Solar panels line the exterior wall of an apartment building in Santa Monica, Calif. Source: Climate Central
Key barriers have been removed for electric vehicle chargers and rooftop solar to be installed in apartments and other strata developments in NSW, as new laws that prescribe what strata committees can and can’t refuse take effect.
The new rules for the committees that run apartment buildings or homes that are connected to each other took effect in early July.
Strata committees are no longer allowed to ban rooftop solar panels or other sustainability-related infrastructure on the grounds that it would change the appearance of the building, unless the building is already under heavy heritage rules.
And proposals for infrastructure for common spaces, with the guidelines specifically singling out electric vehicles (EV) chargers, can now get through on a simple majority rather than requiring a special vote and a 75 per cent super majority.
“I believe it has made it a fair bit easier for people because just the words saying you only need a simple majority… the optics are good,” Owners Corporation Network chair Fred Tuckwell told Renew Economy.
“The biggest issue with EV charging, as an example, is the fear, uncertainty and doubt, so just saying it’s a 50 per cent majority makes it much easier.”
NSW strata committees can no longer ignore efforts to make their buildings more sustainable either, with the laws requiring them to consider environmental sustainability at every AGM.
That includes looking at annual energy and water consumption in the common areas of the property and how much it’s costing. It also means including estimates for improvements, such as electricity meters and solar panels, in the annual capital works fund.
Tuckwell says forcing state committees, often populated by “the older generation”, to start thinking about sustainability initiatives will help to change minds about what is possible in existing apartment stock.
The NSW government lists sustainability infrastructure as anything that reduces energy or water use, pollution, rubbish sent to landfill, or greenhouse gas emissions, increases recycling and “encourages sustainable transport (such as electric vehicle charging stations)”.
While sustainability initiatives that bring down energy bills are a nice to have for prospective apartment buyers and renters, installing EV chargers will change what people are prepared to pay to live in a building, says industry expert Ross de Rango.
“As more drivers are EV drivers, the expectation of residents will be that they can charge at home. That expectation will be felt in what they will be willing to pay to live in that building, so it will affect rental income and property prices,” he told Renew Economy.
“Reducing the threshold from 75 per cent to 50 per cent will help… in some cases all by itself this measure will make a difference.”
De Rango says only about 2 per cent of the national fleet is electric but once that’s 10 per cent or higher, the property market will begin to feel the commercial pressure from buyers and renters who want to be able to charge their cars at home.
The NSW government has been trying to make installing EV chargers into apartment buildings easier, with a grants program to cover some of the costs.
But strata committees have been up against a concerted campaign by fire services trying to claim they’re a fire risk, despite Standards Australia saying they’re not.
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