Blog

Along with our company policies and processes, we keep an article penned by Colin Grace of Grace Lawyers about abandoned goods as it articulates the best legal requirements and steps forward allowing the protection of the owners corporation, that I have seen to date. I would like to expand on this great article from a building management perspective.

When residents move out of apartments, it’s a given that they will try and dump unwanted items, however some residents take this to a new level and dump large items leaving an owner’s corporation to deal with it.

To understand why residents, get so upset by dumped or abandoned items, consider it like graffiti, no one wants their home graffitied, and they also don’t want their home to resemble a rubbish tip, residents largely want to take pride in where they live and want abandoned items dealt with, in a very timely manner.  

Generally, it’s not rocket science identifying what has been abandoned and it’s my experience that often the abandoned items are dumped next to the collective garbage area. A quality building manager will carry a reciprocator saw, allowing for larger items like shelves, bed frames and cupboards, to be cut up into smaller manageable pieces that can be put in general waste bins to dispose of quickly, once it is established it is abandoned. 

Colin Grace’s article explains perfectly the process’s involve in legally dealing with abandoned goods, however; without proactive building management and processes in place to quickly move to deal with the legal requirements timely, often the building looks degraded at the residents expenses. 

The best advise Grays Rescue Building has for abandoned items is keep good documentation. Documentation of notices and dates, emails, phone call documentation and be a process driven building manager. Process driven building management provides results.

Referenced Article –

Colin Grace – Grace Lawyers

New rules for abandoned goods in NSW | Out with the new, in with the old!