When you are a new owner in a new building, it’s hard not to be suspicious of decisions that could cost you a lot of money.

“The building is just over a year old and the executive committee raised a substantial special levy to get legal advice and an independent building defect inspection at the last AGM,” writes MissKing on the Flat Chat forum.

“It was passed but now there is to be an EGM to change this. Is it standard practice to get one of these inspections for new buildings or is the executive committee being gung ho?”

Fair Trading recommends defect inspections in a new building should be done about 12-18 months after the building’s complete, and this is a very, very good idea.

Currently the time limit for claiming rectification from developers for non-major defects is two years.

Non-major defects are basically anything that needs repair but doesn’t mean the building or apartments in it can’t be occupied. Cracked tiles or ceilings, peeling paint and wobbly balcony balustrades all come under “non-major”.

Her executive committee is to be congratulated for getting on top of this before time runs out, we assured MissKing, but then the plot thickened.

It turns out the attempt to block the survey is coming from the developer, who owns two of the 10 apartments in the building.

The other owners will need to be on their toes and have at least 50 per cent of the votes in the form of unit entitlements lined up before the meeting. Unit entitlements, the figures on which your levies are calculated, also represent voting power.

Makes you think: far from being gung ho in wanting to spend money on a defects survey, the committee was right to act quickly.

On a different topic entirely, those of you who have been wondering what happened to Flat Chat Live will be pleased to know that it’s back. In fact, there are two Flat Chat events on the horizon – one where you ask the questions and the other where we quiz you.

Flat Chat Live, where I ask a panel of strata experts your questions, will be a major part of the Strata Owners Day presented by SCA NSW, the strata managers umbrella organisation, on April 30.

And the inaugural Flat Chat trivia night, presented by the Owners Corporation Network, this time with me asking the questions, is on May 14.

You can find out more about both events at flat-chat.com.au.