The caretaking agreement sets out the specific caretaking duties which the manager or a contractor must complete on a regular basis around a complex or a building. If the working manager does not wish to perform the caretaking duties, then these duties can be contracted out (with the working manager supervising) and the contractors fee is deducted from the working managers salary. The following is a list of typical caretaking tasks which may be required; however TDK will explain and go through all required caretaking duties prior to any engagement:
- common property garden maintenance – this includes mowing common property grounds, edging, hedging, weeding, spraying, blowing, sweeping, mulching, barking, and replacing dead plants. In most cases garden maintenance includes unit back yards.
- common property pool maintenance – this includes monitoring & cleaning the pool, testing pool water (on site and off site), purchasing salt and required chemicals, adding salt and required chemicals. Some complexes may include multiple pools and spas.
- common property facility maintenance – this includes blowing/sweeping tennis courts, cleaning outdoor areas, BBQ’s, bin areas, community toilets and showers, gym areas, starting emergency generators and waters pumps, testing fire alarms etc.
- common property cleaning – this includes vacuuming carpets, mopping foyers, cleaning windows.
- common property subcontractor interface – this includes engaging plumbers when there is leak on the common property, and tree loppers should a large tree require removing.
- body corporate interface – this includes responding to and keeping the body corporate and body corporate committee members updated on all aspects of the complex.
- enforcing bylaws – this includes ensuring all residents abide by the common laws within the complex in relation to noise, keeping of a unit (external appearance), animals, speed within the car park etc which allows all residents to live in harmony.
All supplies such as mower oils, fuels, trimmer line, weed killers, pool chemicals etc are paid by the Body Corporate.
Not all caretaking duties are written down and sometimes the manager is required to perform a caretaking task outside of what is considered normal duties. As a one-off, the manager should perform this requested task however if the task becomes repetitive over time then additional salary compensation can be requested through TDK.
Our caretaking agreement is outcome focused and flexible. This means although the caretaking agreement asks for mowing to be performed on a weekly basis, the agreement does not schedule a specific date or time and leaves this decision to the working manager. The caretaking agreement provides a list of simple duties which need to be carried out, as deemed necessary, by the manager. This flexibility allows the caretaking duties to be scheduled around your life and not the other way around. Testing pool chemicals could be done on a Saturday morning or any day during the week. Provided all caretaking duties are complete you can enjoy a three or four day weekend.
Finally the role of caretaking requires applying common sense! Although caretaking tasks are repetitive over time and can be scheduled throughout the day/week/month/year, the caretaker needs to react and apply common sense logic for when unexpected problems occur. Reacting to these unexpected problems can make unexciting days much more exciting and rewarding as a caretaker. Examples of unexpected problems may be:
- a resident suffers a heart attack
- two residents are having a domestic argument
- an owner occupier unit appears to have a massive leak inside the unit
- a unit is on fire
- a car has crashed in the car park blocking the entrance, yet no one is around
- you suspect a resident is dealing drugs
- you suspect a stranger is casing a unit
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