Strata title living - how much do you know?

One in ten Australians live in strata titled homes such as apartments or townhouses; in Sydney it's closer to one in four. But how much do we know about strata title living and what it involves?The University of New South Wales has completed a major study of strata titled homes in NSW, finding a surprising 85 per cent of strata owners in the survey reporting defects in new buildings, and that three in four of these said the defects had not been fixed.The study, headed by Dr Hazel Easthope,  research fellow at the City Futures Research Centre at UNSW’s Faculty of Built Environment,  is the first to look into the experiences of Australia’s three million people who live in the fast growing number of strata title dwellings and found there are major problems with strata living. NSW Fair Trading is conducting its own review of strata law with results due next year and the UNSW study will be a valuable source.The study will be released at a forum on strata titles being held at The Mint in Macquarie Street, Sydney, 9 to 12am on Monday May 21. NSW Minister for Fair Trading Anthony Roberts will launch the study and a panel discussion on the report will be held by Dr Hazel Easthope, Prof. Bill Randolph( UNSW City Futures Research Centre), Mr Roberts, Stephen Goddard (president of the Owners Corporation Network Australia) and David Ferguson (President Strata Community Australia - NSW).