Timely advice: How early strata management involvement can help deliver better projects
Engaging strata managers in the early stages of a property project can achieve better outcomes and avoid problems down the track, says Whittles general manager Rino Parrella.
Property developers have a lot to consider when starting a project – from acquiring land, to finalising design, gaining approval, financing, managing construction and overseeing sales and marketing.
Leading strata management company Whittles is encouraging more developers to also focus on the resident experience to deliver a better product.
Whittles offers free advice to developers who are beginning projects on topics such as draft budgets, by-law amendments, infrastructure service management, facility management and move-in processes.
The company is currently assisting Commercial & General’s Eighty Eight O’Connell project in North Adelaide.
“Good developers will involve us early,” Whittles general manager Rino Parrella said.
“One of the first things a sales team will want to know are the strata fees, because potential purchasers are going to ask, so we help developers draft budgets to forward onto them.”
Creating tailored by-laws so buildings operate smoothly when residents move in is another key service Whittles can offer developers.
If by-laws are badly written and don’t reflect a building, they have to be changed, which can be a costly and time-consuming exercise for owners who potentially have to deal with solicitors, conveyancers and Land Services SA.
Parrella believes experienced strata management companies are instrumental to a project’s overall success.
“Whittles has worked with leading developers including Chasecrown, Cedar Woods, Palumbo and Scott Salisbury so we know what’s on residents’ minds when they move into a new building,” he said.
“At the end of the day, developers want happy residents and Whittles can help them deliver a successful project.”
Learn more about Whittles’ full range of developer services.
Whittles formed in Adelaide in 1968 and is one of Australia’s leading strata management companies with branches throughout South Australia, Victoria, Queensland, the Australian Capital Territory and the Northern Territory.
Whittles sponsored the 2023 UDIA SA Awards for Excellence Apartments (Mid-rise) category, which Forme Projex won for its Hurtle&Co. Stage05 project. Whittles’ clients Otello and Cedar Woods were also among this year’s winners. Otello won the Boutique Development Award for its Hyland Avenue project and Cedar Woods’ Grace Apartments took out the Medium Density Development category.
