ACT: What are the strata requirements for a dual occupancy townhouse?

This article discusses dual occupancy strata requirements in the ACT and confirms an AGM is still mandatory each year.

Question: I’m looking to purchase a townhouse. The strata has only one other house, with no common property. There are no strata fees, and we only share the cost of building insurance and water usage. Are there any mandatory things we need to do, e.g. an AGM, a maintenance plan, a fire safety check?

Answer: Class B units are exempt from some requirements of the Act but are required to hold an AGM each financial year.

The Unit Titles (Management) Act 2011 (UTMA) enables dual occupancy units to exempt themselves from particular requirements of the Act. These exemptions include but are not limited to, the requirement to have a bank account (Section 68 (2)) and the requirement to take out building insurance (Section 100 (2)). The UTMA requires a unanimous resolution (both units in agreement) to do so and carries with it certain other requirements, such as the requirement to lodge any resolution relating to insurance under the Land Titles (Unit Titles) Act 1970.

Class B units are also exempt from other requirements of the Act, and not subject to the provisions of maintenance as outlined in Section 24. Consequently (working off the assumption that this question relates to a Class B dual occupancy), there is no requirement for the owners corporation to obtain a maintenance plan, nor to undertake a fire safety check as all appliances are within the unit and the responsibility of the individual unit owner.

Importantly, the Act does require the Owners Corporation to hold an Annual General Meeting each financial year (S3.2 (1)). This meeting must address the matters as outlined in the Unit Titles (Management) (Meeting Agenda) Guidelines 2020, details of which can be found at Unit Titles (Management) (Meeting Agenda) Guidelines 2020 | Notifiable instruments.

To be certain of what requirements the OC has and has not been exempt from, it would be advisable to undertake a search of the records (if available). It may be that the AGMs have not been held. This should be established, and if not, they should be initiated and undertaken annually in accordance with the Meeting Agenda Guidelines.

This post appears in Strata News #662.