We’re very excited about an initiative that the NSW Government has implemented to safeguard people buying apartments off the plan. It’s called the Strata Building Bond & Inspections Scheme (SBBIS). Put simply, it is a scheme implemented by the NSW Building Commission to protect homeowners from defects in new strata buildings over four storeys high. It requires the developer to pay a 2% bond of the contract price to NSW Department of Fair Trading to rectify any identified defects.
Once the building has been completed, a Qualified Strata Inspector must inspect and approve the work before releasing the bond. The bond will remain in place until all work is complete and approved by a Qualified Strata Inspector.
There is a plan, there are timeframes, there are qualified inspectors and there is funding held for rectifications.
We think this is terrific for peace of mind for investors to know that an identified problem now has a strategy to safeguard their investment.
