Convicted paedophile cleared to run family‑friendly Sydney apartment blocks

The NSW government has authorised a convicted paedophile to manage nearly a dozen apartment buildings across Sydney, including those popular with young families.

Jeffrey Stanley Rosenstrauss was granted a strata management and real estate licence despite disclosing his crimes to the regulator, which included horrific attacks on a schoolgirl in the 1970s and 80s.

The ABC has confirmed Rosenstrauss, who was jailed in 2011 for historical child sex offences, is currently working as a strata manager at residential blocks in Dee Why and Newport on the northern beaches, and Bondi, Point Piper, Randwick, Woollahra and Maroubra in the city's eastern suburbs.

NSW Fair Trading deemed Rosenstrauss a "fit and proper person" in 2019, allowing him to resume working in sector.

Under the legislation, grounds for disqualification include convictions for offences involving dishonesty and financial mismanagement.

'Why weren't we told that?'

The ABC has spoken to multiple owners in Dee Why apartment complex Havana, which is managed by Rosenstrauss.

Property listings for the new build highlight its proximity to local schools and child care, and the suburb is marketed as family friendly.

"We have a three-year-old girl. The idea there is a convicted paedophile that has access to our building doesn't really sit well," one owner said.

"I understand people do the crime and do the time, but it should be made public knowledge he's done this in the past,"

the father said.

Strata managers are authorised by the building's owners corporation to access common property to attend to building repairs and maintenance, and can access private units with the occupier's consent.

NSW Fair Trading did not reveal it had previously refused Rosenstrauss a licence in 2011 after he pleaded guilty to historical child sex offences.

"I am in absolute shock," apartment owner John Glynn said.

"Why weren't we told that? Why weren't we given the information by Fair Trading so we could make an informed choice?

"We trust Fair Trading to protect us. We trust they have vetted someone with a licence."

Mr Glynn briefly served as the owners corporation's treasurer but stepped down earlier this year over unrelated governance concerns.

Offender 'disclosed all relevant information'

Rosenstrauss, who goes by Jeff Rosen, told the ABC he had "disclosed all relevant information to the department".

He said his firm did not tell its clients about his criminal history as it was "on the public record" and had previously been reported by a local paper.

Rosenstrauss pleaded guilty to three child sex offences in 2011, which the judge described as "serious sexual assaults".

The victim told the court she was aged between five and eight years old at the time.

The eastern suburbs businessman was sentenced to a non-parole period of two years, later reduced to 16 months on appeal.

Because the offences were committed between 1975 and 1981, the sentence reflected the law at the time.

The judge said if the offences were committed at the time of sentencing "it would be inevitable that he would go to gaol for a very long time indeed".

Rosenstrauss was released on parole in 2012 and took the NSW government to court the same year for refusing to renew his licence. He lost.

Reoffending unlikely, psychologist finds

During the proceedings, a clinical psychologist told the court Rosenstrauss had "come out of gaol reasonably unscathed from that experience".

The psychologist also found he was a low-risk offender and "expressed confidence [he] will not re-offend".

The regulator was aware of Rosenstrauss's crimes before granting him a licence.

NSW Minister for Fair Trading Anoulack Chanthivong has asked the agency to reconsider, following questions from the ABC.

A spokesperson for NSW Fair Trading said it would look into the "circumstances surrounding this matter" and would not "hesitate to take action when required".

It is not the first time a NSW government agency has come under scrutiny over its licensing practices.

In 2025, the ABC revealed the NSW Building Commission had handed out thousands of licences to tradies without checking their criminal history.

In response, the regulator announced it would require some licence applicants to provide their own national police checks and was considering extending the requirement across all licensing categories.