Internal dividing fences in strata: Did the 2020 amendments change maintenance responsibility?

Maintenance & Common Property

This article discusses strata internal fence maintenance responsibility and confirms that repair costs remain shared between adjoining owners and the strata company.

Did the amendments change the liability for upkeep and maintenance for internal fences within a Strata Scheme?

Have amendments to the Strata Titles Act 1985, introduced in May 2020, changed the liability for upkeep and maintenance for internal fences within a Strata Scheme? Are internal fences now solely Strata's responsibility? I thought that previous to May 2020, if an internal dividing fence repair or replacement was required between lot owners or a lot owner and the common property, the cost was to be shared equally between both parties.

The situation has not changed regarding cost of repairs and maintenance of internal fences

There is no change in the liability of owners and the strata company regarding repair/maintenance of internal dividing fences. Section 214(1)(a) of the current Strata Titles Act 1985 simply repeats the requirements in the Dividing Fences Act 1961 that-

adjoining lots must equally share the fencing repair/maintenance costs;
equally share with the strata company, its share of the fencing repair/maintenance costs where the part of the fence sits on common property.

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Published: 1 Apr 2026

Last Updated: 7 Jul 2026

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Answer by

Rochelle Castro

RC & Co Lawyers

Rochelle Castro is the Principal Lawyer of RC & Co Lawyers, a national boutique firm with offices in Victoria, New South Wales and Western Australia. A large part of her practice includes strata, subdivision, general property, building & construction. She has been serving the strata law industry for the past 12 years. She regularly appears in Tribunals and various Court jurisdictions for various strata stakeholders. She annually presents papers on strata and construction law in international research forums. She is also a volunteer trainer of Strata Community Australia’s introduction to strata education program. Rochelle believes that practice of law must be effective, resourceful and clear. Rochelle is a regular contributor to LookUpStrata. You can take a look at Rochelle’s articles here .