residential South Africa managing director Lanice Steward said when buyers considered buying into a sectional title scheme, they needed to ensure the financials were healthy, particularly in the current ecenomic climate.

"What many do not realise is how fast a sectional title's financial situation can deteriorate if there is a shortfall in levy collections each month or a problem with the financial management, "she says.

As a body corporate member, it was in the owners interests to be actively involved in the schemes's management and this could either be by attending at least the annual general meeting (AGM) or by attending meetings held during the year to discuss other matters. The AGM elected trustees, and Steward said, it was key the right people were chosen for the jobs required. "There is no point in someone who does not have skills being elected to do it," she says.

Trustees also required a plan for recovering outstanding levies and Steward indicated that the problem should not be left for too long.

ARTICLE SOURCED IN KZN PROPERTY GUIDE, page 3