Page 2058 - Week 07 - Thursday, 4 June 2015
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A land sublease can only be registered if it has first been approved by the Planning and Land Authority. Through this approval process the land sublease must be given to the Registrar-General for registration. Upon registration, the sublease will be recorded against the head crown lease, ensuring that there is a clear chain of title of land held under the crown lease and relevant interests in that land.
A sublessee can deal in the sublease but must have the consent of the crown lessee and any mortgagee and is responsible for reasonable costs incurred by the crown lessee in making a decision about the transfer. Consent can only be refused if the crown lessee or mortgagee believes on reasonable grounds that the proposed transferee is not financially sound, intends to use the land for a purpose not allowed, or cannot otherwise comply with the terms of the sublease, or the intended use of the land would not be compatible with other sublessees, or the sublessee is in breach of the sublease.
If consent is refused, the sublessee may apply to the Magistrates Court and, if satisfied that the request was refused otherwise than in accordance with the section, the court may approve the request for transfer. When a sublease ends, the crown lessee is required to pay the sublessee the value of any improvements that they were responsible for. The amount is worked out using the same methodology as the territory would use in similar circumstances for the expiry of a crown lease. The bill provides for normal rights of review to the ACT Civil and Administrative Tribunal for such matters as a review of the amount determined for the value of improvements.
The above amendments demonstrate this government’s commitment to ensuring that a sublease of land has strong legislative foundations, while not overly interfering in the everyday commercial interactions of the market.
Lastly, the bill makes amendments to the Unit Titles Act 2001. The amendment to section 5 of the act is the key mechanism that will allow a building on subleased land to be unit titled. So while small, it is the lynchpin of the new leasing model. The act provides a process for the sublessee to seek the agreement of the crown lessee to apply to unit title the building. In all other matters, a units plan created under sublease will operate in the same way, with no noticeable difference for individual unit owners. Unlike a sublease of land, where there is no automatic right of renewal, there is an entitlement to request the crown lessee’s consent to a further sublease where the building has been unit titled. If a further land sublease is not granted, the unit owners can take the matter to ACAT for a review of the crown lessee’s decision.
The amendments also simplify the process for all owners corporations to seek a grant of a further lease, delivering process efficiencies for all owners corporations seeking a further lease.
Mr Assistant Speaker, I would like to identify that the main policy objectives of the bill required a number of other statutes to be amended to ensure that they extend and acknowledge the new leasing model. All up, 24 pieces of legislation are impacted by the bill, demonstrating the complexity of the new leasing model. In the contained environment of the university, government will be able to closely monitor the operation of the new leasing model and extend the model to other leaseholders if it is appropriate.
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