A Four Corners investigation has established the company Steadfast has been part of opaque schemes to channel insurance kickbacks to strata management firms, without disclosing the schemes to the apartment owners from whom the money ultimately comes.

More than 2.5 million Australians now live in an apartment and over the next decade that number is set to soar.

The NSW Government is sweeping away local government planning controls – with the NSW Planning Minister using the undemocratic State Environment Planning Policies (SEPPs) to bypass the NSW Environment, Planning & Assessment Act. The Transport Orientated Development (TOD), and Low to Mid Rise Housing SEPPs will vastly boost the number of apartments across Greater Sydney – including in Ku-ring-gai.

ABC’s Four Corners program reveals how the multibillion-dollar strata industry that is supposed to protect apartment owners’ interest is not acting in their interests.

ABC investigative reporter Linton Besser said he received thousands of emails from apartment owners, of which 99% provided credible evidence that the strata management industry is exploiting them.

It appears insurance companies are forming joint ventures with opaque strata managers to receive further fees in a share of profits. Commissions are driving up the cost of insurance and incentivising strata managers to act against the interests of their clients.

Authorised by K. Cowley, 1 Kenilworth Road, Lindfield, 2070      info@foke.org.au