From 27 October 2025, NSW Fair Trading will begin enforcing new strata maintenance laws. The Common Property Repairs and Maintenance Compliance and Enforcement Policy introduces powerful new tools to hold owners corporations and strata managers accountable for neglected repairs. Your owners corporation must act quickly on maintenance issues. By not documenting decisions or cooperating with investigations, you may face compliance notices, penalties, and possible NCAT orders.
What is the background to the reforms?
Early 2025, the NSW Parliament passed the Strata Schemes Legislation Amendment Act 2025, introducing some of the most significant changes to strata law in years. The reforms aim to strengthen accountability for owners corporations and community associations, ensuring buildings are properly maintained and repaired.
To support these new laws, NSW Fair Trading has released the Common Property Repairs and Maintenance Compliance and Enforcement Policy (October 2025). From 27 October 2025, Fair Trading has expanded powers to investigate and enforce compliance with strata repair and maintenance obligations.
The policy represents a shift from a complaint-based approach to an active compliance model, where NSW Fair Trading can intervene directly to ensure schemes meet their legal duties under section 106 of the Strata Schemes Management Act 2015. Even if a building is under a defects claim, the owners corporation remains responsible for keeping common property in good repair.
What the new compliance powers mean
The Common Property Repairs and Maintenance Compliance and Enforcement Policy expands NSW Fair Trading’s authority to act where schemes fail to meet their repair obligations. The regulator can now:
- Require answers and documents from strata managers, committees, or owners corporations.
- Enter and inspect premises, apply for search warrants, and even open or demolish building work to verify issues.
- Issue enforceable undertakings, compliance notices, and penalty infringement notices.
- Apply to NCAT for orders to compel compliance or appoint a compulsory strata manager.
- Pursue prosecutions for ongoing or serious breaches.
Penalties are substantial. Obstructing or failing to comply with directions can result in fines of up to $22,000, with daily continuing penalties of $2,200 for individuals and strong enforcement action against the strata manager.
How does the new NSW complaint process work?
Fair Trading has introduced a new four-step complaint process to promote early resolution before formal enforcement. The policy includes a flowchart, which can be found on page 4 of the policy . It outlines the stages:
- Raise the issue in writing with the strata committee or managing agent.
- If the issue remains unresolved, submit a motion at a general meeting.
- Apply for mediation through NSW Fair Trading’s Strata Mediation Service.
- If mediation fails, lodge a complaint with Fair Trading.
Once a complaint is lodged, Fair Trading will verify compliance and assess the level of risk. If a breach is identified, the owners corporation may be required to submit an action plan with specific timeframes for rectification. Where non-compliance continues, Fair Trading can escalate to enforcement action.
Urgent complaints involving health or safety risks, such as fire systems, lifts, waterproofing, or structural issues, will be prioritised.
What are the new implications for owners corporations and strata managers?
A stronger duty to act
Owners corporations are now under clear scrutiny. They must address maintenance and repair issues promptly and cannot rely on ongoing disputes or defect claims to delay works. NSW Fair Trading expects schemes to demonstrate how they are fulfilling their section 106 obligations through proactive management and documented planning.
New enforcement risks
Failing to act is a serious matter and can trigger compliance notices, enforceable undertakings, or even prosecution. NCAT orders may also be sought to compel an owners corporation to complete work or to appoint a compulsory strata manager in cases of serious mismanagement.
Public accountability
NSW Fair Trading may publish the details of compliance notices or enforcement actions. This information could appear in public registers, potentially affecting buyer confidence or property values.
Strata managers under the microscope
Strata managers are expected to cooperate with Fair Trading investigations fully. Failure to do so or conduct that hinders investigations can result in disciplinary action, licence suspension, or cancellation under the Property and Stock Agents Act 2002.
Action points for committees and managers
1. Review maintenance registers and prioritise repairs
Owners corporations must show active management of common property maintenance.
- Once a repair issue is reported, Fair Trading expects owners corporations to act within a reasonable timeframe, allowing for complexity, quotes, or special levies.
- Fair Trading may request an action plan outlining the steps and completion deadlines. The owners corporation must then provide progress evidence by the agreed dates.
