Short answer
An owner in an NSW strata scheme has a statutory right to inspect the owners corporation’s records, including its financial records — the receipts, invoices, bank statements, levy records and financial statements. Inspection is arranged by written application to the owners corporation or its strata manager, and a prescribed fee usually applies.
Your right to inspect
The money in the scheme is the owners’ money, so owners are entitled to see how it is managed. On application, an owner (or their authorised representative) can inspect the scheme’s books and records, which include:
- Financial records — receipts, invoices, bank statements and the record of levies.
- Financial statements presented at general meetings.
- Minutes and other records that show how spending was decided.
This is a core transparency right: if something about the finances looks off, inspecting the records is the first step.
How to arrange it
Inspection is a defined process, not an informal favour:
- You make a written application to the owners corporation or its strata manager.
- A prescribed fee is payable — a set amount for the first hour and a smaller amount for each additional half-hour.
- Access is then arranged at an agreed time, and you may take copies.
The exact fee is set by regulation and is reviewed periodically, so confirm the current amount with Fair Trading or the strata manager before you apply. (Fee amounts flagged for confirmation.)
If access is refused
An owner’s inspection right is not something a committee can simply decline. Records paid for with common funds — including financial records and most reports — cannot be hidden from owners. If access is unreasonably refused, the matter can be taken to NSW Fair Trading and, if needed, to the NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal (NCAT).
Records that are always ready to show
Inspection only works if the records exist and are in order. A system such as Straita keeps every levy, payment and fund movement recorded as it happens, so when an owner asks to see the financials the record is complete, current and can be produced straight away — rather than a self-managed committee having to reconstruct a year’s spending from a shoebox of receipts.
Primary sources
- Strata Schemes Management Act 2015 (NSW), s 182–183 — inspection of records and the process for arranging it.
- NSW Government — Record keeping requirements (Fair Trading) — inspection rights and current fees.
- NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal (NCAT) — where an inspection dispute can be resolved.