straita

Records & Access

How long must strata records be kept?

Short answer

In NSW, an owners corporation must keep most of its records for at least seven years — including minutes, financial records, correspondence and notices. The strata roll is kept for the whole life of the scheme, and secret-ballot voting papers are kept for a shorter period of around 13 months. Records can’t simply be discarded after a meeting.

The general rule: seven years

Most of the scheme’s records must be retained for a minimum of seven years. That covers:

  • Meeting notices, agendas and minutes.
  • Financial records — receipts, invoices, bank statements and the levy record.
  • Correspondence to and from the owners corporation and committee.
  • Changes recorded on the strata roll.

Seven years gives a reliable history for owners, buyers and any dispute that arises well after the event.

The exceptions

Two categories don’t follow the seven-year rule:

  • The strata roll — kept for as long as the scheme exists, because it is the living register of who owns each lot.
  • Secret-ballot voting papers — kept for a shorter period (around 13 months), long enough to cover a challenge to the vote.

Because retention periods have been adjusted in recent updates to the strata laws, confirm the exact current period against the Act before you destroy anything.

Handover, not just holding

Keeping records also means being able to produce them. Owners can request to inspect the records, and when a scheme changes strata manager — or moves to self-management — the records must be handed over intact. Missing years of minutes or financials is a real problem when it turns up in a dispute or a sale.

Never losing a record in the first place

Seven years is a long time to keep paper safe and findable. A system such as Straita stores the scheme’s minutes, financial records, notices and documents as they are created and retains them for the required periods automatically — so nothing is thrown out early, nothing goes missing at handover, and any record can be produced when an owner or buyer asks. For a self-managed committee that removes the risk of a records gap surfacing years later.

Primary sources