If you buy or live on a block of land that has multiple residents then it is likely that an owners corporation exists to manage the shared land or property among the owners. Owners corporations can exist to manage large apartment complexes or blocks of land that have three homes on them.

Owners Corporations (OC) that only manage a handful of properties and minimal communal land may be run by the owners. Larger blocks with multiple owners and lots of shared land or areas will usually engage a professional owners corporation manager to handle the administration of the OC.

The owners corporation is responsible for a variety of tasks, in particular managing common property. The common property includes areas such as shared gardens, walls, hallways, driveways, stairwells and lifts, fences and foyers. According to the Owners Corporations Act 2006, it is up to the owners corporation to repair, maintain, manage and administer such areas.

Owners Corporation manage more than just common property

Aside from the common property, the owners corporation also needs to repair and maintain services and fixtures as well as take out and keep up-to-date with the required insurance. What’s more, it’s for the OC to raise fees from lot owners to cover necessary financial obligations and they are also to prepare financial statements and keep track of financial records.

According to the plan of subdivision, plots of land in certain instances can be sold separately. These are usually referred to as “lots” and owners of such lots automatically become members of the owners corporation for that particular subdivision.

The OC should be able to provide owners corporation’s certificates when called on to do so and keep an owners corporation register. It’s also for the committee to establish a grievance procedure.

How much does it cost to run an OC?

Owners corporations tend to vary when it comes to which funds are collected in the OC’s account. Most corporations operate on a tiny margin over and above the usual annual operating costs. If you have simple owners corporation that just looks after the common driveway and some common land then the cost may be very low. If you live in a building with lifts and a pool then the costs will be higher.

A good Owners Corporation will plan ahead and save funds for major works like painting, paving, fencing and guttering.

Should it happen that a cost occurs that has not been budgeted for and there aren’t sufficient funds in the OC’s account, the normal practise is to set up a special levy that goes towards particular projects.

In a new multi-unit property development the developer will often establish the Owners Corporation and then it is up to the owners to maintain it.