Condominium issues

The conflicts and problems encountered by residents who live in apartment blocks will be addressed through a review of the condominium law. The government, with the Association of Maltese Developers, will analyse the consultation process so that the law is an effective tool for proper administration.

Actually, the consultation process had been launched way back in February of 2021. A new law was supposed to have been enacted by the end of that year but it was not to be. Society and residential communities continue to rapidly change with time in Malta and condominium problems continue to crop up even with the most stupid or trivial of issues.

There are layers of dysfunction and disaffection to an already problematic environment. And on top of all this, is a large, codified body of condominium law that is supposed to be adhered to, but is largely ignored with impunity by many associations every day. Associations get away with flaunting and violating the state law simply because they can.

There is no “condo police” investigating or ensuring that these associations abide by the law, and the majority of the people affected by the laws are in fact the property owners themselves.

This is the irony, given that in-house administrators are also property owners, who may think they benefit from shortcutting the legislation that is in place. They are not going to call the authorities on themselves, are they? The one uniformed party that is adversely affected by these failures is the prospective and uninformed buyer.

I have seen some articles of associations governing what owners can and cannot do with their property spanning 70 pages. Disputes over issues such as pets, trash, noise and smells are escalating into epic and costly court battles. It is not very healthy for people living in the same community or block to end up in litigation. Perhaps the time has come to consider legislating for compulsory mediation.

Condominiums on the Sliema/Gzira front. Photo: Jonathan Borg

The condominia boom is not just reshaping our skylines, it is changing how we live. Are we Maltese, long accustomed to detached houses and backyards, ready for a world where being a happy condo dweller means accepting that we will have to give up some of our personal freedom and that our neighbours may always be too close for comfort? You have all the obligations of a homeowner and all the obligations of a tenant because condos are really a combination of the two.

Two decades into Malta’s condo boom, we are only now coming to terms with the fundamental ways the condo is changing how we live. We need to start addressing the downside of shared living. If we do not get busy and start talking about what the issues are and what are some of the reasonable fixes, then everybody loses. Condo dwellers want to live the joys of condominium life, not the nightmare of it.

Mark Said – Msida

Cocaine use

Your major story on cocaine ‘Record amount of cocaine seized by police last year as drug grows in popularity’ (February 9) rightly emphasises the increase of its use/abuse here in Malta.

I wish to add that from my experience with people out of control or addicted to the substance, the majority also admit to excessive alcohol use as a stepping stone to their problems.

Anthony Girard, social worker – Sliema