Overview
This page covers everything happening with owners corporations in Victoria. Bookmark it if you want to keep up with Victoria's strata news as it happens.
Check the tabs for the latest on Victorian legislation and owners corporation rules. New information about updates to the Owners Corporations Act 2006, plus articles and Q&As covering readers' questions about Victorian owners corporation law, are added regularly.
Have a question about strata in VIC? Ask a VIC strata question and we'll do our best to answer or source a response from our network of strata guidance partners.
What tier is my owners corporation?
Every Victorian owners corporation falls into one of five size-based tiers, and the tier decides which rules apply.
- Tier one: more than 100 lots. Must prepare annual financial statements and have them audited, elect a committee at each AGM, have an approved maintenance plan, and appoint a manager unless the owners corporation opts out by special resolution.
- Tier two: 51 to 100 lots. Must prepare annual financial statements and have them reviewed by an accountant, elect a committee at each AGM, and have an approved maintenance plan. Appointing a manager is optional.
- Tier three: 10 to 50 lots. Must prepare annual financial statements and elect a committee, but a maintenance plan is optional.
- Tier four: 3 to 9 lots. Must prepare financial statements only in years fees are levied, and can choose whether to elect a committee or prepare a maintenance plan.
- Tier five: two-lot subdivisions, such as duplexes, or owners corporations that only manage shared services rather than common property. The lightest touch of all five tiers, with a committee and maintenance plan both optional.
That is why a two-lot duplex and a 200-lot apartment tower can both be owners corporations under the same Act, but with very different rules depending on size.
VIC Owners Corporations: What's Happening Right Now
Why is the Owners Corporations Act under review?
An independent expert panel reviewed the Owners Corporations Act 2006 in 2025 and made 51 recommendations. The government released its response in June 2026. It supports 17 in full, three in part and 26 in principle, with three under review and two not supported.
What has changed so far?
The Consumer Legislation Amendment Act 2026 received Royal Assent on 8 September 2026. It gives owner occupiers in owners corporations with more than two lots a right to request a hardship payment plan of up to 12 months for overdue fees, with protection from debt recovery while the plan is followed. It also lets an owners corporation start legal proceedings over non-monetary matters, such as rule breaches, by ordinary resolution, and stops a single owner blocking changes to subdivision plans.
Separately, new education rules for registered owners corporation managers require initial training by 30 June 2027, with annual continuing professional development from 1 April 2028. Start dates vary by provision, so check Consumer Affairs Victoria for when each change takes effect. Read the full report and the government’s response on the Review of the Owners Corporations Act 2006 page.
What’s still to come?
The government said further changes are coming, including a licensing scheme for owners corporation managers and stronger enforcement powers for Consumer Affairs Victoria.
What's changing with insurance and buyer protections?
The Building Legislation Amendment (Buyer Protections) Act 2025 began operating on 1 July 2026. For buildings of three storeys or fewer, domestic building insurance is now a first resort scheme, so owners can claim when a defect is first identified rather than only after a builder dies, disappears or becomes insolvent. For apartment buildings over three storeys, developers must lodge a bond of 2% of the build cost before an occupancy permit is issued. The Building and Plumbing Commission holds the bond for about two years to pay for fixing defects.
What's happening with short-stay accommodation?
The Short Stay Levy Act 2024 has applied since 1 January 2025. It charges 7.5% of the total booking fee for stays of less than 28 days.
Are owners corporation managers regulated in Victoria?
Yes. Managers must be registered, and the education requirements and planned licensing scheme described above will add to that.
Strata Living in VIC: The Numbers
- Victoria's owners corporation properties are insured at a combined value of $471 billion
- 18% of Victorians (more than 1.27 million people) live in a strata-titled dwelling
- Victoria has around 128,896 owners corporations, more than any other state, comprising over 1,044,400 lots
- Almost three-quarters of schemes (73%) have five lots or fewer
- Figures from the Australasian Strata Insights 2024 report (City Futures Research Centre, UNSW, and Strata Community Association)
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Resources
Strata Legislation VIC
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Owners Corporations Act 2006
The main law for owners corporations in Victoria, covering management, meetings, committees, managers, finances, insurance and dispute resolution. The Consumer Legislation Amendment Act 2026 amended it to add a hardship payment plan framework for owners behind on fees.
