New South Wales
So You've Joined a Strata Committee. What Now?
NSW has been rewriting the rulebook in stages since 2025. Some of what your longest-serving neighbour tells you is now out of date.
What's in the NSW edition →Same job, eight rulebooks
Your committee has a different name in every state
So does almost everything else: the Act, the funds, how rules are made and where disputes end up. That's why each edition is written for one jurisdiction only.
| Where | Your committee is called | The law | Disputes go to |
|---|---|---|---|
| NSW | Strata committee | Strata Schemes Management Act 2015 | NCAT |
| QLD | Body corporate committee | Body Corporate and Community Management Act 1997 | BCCM Commissioner's Office |
| VIC | Owners corporation committee | Owners Corporations Act 2006 | VCAT |
| WA | Council of owners | Strata Titles Act 1985, as amended from 2020 | SAT |
| SA | Management committee | Strata Titles Act 1988 or Community Titles Act 1996 | Magistrates Court |
| TAS | Committee of management | Strata Titles Act 1998 | Recorder of Titles or the Tribunal |
| ACT | Executive committee | Unit Titles (Management) Act 2011 | ACAT |
| NT | Unit title committee | Unit Titles Act 1975 or Unit Title Schemes Act 2009 | NTCAT |
Choose your edition
Pick your state or territory
Each button opens the book on Amazon Australia. Paperback or Kindle, it's your choice.
Queensland
So You've Joined a Body Corporate Committee. What Now?
Your committee can only spend up to certain limits without a general meeting. Most new members have no idea where those limits sit.
What's in the QLD edition →
Victoria
So You've Joined an Owners Corporation Committee. What Now?
Your owners corporation's rules are void and unenforceable unless they are registered with Land Use Victoria.
What's in the VIC edition →
Western Australia
So You've Joined a Council of Owners. What Now?
Built strata or survey-strata? The difference decides who owns your roof.
What's in the WA edition →
South Australia
So You've Joined a Management Committee. What Now?
Two Acts run side by side in South Australia. Which one governs you depends on when your building was divided.
What's in the SA edition →
Tasmania
So You've Joined a Committee of Management. What Now?
The Act applies the same way to every scheme. A six-lot complex in Devonport carries the same obligations as a Hobart tower.
What's in the TAS edition →
Australian Capital Territory
So You've Joined an Executive Committee. What Now?
The ACT writes a code of conduct for committee members into the Act itself, and ACAT has used it to overturn committee decisions.
What's in the ACT edition →
Northern Territory
So You've Joined a Unit Title Committee. What Now?
In a scheme of three units or fewer, every owner is automatically on the committee, and decisions must be unanimous.
What's in the NT edition →Who these are for
If you sit on the committee, or are about to
Just elected
You put your hand up at the AGM, or nobody else did. This is the induction you didn't get.
Chair, secretary or treasurer
You hold an office with real duties and personal exposure. Know what the Act expects of you before it matters.
Thinking about nominating
Read it before the AGM and walk in knowing what the job involves and what you can actually change.
Committees buying for every member
A shared reference point settles arguments faster than anyone's memory of how it was always done.
Small and self-managed schemes
Duplexes, triplexes and small blocks with no strata manager. You are the manager, whether you meant to be or not.
Strata and body corporate managers
Hand it to a new committee so the first meeting isn't spent explaining the difference between the two funds.
In every edition
The induction you didn't get
Nobody hands you a manual. The records are a wall of PDFs, the legislation is written for lawyers, and your manager is paid to administer the scheme, not to teach you the job.
Check this one. Every figure, date or deadline that could change carries a note like this, saying why it may have moved and exactly who to ask.
- What the committee can decide on its own, and what has to go to the owners
- How the money works: levies, the funds, and the forecast that matters most
- Your by-laws or rules, how they are made, and how to enforce them
- Insurance, repairs and who pays for what
- Where disputes go in your state, step by step
- Your first ninety days on the committee
- How to conduct yourself on a committee, the part no legislation covers
- Checklists, a glossary, and ready-to-adapt wording for motions, minutes and contractor briefs
The Australian Property Handbook
Buying a home instead?
Two plain-English guides for buyers: what to check before you sign, and what the 1 July 2027 tax changes mean for owner-occupiers.
Before You Sign
How to read the strata minutes and financials before you buy, and spot the special levy that is coming. JP found a $15,000 levy in the minutes before buying his own apartment and used it to negotiate the price down.
Before The Rules Change.
What the property tax changes from 1 July 2027 mean if you are buying a home to live in, explained for first home buyers and owner-occupiers.
Questions
Before you click through
Can I buy the books on this website?
No. This site only tells you about the books. They are sold exclusively on Amazon Australia. Every buy button opens the book's page on amazon.com.au, where you can buy the paperback or the Kindle edition.
Why is there a different book for every state?
Because the law is different in every state and territory. The committee has a different name, the funds work differently, the rules are made and registered differently, and disputes go to a different place. A handbook written for another state will steer you wrong on the things that matter most.
Is this legal advice?
No. The books are plain-English explanations of how the system works. Anything that could change, like a dollar figure, a date or a deadline, carries a note saying why it might have moved and exactly who to ask.
Paperback or Kindle?
Whichever suits you. The paperback is handy to bring to meetings and hand around. The Kindle edition is cheaper, arrives instantly, and is included with Kindle Unlimited.
Who wrote them?
JP O'Connor, who has chaired a Gold Coast body corporate committee since 2019 and sits on the committee of a beachfront high-rise at Surfers Paradise. He is not a lawyer or a strata manager, and the books are written for owners, not lawyers.