By the Paddocks Club team

Below are examples of two questions on the Paddocks Club discussion forum, to show you what is available to our Community members!

Damages caused by a tenant in a sectional title complex

Member’s question:

Hi Anton,

1. Can an owner be kept liable for the damages caused by his tenant in a sectional title complex?

2. Can a parent be kept liable for the damages caused by his child in a sectional title complex?

3. What is the procedure to implement penalties against owners for breaching of the rules of conduct by the owner’s household members or tenants?

4. What is your advice to trustees that receive requests from owners and lessees to plant plants or trees on common property in a sectional title complex with a ground floor and first floor units? What portion of which common property can be used for planting by owners and lessees that are residing on the first floor? (The owners and lessees on the ground floor want to use the portion of the common property in front of such unit.)

5. Can trustees grant permission to an owner or lessee to plant flowers ect. on common property or must the owners decide about it?

Thank you!

Anton’s answer:

Hi there,

To answer your questions numerically:

1. No. If the tenant damaged common property, they are responsible. It sounds like a delict to me.

2. Yes, if you can prove which child did the damage to common property. Parents are responsible for the actions of their children, while landlord owners are not responsible for the actions of their tenants; they are required only to take all reasonable steps to ensure their tenants and visitors obey the conduct rules.

3. Impose penalties on owners for breaches of rules by their tenants? I think that would require a management rule to replace PMR 3(2) and a fining rule that says owners can be fined for tenant’s breaches of the rules. I can’t see owners agreeing to that. Or the CSOS.

4. If the trustees like the idea, they can plant trees and flowers in terms of section 4(d). They would have to be careful not to do something that constitutes an improvement to common property, which requires the authority of a unanimous resolution.

5. If the layout of the scheme allowed it, I guess there could be exclusive use garden areas allocated to owners whose sections were not on the ground floor.

Please let me know if you need any further clarification.

 

Raising exclusive use area parking levies

Member’s question:

Dear Paddocks

The body corporate never raised parking levies which are an exclusive use areas for the owners.
The Trustees would like to start raising the levy, however they would like to confirm the best way to determine the levy.

Garages are currently levied at R112.5 per unit. The question is whether to determine the parking levy at the same m² as the garages or just to raise a flat fee of R80 per parking. Another option is a 60/40% ratio, garage to parking bay. What are your thoughts?

Anton’s answer:

Good day and thanks for your question.

Section 3(1)(c) specifies how to do this: The body corporate must estimate its expenses with respect to each individual exclusive use area (EUA), and charge the owner who holds the rights to that EUA an additional contribution to cover those costs. Examples of body corporate expenses with respect to EUAs mentioned in section 3(1)(c) are rates and taxes, maintenance, the supply of water and electricity, and insurance.

Hope this helps!

 

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Article reference: Paddocks Press: Volume 13, Issue 2, Page 04.

Professor Graham Paddock, Anton Kelly, Dr Carryn Melissa Durham and Zerlinda van der Merwe are available to answer questions on the Paddocks Club discussion forum for Community members. Get all your questions answered by joining Paddocks Club.

This article is published under the Creative Commons Attribution license.

Back to Paddocks Press – February 2018 Edition.