Changes to Strata Laws announced.
The Queensland Government has today announced reforms to body corporate legislation to make it easier to sell and redevelop ageing or rundown community title schemes in Queensland. The financial viability of repairs versus ongoing safety concerns has been a growing issue for Bodies Corporate, Lot owners and tenants in many ageing buildings.
The changes will allow for the termination of a scheme with the support of 75 per cent of lot owners, where the body corporate has agreed it is more financially viable for lot owners to terminate rather than maintain or remediate the scheme property.
Those owners in the minority who do not support termination will still have some safeguards, including a right to make an application to the District Court for a decision on whether it is just and equitable for the termination to proceed.
For terminations of schemes in other situations, the current position will remain – that is, termination of a scheme will still require that no owners dissent to the termination in order for it to be approved.
In addition, the Government also announced that it will strengthen the laws to:
empower bodies corporate to make by-laws that prohibit smoking in outdoor and communal areas of a community titles scheme, thus better protecting residents against second hand smoke; and
protect pet owners by changes that will prevent bodies corporate from banning pets in community titles schemes, except in specific circumstances.
The finer details are yet to come and a date for passing of the legislation will be some time away, however the Government has advised that consultation on the draft legislation will occur this year.
Thompson McNichol Lawyers have a keen interest in community titles, property ownership and property development and look forward to keeping our clients informed of the changes as they arise. Please don’t hesitate to contact our partners, Paul McHugh or Alison Fleming if you would like to know more about how we can help your business.
February 2023
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