ARAMA REPORT
Cheers for 30 years of protection for our industry What a night, and what a history ARAMA has had over the last three decades. On May 20, more than 250 people gathered at The Glasshouse inside The Island hotel at Surfers Paradise to celebrate our association's 30th birthday, and to honour all those who dug the well so that everyone in the industry could drink from it. It was May 20, 1992, when QRAMA, the Queensland Resident Accommodation Managers Association, was inaugurated on the Gold Coast. The association later became ARAMA, when the name “Queensland” was supplanted with “Australian” in line with our growth to other states and overseas. Our 30th birthday dinner was not just a celebration of the three decades spent building an industry and business model that is probably unmatched anywhere in the world, but it was also a chance to honour some of those who have been foundation stones for a business that generates $55 billion annually for the Australian economy. So it was that Mike O’Farrell, a genuine down to earth Aussie character who has done so much for the Management and Letting Rights (MLR) business in this country, was presented with Life Membership of ARAMA.
move luggage and they helped little old ladies down the steps, all that sort of thing. “Our industry continues to be attacked by those who don't believe in our model, but the model works. It really does. “ARAMA Members are the lifeblood for MLR. I’ve supported the industry for 30 years and I’ll continue to support it for the rest of my days.”
Trevor Rawnsley, CEO, ARAMA
Induction as a Life Member is regarded as ARAMA’s highest level of recognition, and it is awarded to individuals who have a lengthy and distinguished period of dedicated service, and outstanding overall contribution to ARAMA and its members. Mike joins Barry, Kim Cox, John Punch, John Gardner, John Anderson, John Mahoney, Chris Stolk, Peter McCall, Rusty Lush, Eric Van Meurs, Del Linkhorn (dec), Maria Duke (dec), Graeme Beattie (dec), and Dave Ruxton (dec) as the only people to have received the honour. “The MLR industry has been wonderful for my family,” Mike said, and this industry is all about families. “When I started it was all about mums and dads, and the kids, too. The kids helped
Mike joined the MLR industry in 1991 and has property interests in Brisbane and the Gold Coast. He established his company MLR Services in Brisbane to provide mediation services after seeing disputes between residents, contractors and body corporates escalate into financially disastrous situations. MLR also provides training for resident managers, caretaking service providers and body corporates. “The industry survives because of people like Mike,” Barry Turner told the audience at The Island. “Most of us have our life savings invested in our business and it means everything to us. Mike has been at the forefront of the fight to keep our industry strong.” The night also saw current ARAMA president Guy Elliott
Another life member Barry Turner presented Mike with the award.
And we were also graced on the night by the brilliant Kelley Rigby, a young mother of two and stepmother of three, who somehow finds time to run three businesses within the MLR realm. Kelley, our Gold Coast branch president, was superb as our MC for the birthday dinner, introducing among others John-Paul Langbroek and Ray Stevens, the state members for Surfers Paradise and Mermaid Beach. Between them, those state members have more strata letting properties in their electorates than anywhere else in the country. Both parliamentarians acknowledged the enormous contribution ARAMA has made to tourism and the Queensland economy, as well as the vital role in making the Gold Coast such a wonderful place to visit. I also would like to give a big thank you to ARAMA’s Alice Houston, our Membership Services Officer, who did such a great job organising what was a truly memorable and thoroughly enjoyable event. One of the night’s highlights saw life member John Punch explaining how the Gold Coast tourism operators and service providers initiated the system of management rights in its strata titled apartment buildings, which was quite fitting because, as Bernard Salt, the renowned demographer, pointed out, the Gold Coast has the
Barry told the big audience that with many MLR owners having their life savings invested in the industry it was men such as Mike who had helped develop the business framework to make their investments pay off handsomely.
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paying tribute to all the past presidents from the last 30 years, and while it was duly noted that they were all men, we also acknowledged the incredible work being done in the industry by women such as Karen Nelson, who won a Top Award last year for mixed letting at the Lanai Apartments in Mackay.
INDUSTRY
ResortNews | June 2022
