The Sting In The Tail Of NSW Strata Reforms

September 29, 2026 Edward Dever

The strata sector in Australia is a multi-billion dollar business, effectively run by committee volunteers.

Part of the recent NSW strata reforms involves mandatory online training provided by NSW Fair Trading for new and returning strata committee members.

The training, available from October 2026, involves a simple, free one hour online course. Training must be completed within three months of appointment. Additional training will apply in future years.

If a committee member does not complete the required training within three months of their appointment, they automatically cease to be a member of the strata committee.

This should not be an issue for the larger buildings with professional strata managers. Committee members will know their obligations. But for the vast number of smaller buildings with strata committees who rarely meet and who use less organised strata managers (or none at all), the risk of missing the deadline and ceasing as a member of the committee seems much higher. (Note that two-lot strata schemes are exempt.)

This may lead to a lack of quorums for meetings or invalid resolutions where members act as if they are still committee members despite being disqualified.

NSW Fair Trading notes that decisions involving disqualified members will generally remain valid if the committee acted in good faith and did not know the person had not completed the training.

A simple solution would be to adopt a Training Register so it is clear that all members have completed the required training. NSW Fair Trading has guidance for committee secretaries on this point.

Yet to see if other States move towards adopting mandatory strata training.

NSW Strata Training

September 2026

The content of this publication is intended to provide a general overview on matters which may be of interest. It is not intended to be comprehensive. It does not constitute advice in relation to particular circumstances nor does it constitute the provision of legal services, legal advice or financial product advice.

NSW Greens Make Another Play for Rent Controls

July 30, 2026 Edward Dever

Rent controls are back on the agenda.

The NSW Greens aim to make rent controls an issue in NSW by introducing legislation later this year. They are also calling on the Federal Government to implement controls.

On their wish list at the NSW level are limiting rent increases to inflation, restricting increases to once a year or preventing increases during fixed-term leases. At the Federal level, the NSW Greens are calling for a 12 month rent freeze and a moratorium on no-cause evictions to protect renters during the fuel crisis. Their previous attempts at rent controls in NSW have been unsuccessful.

The Federal Government has been reluctant to pressure the State Governments into any form of rent freeze.

Limiting rent increases to inflation is similar to the scheme operating in the ACT. Restricting increases to once a year already applies in Qld and, after initial landlord grumbles, has been implemented without issue.

Any further form of rent control seems unlikely in Qld with the current LNP Government in power.

Even under the previous ALP government, the Qld Department of Housing, Local Government, Planning and Public Works stated that it believed forms of rent control are generally ineffective.

During the 57th Qld Parliament, the Greens twice attempted to introduce rent control legislation in Qld, in each case the relevant Committee recommended against its introduction and the Bills were scrapped.

The Greens claim that, with inflation at 3.8%, rents have risen 3.6%. Absent from the discussion is any mention of landlord costs.

As examples, Brisbane City Council rates on units in some suburbs have risen 11.4% year on year. Qld Urban Utilities sewerage service charges are up 9.5%. QUU water service charges have increased 16.4% while Tier 1 water costs are up 6.8%.

Across Sydney, rates in some suburbs have increased at least 5%. Sydney Water charges are up by 7.2%

In a regional Queensland city, rates have increased 9.2%.

Added to this are increases in interest rates, strata levies, insurance and maintenance costs. Landlords also face property valuation costs as at 30 June 2027 ahead of the implementation of the new CGT rules.

It seems unlikely that the NSW Greens will succeed with any form of rent freeze. They may have more success in NSW focusing their attention on restricting increases to once a year.

Greens call for rent freeze amid rising inflation

Report No. 7, 57th Parliament, Housing, Big Build and Manufacturing Committee, May 2024

July 2026

Ineffective Strata Minority Cram Down Rule Creates Problems

October 4, 2023 Edward Dever

The Queensland Government may wish to cast an eye towards NSW before finalising amendments to its strata legislation which will permit 75% of owners to terminate uneconomic community title schemes.

