Short answer
Under section 106 of the Strata Schemes Management Act 2015 (NSW), an owners corporation must properly maintain and keep in a state of good and serviceable repair the common property and any personal property it owns. This is a strict statutory duty: the owners corporation generally can’t simply let common property fall into disrepair, and an owner who suffers loss from a breach may be able to recover it as damages.
What the duty covers
The duty applies to the common property — the shared structure and services — and requires the owners corporation to keep it in good working order, not just to react once something fails. In practice that means the roof, external walls, common areas, and shared plumbing and electrical services are the owners corporation’s ongoing responsibility to maintain.
The Act does allow the owners corporation to defer or decline a repair only in limited, defined circumstances (for example, a properly made resolution that a matter is inappropriate to maintain, where safety and access aren’t affected) — it is not a free choice to ignore genuine disrepair.
What happens if the duty is breached
Because the duty is strict, failing to keep common property in good repair can expose the owners corporation to a claim. Section 106 allows an owner to recover reasonably foreseeable loss suffered as a result of the breach — for example, damage flowing into their lot. There is a statutory time limit on bringing such a claim; because the limitation period has been the subject of recent amendment, an owner considering a claim should check the current period rather than rely on an older figure.
Meeting the duty as a self-managed scheme
This duty sits with the owners corporation whether or not it has a manager — so a self-managed committee carries it directly. The practical way to meet it is to maintain proactively and keep evidence of it: a system such as Straita helps the committee log issues as they arise, track each repair to completion and hold the record, so the scheme can show it acted on its duty rather than let things slide.
Primary sources
- Strata Schemes Management Act 2015 (NSW) — s 106, duty of owners corporation to maintain and repair property (including recovery of loss).
- NSW Government — Strata schemes (Fair Trading) — maintenance and repair obligations.