Better protections for buyers

Section 156-159 of the Strata Titles Act

Summary

The following information is from: https://www.strata.wa.gov.au

Buyers will receive more complete information about the strata property they are looking to buy.

  • The changes will make it easier for buyers to identify the potential ‘health’ of a strata property that’s for sale - as sellers will be required to provide certain information upfront.
  • This will allow buyers to better compare properties and make a more informed decision.

What's changing?

Information provided to a buyer must now include details on the strata scheme, in addition to the strata lot they are looking to purchase.

Before the buyer signs the offer and acceptance contract, the seller must provide information including:

  • Estimated contributions they will have to pay as their strata levy over a 12-month period.
  • The most recent statement of accounts of the strata scheme.
  • Any amount already owed to the strata company by the current lot owner.
  • The minutes from the most recent Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the strata company or any other general meeting that’s been held since.
  • Information about any termination proposal received by the strata company.

This additional information will better enable buyers of strata to:

  • Budget for any ongoing scheme costs after purchase (e.g. through the strata levies).
  • Understand the existing level of cooperation among the strata community and what upcoming costs there might be, such as any major repairs (via the AGM minutes).
  • See what the overall financial status of the scheme is looking like (via the statement of accounts).

For example; this will mean looking through the statement of accounts which might show whether there is a healthy amount on hand to cover the day-to-day running of the scheme (e.g. maintenance and insurance).

It will also show if there is any money saved in a Reserve Fund for large future costs (e.g. replacing a lift or resurfacing driveways) or if the other strata owners are keeping their levies up-to-date and paying their share.



Further information

For further information, please refer to https://www.strata.wa.gov.au 

Better-Buyer-Information-v3.pdf

STAA 2018 Sections 156-159.pdf