Frequently Asked Questions
EasyBC.co.nz
What does EasyBC.co.nz do?
EasyBC.co.nz makes managing a Body Corporate compliantly easier and less time consuming. It creates an entity that the Body Corporate owns independent of any of the members, designed to serve all members throughout the whole life of the Body Corp. It automatically collects, collates and updates the member information you are required to hold by law. It keeps all your records in one safe easily accessible place. It allows you to give anyone you want access to Body Corp records, aiding transparency and reducing committee administration. It allows you to create and manage events and long term plans. It makes communicating with all Body Corp stakeholders easy and accurate. Basically we think it makes your life easier if you’re involved with a Body Corp!
Why do we need to use EasyBC.co.nz?
Because you want to reduce the burden of running your Body Corporate on your members and ensure you are acting in a compliant manner.
The Unit Titles Act 2010 has a much stronger focus on compliance and introduces the potential for auditing of your Body Corporate by the Department of Building and Housing. If you are not operating with systems designed to meet your legal compliance requirements you could face legal action or worse, find you can’t legally sell units in your building.
How will it help our compliance?
EasyBC.co.nz automatically collects and collates information, such as Owner and Mortgagee details, that you are required to hold and maintain under the Unit Titles Act 2010.
It allows you to easily create a working 10 year maintenance plan for your facilities and produce reports for auditing purposes showing work done/to be done. It gives you a single safe place to keep the documentation (e.g rules, minutes, financials) you are required to keep under the Unit Titles Act 2010.
It also allows you to simply give owners or even the DBH access to this information as required by the Act.
How does it work?
EasyBC.co.nz is a web based Body Corporate management system. As the Body Corporate committee you invite anybody you would like to use the system through a simple email. You then assign roles to the people you have invited e.g. owner, tenant, chairperson. The role the person holds controls what they can do and see on your EasyBC Body Corp site. This is all customizable, so you can create roles to suit your unique needs. You can also change the permissions of roles at any time allowing you to control what each role can do or see. For documentation you can create your own filing system with whatever document categories and folders you like.
The system comes with default settings for everything so it’s ready to use right away. Beyond this you have the power to customise your site as much or little as you like to suit your specific requirements or way or operating.
Who can use EasyBC.co.nz?
EasyBC.co.nz is designed for Body Corporates of any size. It is flexible and customiseable enough to work for 4 units or 300. It has core functionality that helps meet your basic compliance needs and you can set up the system beyond that to meet your individual Body Corporates’ unique requirements. It is also an effective tool for Company share properties.
We have a secretarial service, can we still use EasyBC.co.nz?
Yes, in fact we think it will help streamline your relationship and maybe even save you money. As a Body Corporate YOU have legislative responsibilities to keep and maintain the information and documentation associated with your Body Corporate. EasyBC.co.nz allows you to very easily provide your secretarial company with access to the system so they can supply documentation and access YOUR archive.
What do we need to use EasyBC.co.nz?
The system is entirely web based so all you need is a computer with an internet connection and a browser. There is no special software to download or update ever. You can even access the system through the browsers on many smart phones. We support the following browsers:
- Google Chrome
- Mozilla Firefox: v3.6, v4.0
- Apple Safari: v4, v5
- Internet Explorer: v8, v9
Please note that because EasyBC.co.nz is a modern web application, it requires a modern web browser. For more information, see Google's announcement on modern browsers.
How much does it cost?
$7+GST per unit per month. (e.g. 4 units $28+GST per month).
NO locked in term, NO tricky “free” trials, NO penalties for stopping. We offer a simple open term contract with one months notice should you wish to stop using the service. We’re pretty confident once you try EasyBC.co.nz you’ll never want to go back.
How long does to take to get set up?
Once we have approved you, most customers have found they have their EasyBC.co.nz site up and running within an hour. It’s incredibly quick and easy and all you need is the email details of your owners.
Do you provide support?
Yes, we answer phone and email queries between 9-5 Monday to Friday. The site also features in-depth help text.
What file can be stored in EasyBC.co.nz?
The system allows you to upload and store any kind of file you need.
Do we still own our data?
Absolutely! You maintain ownership of all your data. We simply provide a convenient and safe place for you to keep it.
Is our data safe and where is it stored?
Yes, your data is safe. We use best in class cloud computing services from Amazon Web Services (EC2 and S3) to run EasyBC.co.nz. AWS are world leaders for a reason and your data is backed up and stored redundantly across their data centres to a 99.999999999% durability (That’s about as safe as it gets!). All data is stored primarily in the US.
What is the Unit Titles Act 2010?
The Unit Titles Act 2010 is the recently updated piece of legislation that establishes and controls Body Corporates and how they must act.
Who is AppsAttic?
AppsAttic is the company that develops and owns EasyBC.nz. EasyBC.nz is a brand name not a company and your invoicing will come from AppsAttic Ltd.
Where are you based?
We are based in Palmerston North, NZ. We are a 100% NZ owned and operated company.
Can we talk to you?
Yes, we love to talk about our product, email [email protected] and we'll get back to you immediately.
Will you come and see us?
Yes (within reason). We are based in Palmerston North so if you’re local no problem. We also make road trips to other centres so can most likely call in next time we are in the area. Beyond this we’re happy to chat on Skype, video or phone conference if you would like us to present to your committee.