Darcy O'Malley is moving out of her East Perth rental and was told she was not allowed to use the lift to move out on the weekend. ·Source: Instagram
A Perth renter has hit out at an “unreasonable” rule imposed by her building’s strata company which could see her and her pregnant roommate slapped with a fine. Each strata building has its own unique set of rules and bylaws governing what can and can’t be done at the property, including rules around moving in and out.
Darcy O’Malley will face a fine for using the lift to move out of her $760 per week East Perth apartment building over the weekend. The 30-year-old business analyst told Yahoo Finance she had lived in the 34-floor building for the last five years and was moving back home with her parents in Geraldton as Perth had become too unaffordable.
O'Malley said the building’s strata company imposed a house rule that lifts were “not allowed to be used for moving-in and moving-out during weekends”, except in special circumstances.
“This has always been a rule. Our apartment building has about 200 apartments in it, so it’s quite large. We have three lifts, one of those is a dedicated service lift,” O’Malley explained.
O’Malley said the pair were only able to get help moving out on Saturday.
She had contacted her building manager to ask for permission to use the service lift for two hours to move out their larger furniture. This request was denied.
“My best friend and roommate, she’s heavily pregnant, so she wasn’t in a position to be able to do any heavy lifting. So it was just me and I’m not strong enough to lift out the washing machine and our beds,” she said.
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O'Malley said she thought it was unreasonable for her request to be denied. ·Source: Instagram
Emails sighted by Yahoo Finance show management advised O’Malley the weekend was the "busiest" time for other residents to use the lifts and management would not be available to assist her.
She was then advised she could "use the lift only during weekdays" and could face "fines and penalties" for violating the house rules.
“I’m not aware of what the fines are,” O’Malley, a former property manager, told Yahoo Finance.
“But I was more concerned about any breaches of the tenancy agreement because it just doesn't seem justified. House rules are meant to be reasonable and this seems quite unreasonable.”
To add salt to the wound, O’Malley said there was a kerbside collection at the building on Monday with residents encouraged by building management to "take advantage" and dispose of "large, unwanted items".
“It’s a massive contradiction,” O’Malley said.
Renters encouraged to check strata rules
Richardson Strata Management, who is the strata manager for O'Malley's building, told Yahoo Finance the rules were set by the strata company which is made up of owners of the units.
"The strata company, from day one, has never allowed people to move out on a Saturday," executive director Karen Richardson said.
"Every strata company has their own set of rules that they expect people to abide by."
It is not uncommon for strata buildings to have rules around moving in and out of the building, with some prohibiting moving on weekends or on public holidays.
While the strata company is responsible for establishing and approving bylaws and regulations, the strata and building managers are the ones who are responsible for enforcing them.
Strata Community Association WA general manager Kerrin Simmonds told Yahoo Finance that tenants should communicate any concerns directly with their property manager.
"All residents are encouraged to review the strata documentation provided upon move-in to ensure a smooth living experience," she said.
"If owners believe the bylaws are inadequate or require revision, they should consult their strata council to discuss potential changes."
Aussie pushed out of expensive rental market
O'Malley moved her items out of the apartment on Saturday and said she didn't encounter any issues with other residents.
In fact, she said a few other residents were also using the lifts to move bulky items for verge collection.
“We were tag teaming and they were moving mattresses and all that stuff as well. No one caused an impost to each other, it was all very polite,” she said.
“All the residents are fine and get along fine. It just seems to be this council of owners that just get on their bloody power trip.”
O'Malley is preparing to move back home with her parents in Geraldton, which is a four-and-a-half-hour drive from Perth.
“I can’t save for a house deposit and pay rent at the same time and unfortunately, I don’t have any family in Perth,” she said.
REA Group found rental affordability has hit a new record low in Australia, with the typical household earning $116,00 per year only able to afford 36 per cent of rentals advertised on the market between July and December last year.
National median rents rose by 6.9 per cent last year to hit $620 per week in December. Perth recorded the greatest increases in weekly prices over the year of the capitals, with rents rising 8.3 per cent to $650 per week.
O'Malley said she was "thankful" she was able to move back home and that her job allowed her to work remotely.
"I am fortunate enough to have that opportunity. I know a lot of other people aren't and a lot of other people are struggling right now financially," she said.
