View is nice but high-rise living not all bed of roses

A VANTAGE view of the sun setting or rising over the city skyline every day; a swimming pool that is just a lift ride away – these are some of the perks of living in a high-rise.

One joint management body (JMB) even has a library, which was set up and run with the help of three residents – a former English teacher, a retired nurse, and child minder.

They conduct story-telling, singing as well as art and craft sessions for the children.

Although it is only once a week and for just two hours, it has done wonders for the children’s (as well as their parents’) morale.

But not all high-rise communities have an effective JMB or management corporation (MC) who can work for the residents’ benefit.

A recent seminar organised by Selangor Housing and Property Board (LPHS), at Shah Alam Convention Centre, shared some of the common issues including unaudited accounts, unpaid maintenance fees and misuse of funds.

During the session, the speaker shared about how one JMB chose to spend maintenance fees and sinking funds collected from residents on a monthly kenduri while the staircases at its building remained unlit and broken facilities in the common areas were left to deteriorate.

Ignorance and greed were named among the scourges resulting in dysfunctional bodies which have been entrusted with the responsi-bility to manage strata developments.

There is also the problem of a clash of personalities.

A high-rise dweller revealed how internal bickering within the MC had escalated to a degree that few projects would get approved.

In other cases, the lack of cohesiveness would result in facilities left unrepaired or replaced, even the simpler things like leaky toilets or bathroom tiles that had come off.

Another committee member told of how residents, fed up with the lack of maintenance in their condominium, confronted the JMB only to discover that they were close to RM1mil in debt.

Residents found out that no proactive measure had been taken to ensure maintenance fees were collected.

But not all is lost, there are also those who are genuine when it comes to serving the community.

“One has to be tough to serve in the management committee of a high-rise property,” said an MC member of a city apartment.

At another property, the MC had sought help from the police to deal with the vice activities there.

They also hired a former police officer to be their apartment manager.

And to tackle the rubbish issue, committee members took to staking out hotspots.

Litterbugs who were caught in the act were told off.

Another JMB member recounted how it dealt with defaulters by blocking their access cards and barring them from joining in the balloting process for a second parking bay.

Despite his car being scratched and having paint thrown on it, the JMB member persevered.

That very same JMB member finds that it pays to stand one’s ground because otherwise the end result of an ineffective JMB or MC is a deteriorated building, which will ultimately cause suffering to all who have invested in the property.

Difficult as it is, those serving in JMBs and MCs will have to sit together to identify the problems in their premises and work on ways to iron them out.

As for the owners of units in high-rises, make sure to cast your vote to ensure that only the right people are chosen to serve your community.