SA: Q&A Forced Sale: Can lot owners be forced to sell their unit?

This article is about the conditions of a forced sale of an apartment block in Adelaide, South Australia. Can lot owners be forced to sell their unit?

Question: How many unitholders in a strata title apartment block in Adelaide have to agree to sell? Can lot owners be forced to sell their unit?

Answer: All unit holders need to approve, as well as those with a registered interest, which would include any mortgagees and other parties who are listed on the Certificate of Title for each unit.

Section 17(2) of the Strata Titles Act is very clear on this one, stating: an instrument of cancellation must be under the seal of the strata corporation and endorsed with the approval of—

1. all unit holders;
2. all other persons with registered interests in a unit or the common property.

This means that all unit holders need to approve, as well as those with a registered interest, which would include any mortgagees and other parties who are listed on the Certificate of Title for each unit.

In order to cancel a Strata Corporation, the Corporation must lodge an instrument of cancellation which needs to be endorsed by all parties as listed above, as well as duplicates of the certificate of title for each unit and common property and any other documentation requested by the Registrar-General. The only other way a Strata Corporation can be cancelled in by order of the ERD court.

There have been discussions in the past about legislation changing to only require a Special Resolution to cancel a Strata plan, however, no amendments to the Act have been made on this topic.

Carrie McInerney
Horner Management
E: [email protected]
P: 08 8234 5777

This post appears in Strata News #571.

Have a question about whether lot owners can be forced to sell their unit or something to add to the article? Leave a comment below.

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This article is not intended to be personal advice and you should not rely on it as a substitute for any form of advice.

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