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Owners Corporations Regulations 2018
Sets out practical detail under the Act, including model rules, fees, proxy authorisation, committee membership and registration of managers.
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Owners Corporations (Education) Regulations 2026
Sets education requirements for registered owners corporation managers. Initial training must be completed by 30 June 2027, and annual continuing professional development starts on 1 April 2028.
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Subdivision Act 1988
Governs how land is subdivided in Victoria, including the creation of owners corporations, common property, and the process for altering or winding one up.
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Subdivision (Procedures) Regulations 2021
Sets out procedural details for councils processing subdivision applications, including time limits, forms and certification. Mostly relevant to surveyors and developers rather than lot owners.
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Consumer Affairs Victoria
Victoria’s regulator for owners corporations. Its owners corporations pages cover rights, meetings, maintenance, finance and disputes.
Useful links
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A Guide to Owning, Managing and Living in an Owners Corporation (SCA Vic)
SCA Vic’s plain-language guide to owning, managing and living in an owners corporation.
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Insurance for owners corporations
Consumer Affairs Victoria’s guide to owners corporation insurance, including reinstatement, replacement and public liability cover.
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Owners corporation fees
Consumer Affairs Victoria’s guide to how owners corporation fees are set, collected and used.
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Maintenance fund
Consumer Affairs Victoria’s guide to how the maintenance fund works and what it can be used for.
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Free Committee Training (SCA Vic)
Free online training and resources from SCA Vic for owners corporation committee members, covering governance, roles and responsibilities, and meetings.
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Strata Community Association (VIC)
The professional body for the strata and community title sector in Victoria.
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Owners Corporation Network (OCN)
An independent organisation of owners helping owners navigate strata living, with free fact sheets and state-based information.
Forms
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Owners Corporation Complaint Form
Consumer Affairs Victoria’s approved form for a lot owner, tenant or manager to make a formal written complaint to the owners corporation about a breach of the Act, the Regulations or the rules.
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Issue Log Sheet
Consumer Affairs Victoria’s template for keeping a written record of a complaint. A written record is also required if the matter goes to the Dispute Settlement Centre of Victoria or VCAT.
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Notice to Rectify Breach
Consumer Affairs Victoria’s approved form for formally notifying someone they have 28 days to fix a breach of the Act, the Regulations or the owners corporation’s rules. Use it unaltered, because changes can make the notice invalid.
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Final Notice to Rectify Breach
Consumer Affairs Victoria’s approved form, issued if a breach isn’t fixed within the first 28 days. It gives the owners corporation a further 28 days to apply to VCAT.
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Notice of Owners Corporation Decision
Used to formally notify a complainant of the owners corporation's decision on their complaint.
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Complaints and dispute resolution report to the Annual General Meeting
Consumer Affairs Victoria’s form for the report an owners corporation must present at its AGM on complaints received and action taken. It can’t identify the people involved.
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Owners Corporation Forms and Publications
Consumer Affairs Victoria's library of owners corporation forms, including contracts of appointment, register and record requests, maintenance survey templates and petitions.
Dispute resolution
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Complaint handling and resolving disputes in an owners corporation
Consumer Affairs Victoria’s plain-language guide to the three steps for resolving a dispute: internal resolution, conciliation through the Dispute Settlement Centre of Victoria, and an application to VCAT.
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Dispute settlement centre of Victoria
Free conciliation for owners corporation disputes. It can only resolve a dispute if everyone involved agrees to participate.
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Applying to VCAT
How to apply to the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal for a hearing. An owners corporation must follow its internal complaints process before it applies.
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Working with your owners corporation manager
Consumer Affairs Victoria’s guide to the manager’s role, appointing and removing a manager, and what to do if you’re unhappy with their performance.
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Public Register of Owners Corporation Managers
The Business Licensing Authority’s register of owners corporation managers. Check whether a manager involved in your dispute is registered, and whether any orders have been made against them.
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