DECISIONS OF THE STRATA TITLES BOARD: CASE STUDIES

Abstract

Over the years, strata title housing has seen tremendous growth in Singapore. Due to the different perceptions of responsibility and obligations, conflicts tend to occur very frequently among the parties in the strata title scheme. There are conflicts that can be resolved privately between the parties involved, and yet there are also those that cannot be settled amicably. Therefore, the Strata Titles Board is empowered by legislation to hear disputes that arise in such housing type, and make orders to ensure that none of the disputants is unfairly aggrieved. Under the various provisions of the Land Titles (Strata) Act (Chapter 158), there are several types of disputes that can be adjudicated by the Board. Due to wear and tear of a building, water seepage is very often a phenomenon in the units. Thus, the most usual types of disputes arise out of refusal to carry out rectification works to defects or the denial to pay costs of the repair works. It is therefore worthwhile to highlight a few such common cases so that ignorance cannot be claimed as an excuse in a dispute. Moreover, useful lessons are obtained from the cases to enable the people involved in the managing or owning such properties to be better informed and guided accurately in handling their activities.