Question: A third of the apartments in our block have balconies with significant damage. If owners have not properly maintained the balconies, are all owners required to contribute to the repairs?
Six of the 18 apartments in our building have substantial damage to the concrete floor of their balconies, while the remaining balconies have cosmetic damage.
On the strata subdivision documents, balconies do not appear to be common property. However, the owners corporation (OC) has billed all owners for repairs to the affected balconies.
When I contacted the owners corporation manager, they stated that owners are individually responsible for maintaining the internal aspects of their properties but are jointly responsible for maintaining the external aspects. The repair invoice suggests that internal work will be performed.
Additionally, in previous meeting minutes, the strata manager mentioned that owners must ensure balcony drainage holes are kept clear and the waterproofing membrane is monitored to prevent water from egressing onto the common property. Does this imply owners contributed to the damage by failing to maintain their balconies?
If so, why are owners with structurally sound balconies— who maintained their internal aspects — required to share the cost of these repairs equally?
Answer: It is unusual for the slab under a balcony to be private lot property.
It is difficult to provide an answer without seeing the plan of subdivision. It is unusual for the slab under a balcony to be private lot property. Normally, it is common property. If it were common property, the structural slab would generally not be subject to the benefit principle.
If the slab is not common property but rather private lot property, the private lot owner will be responsible for the cost of repair. However, the OC would need to have provided a Section 48 notice requiring the repairs to be undertaken and the owner to be given 28 days to do so. If the boundary of the balcony is internal face, the slab will be common property, and the waterproof membrane will be private lot responsibility.
This post appears in the August 2025 edition of The VIC Strata Magazine.
Hi, I have pest infestation coming from the balcony (possibly bird mites from the birds nest up on the balcony), bird droppings on the walls (which I cannot reach) is also evident. Am I right to demand for body corp to hire a professional exterminator specialist? they only sent a person to remove the nest and did not bother to analyze what insects were infesting the place (I have bite marks all over the body) and plan on a wait and see approach.
My living space is stripped off everything and I could not even step out of my balcony and use my airconditioner (the nest is near near the vent and a downspout/pipe for fear that this insects will crawl and spread in my apartment after I have gone through cycles of cleaning the place and who knows of the life span of these mites? Am I also right to demand to have a professional pest exterminator determine what insects they are and send the bill to body corp as it seems the contractors are not helping with identifying what these critters are and it is disrupting my life and posing risk to my health and opting for a wait and see if it will appear again once we the nest is removed? how about preventing birds from nesting in the area, are they also liable for that?
appreciate your thoughts on the matter.
Thank you.