The past year has been one of significant advancement for those operatives in the management rights industry who have been working to enhance the responsible and professional performance of the industry. 

Attending the first annual general meeting of ARAMA (NSW), the Australian Resident Accommodation Managers Association highlighted another important step for those working in the community and strata title industry towards a fully integrated national role. 

There are now plenty of activities across the strata and community title industry at a range of levels to better service the long term aspirations of the industry for the benefit of all stakeholders. 

Each new step is important and an advancement for those key stakeholders that are involved in the various aspects of the industry, many who unfortunately do not fully understand the intricacies and responsibilities of higher density development and higher density living. 

We at QRAMA for some years now have been working on behalf of our members with other stakeholders and with the legislators to fairly address those three groups of stakeholders we believe are most important to our industry. 

These are the owner occupiers who live in the units within the schemes, the investors who make many of these scheme a reality by their financial commitments and the holidaymakers and tenants who are such an important residential component especially in the holiday centres of our State. 

Many in the community still do not realize that holiday apartments and strata and community title resorts are the greatest supplier of accommodation to Queensland’s largest industry, the tourist industry. 

NSW legislation has not provided the same support, which has resulted in a smaller contribution to tourist accommodation in that State. 

It was through the tourism connection and the work of QRAMA over the past 15 years that regional operators in other States started to work with our association to look across the colonial borders and seek to expand the regional co-operative arrangements to a greater national industry approach. 

QRAMA and ARAMA members have been concerned that for far too long the issues of the industry had been those of conflict and disputes and that the debates of the industry surrounded trying to get the balance of operations and understanding right for all parties. 

The various sectors of the industry were at the very least suspicious of the activities and performances of resident managers, often confusing their role with other industry service providers and not understanding the legislation and the regulations which tightly controlled and supervised the industry. 

A complex that is well managed will add value to the investment of all owners. 

Stakeholders must understand the big picture issues and recognize the important contribution of the other stakeholders. 

It is nearly 40 years since the first legislation was introduced and there remains confusion, but through the efforts of the Government and the various stakeholder groups, understanding and education is starting to generate breakthroughs. 

As a major industry, all participants need to have a better understanding of the intricacies of the industry for a whole raft of reasons as there are lifestyle matters and billions of dollars of investments now tied up within the industry across the nation. 

It has become apparent to QRAMA that we still have greater challenges within the management of the industry, not just the day to day issues which have been the concerns of our stakeholders such as the owner occupiers, our investor owners and our variety of guests and their needs. 

The issues and disputes that have occurred over the years have had an impact on those groups who have been at the forefront of the expansion of the industry, those various sectors within the property industry including the developers, who have been prepared to create the vision, invest the time and take the financial risks to develop the schemes in the key centres across the State in the holiday and CBD centres. 

The reality of redevelopment is now a growing issue in many key prime areas of Australia and the complexities of dealing with the strata and community title industry threatens to pose some significant obstacles. 

We at QRAMA believe that there is an increasing need for the various industry sectors to work together and with the State and Federal Governments to address these issues of community and strata title living, as the move forward to master planned communities and self management of suburbs continues to grow in strategic importance. 

No longer can we as individual groups of managers, service providers, investors and owners squabble and fight to maintain “so called” territorial rights. 

We must continue to have dialogue to work with the legislators to have laws and regulations which eliminate the need for disputes and seek to address potential areas of difference and have them clearly resolved and essentially better understood. 

Our desire is to build on the current education program available for body corporate chair persons and committee members to be expanded so that all owners have an understanding the structures and operating mechanisms of schemes. 

On this basis all parties better understand their rights and the rules under which all groups inter relate and react. 

There is a time to take away the hostilities of the debate and recognize that the future requires a better understanding of the broader challenges that now face a major national industry.