For many bodies corporate, insurance is one of the biggest ongoing costs. While the body corporate is responsible for arranging insurance, each lot owner contributes to the premium through levies. Understanding how these contributions are calculated is essential for both committees and owners…
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If you own a lot in a body corporate, you’re probably familiar with receiving a levy notice. But have you ever stopped to consider the budget behind it – and what happens before that levy amount reaches you?
Behind every levy is a broader financial process designed to help a body corporate meet its day-to-day expenses, maintain its property and prepare for future financial needs.
Last week, we explored some of the factors that can place pressure on body corporate levies, from insurance and operating costs to maintenance, compliance and future expenditure.
This week, we’re taking a step behind the numbers to look at the bigger picture: how are body corporate budgets prepared, how do those budgets relate to levies, and how are funds managed throughout the year?
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Walk into any building and you know within five seconds whether it’s well run. Nobody reads the by-laws on their way through the foyer; they look at the carpet, the lift buttons, the bin room door propped open with last week’s smell still lingering.
Most committees only look closely at their cleaning contract when something’s gone wrong: a complaint at the AGM, a resale falling through over a scruffy lobby, a “but I thought that was included” moment mid-dispute. By then it’s too late to ask the questions that would have avoided it.
Here are five questions worth asking before the next renewal lands on the agenda…
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A recent controversy involving membership renewals at the Mooloolaba Surf Life Saving Club raises an interesting question for strata communities: when people are given the opportunity to choose who represents them, do they need to explain why they chose someone else?
Committee elections can deliver a similar message. Owners may say very little throughout the year, but when the votes are counted, the silent majority can suddenly become quite clear.
Sometimes the vote itself is the explanation…
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If your body corporate levies have increased, you may be wondering why – and where that extra money is actually going.
Levies are essential to the financial operation of a body corporate. They contribute towards everything from the day-to-day costs of running and maintaining a property to insurance, compliance requirements and planning for major future expenditure.
When these costs change, the amount a body corporate needs to collect from owners may need to change too.
Understanding what drives levy contributions is just one part of the bigger financial picture – and one we’ll be exploring further at our upcoming October Strata Community Education Seminar Series.
So, what can place pressure on your body corporate budget – and ultimately your levies?
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For many Bodies Corporate committee, the instinctive reaction to seeing a patch of mould in a common stairwell or a basement carpark is to “give it a wipe with some bleach”, or “paint it over”.
While this might make the surface look clean for a few days, it is a dangerous strategy that often ignores the underlying biological risk. In a strata environment, where air is shared through ventilation systems and walls are common property, improper mould handling can lead to health litigation and structural degradation…
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Strata Community Education Seminar Series October 2026!
You live in a body corporate. You pay levies. But do you really know where that money goes?
Registrations are now open for the Strata Community Education Seminar Series October 2026, presented by Smart Strata in partnership with Archers the Strata Professionals.
Following the release of our October seminar topic earlier this month, we’re excited to officially invite Queensland’s strata communities to join us as the series travels across five regions this October.
Committee Essentials: Understanding Body Corporate Finances – Where Does the Money Go? Demystifying Body Corporate Finances…
Here’s what the numbers really mean and how to see what you’ll actually pay.
Each year, owners are asked to vote on budgets and levy contributions at the Annual General Meeting. However, many owners are unsure how to interpret the levy tables included in AGM notices or how those figures translate into the amount they will actually pay.
In this article, we’ll break down AGM budget motions, explain the information contained in levy table schedules and show you how to calculate your anticipated levy contributions of the next proposed financial year…
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An issue that often arises in strata is the lack of people’s involvement in their buildings.
All lot owners owe it to themselves to understand the operation of their building and to keep a quiet eye on what’s going on in their body corporate – particularly from a financial perspective.
There is no downside to understanding what is going on, but there is certainly some downside to ignoring issues that will potentially impact your investment in a substantial way.
In our latest 2.5-minute video and accompanying article, Frank Higginson discusses why it’s important to stay involved in your body corporate…
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Storm season rarely begins with a dramatic warning. More often, it begins with the first humid afternoon, the first blocked outlet, or a flashing that has been lifting quietly for months.
Every year, the familiar advice returns: clear the gutters, secure loose items and review the insurance policy. That advice matters. For a body corporate, however, there is a more basic question that should come first: do we actually know the condition of the roof before the first serious storm arrives?
The Bureau of Meteorology describes October to April as Australia’s peak period for severe weather. Severe thunderstorms are most common from around September through to March or April, while the official Australian tropical cyclone season runs from 1 November to 30 April. Queensland’s own preparedness guidance also stresses that severe weather can occur outside those dates, so the sensible time to prepare is before the season, not when a warning has already been issued.
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