On 24 August 2023, the Body Corporate and Community Management and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 2023 was introduced into the Queensland Parliament. The Bill was referred to the Legal Affairs and Safety Committee for detailed consideration. The closing date for written submissions was a mere nine days later on 2 September. The Qld Law Society raised concerns in their submission regarding the short timeframe.

Under the proposed Queensland amendments, minority unit owners may be forced to sell their units in circumstances where there are economic reasons for terminating the scheme supported by 75% of the scheme owners.

This reform was described as "deliver[ing] a key action of the 2022 Queensland Housing Summit by reforming the BCCM Act to allow for termination of uneconomic community titles schemes to facilitate renewal and redevelopment."

The Bill's Explanatory Notes specifically refer to "having regard to the New South Wales approach."

The only problem is that terminating schemes in NSW has not been that simple with only a handful of schemes apparently managing to negotiate a sale. Developers are now saying they "aren't interested in buying older buildings unless there’s 100 per cent agreement from owners to sell."

Designed to protect the elderly owner from unscrupulous developers, at least in one instance in NSW, the reverse seems to have occurred - protecting a rival developer from the building's elderly owners. The NSW amendments have not prevented strategic blocking attempts by competing developers.

The NSW Minister for Better Regulation and Fair Trading has vowed to fix the glitches. “The NSW government is committed to updating and reforming this system, including fixing the loopholes that have made it out of date."

Perhaps the Queensland Government will revisit its amendments before passing a Bill with baked-in glitches, at least based on the NSW experience.

The Legal Affairs and Safety Committee is due to hand down its Report on 6 October.

This law was meant to solve Sydney’s housing crisis. It’s left owners devastated

Legal Affairs And Safety Committee - Body Corporate and Community Management and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 2023

October 2023

Pets in Apartments - NSW Update

July 27, 2021 Edward Dever

Some interesting comments in the post-Cooper March 2021 decision in McGregor v The Owners – Strata Plan No 74896 [2021] NSWCATCD 1.

This NCAT matter involved the refusal by an owners corporation for a dog to be kept in an apartment block which was part of a larger complex, each block with separate by-laws and all subject to a community management statement.

The applicant dog owners were self represented. And that was probably their downfall.

The by-laws expressly prohibited dogs but not other pets such as cats, with an exception in the townhouse by-laws for small dogs which were permitted in the townhouse section of the complex.

The applicants placed significant reliance on the decision of the NSW Court of Appeal in Cooper. In that case, the effect of the Court’s decision was that a “blanket ban” on the keeping of pets was “harsh, unconscionable or oppressive”.

The applicants' prime application was misconceived as it sought relief under Section 157 of the Strata Schemes Management Act which allows the Tribunal to approve a pet where the by-laws permit a pet with owners corporation approval and that approval has been unreasonably withheld. Neither of these conditions was met.

The applicants also chose the wrong by-law to request the Tribunal to declare as invalid. The applicants should also have included the Community Association as a respondent.

In the circumstances, it was not necessary for the Tribunal to consider the effect of Cooper on the relevant by-law but the Tribunal did note that the by-law did not, in any event, constitute a “blanket ban” of the type considered in that decision.

It will be interesting to see whether other owners corporations seek to distinguish Cooper on the basis that their by-laws, while prohibiting dogs, do not prohibit other animals.

July 2021

Residential Property - NSW Proposes Support To Eliminate Evictions and Rent Strikes

April 13, 2020 Edward Dever

The NSW Government has proposed the following initiatives during COVID19:

Amount - $220 million for residential tenancy relief.

Eligibility - Applies to tenants who have lost at least 25% of their income.

Rent deferral - Any unpaid rent accrues as arrears and needs to be eventually paid by the tenant.

Moratorium - Interim 60-day moratorium for new applications to NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal for forced evictions over COVID-19-related rent arrears.

Land Tax - Waiving land tax or providing up to a 25% rebate if accommodating tenants under financial stress.

This article sketches some broad strokes. It will be interesting to see the detail on exactly who qualifies and the limits of any relief.

NSW Government to announce $440 million coronavirus rental assistance with moratorium on forced evictions

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-04-13/nsw-coronavirus-to-announce-440-million-dollar-rental-assistance/12143646

April 2020