- If there is no response or follow-through, enforcement action can follow.
Tip: Review and update the maintenance register quarterly to track open issues and ensure evidence of progress.
2. Develop a preventive maintenance plan
A documented preventive maintenance plan demonstrates compliance readiness and reduces enforcement risk.
- Schemes with structured inspection schedules and documented risk management are illustrating compliance with the new legislation.
- As Fair Trading will prioritise health or safety concerns, focus on high-risk areas such as waterproofing, lifts, and fire safety.
Tip: Keep service records, reports, and invoices as evidence of ongoing maintenance.
3. Document and maintain clear records
Transparency and record management are at the heart of the new compliance policy. Owners corporations must be able to show not only that decisions about repairs are being made, but also that accurate, accessible records exist to prove compliance if NSW Fair Trading investigates.
- Record every discussion and decision about repairs in meeting minutes. Keep correspondence, expert reports, and quotes. If a compliance notice is issued, note the required stages of completion and provide proof of progress before the notice can be revoked.
- Keep all supporting materials, including photos, invoices, engineering reports, and maintenance logs, in one central location. This ensures the owners corporation can easily produce evidence if requested by NSW Fair Trading.
- The regulator can request records or written answers from committee members or managers. Failing to provide these without a reasonable excuse is an offence under the legislation and can attract penalties of up to $11,000 for corporations. Fair Trading also has the power to enter premises, inspect records, or conduct interviews to verify compliance.
Tip: Store all records digitally in a secure, well-organised system that allows quick access to decisions, communications, and proof of completed work. Maintaining detailed, accessible documentation protects the scheme from enforcement action and helps resolve disputes more quickly.
4. Ensure communication channels are open
Lot owners should have a clear process to report maintenance issues.
- Committees and strata managers are expected to acknowledge and investigate written repair requests promptly.
- Safety-related issues (such as water ingress, fire safety, or mould) should be treated as urgent and prioritised.
Tip: Maintain a shared digital log or central email address for all repair requests and keep owners updated on progress.
5. Familiarise yourself with mediation and complaint pathways
The complaint process provides multiple chances to resolve disputes before escalation:
- Raise the issue internally.
- Submit a motion at a general meeting.
- Apply for Fair Trading’s Mediation Service.
- Lodge a formal complaint if mediation fails.
While no fixed deadlines apply, urgent cases will receive faster mediation scheduling.
Tip: Keep a detailed timeline of all communications and mediation attempts.
What if you are an owner with defects and the committee won’t act?
For individual lot owners facing defects where the committee refuses to act, this policy represents a major shift in how help can be sought. Previously, owners were often left to pursue lengthy and expensive applications to the NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal (NCAT) on their own. Under the new framework, NSW Fair Trading now has direct enforcement powers to step in when an owners corporation fails to meet its legal duty to maintain and repair common property.
If an owner reports a defect and the committee ignores it, Fair Trading can investigate whether the owners corporation has breached section 106 of the Strata Schemes Management Act 2015. Where the regulator finds non-compliance, it can compel the owners corporation to prepare and complete an action plan, issue compliance notices with clear deadlines, or take stronger steps such as enforceable undertakings, penalty notices, or NCAT applications for orders or compulsory management.
This gives owners a formal escalation pathway that does not depend solely on committee cooperation. While owners should still first report issues in writing and try internal resolution or mediation, the policy ensures that ongoing inaction, particularly where defects affect health, safety, or liveability, can now trigger regulatory intervention. In short, the new law gives owners a safety net: if their committee will not act, NSW Fair Trading can.
What to prepare: keep a dated log of defects and impacts, photos, expert notes, copies of motions and minutes, emails to and from the manager or committee, and any mediation documents. These will help Fair Trading assess your complaint and determine appropriate action.
Looking ahead
From 27 October 2025, NSW Fair Trading will no longer rely solely on owner complaints to act. The regulator will actively monitor and enforce strata repair obligations, using its expanded powers to ensure compliance.
For committees and strata managers, the message is clear: failing to maintain common property is now a compliance breach with real enforcement consequences.
Owners corporations that plan, document, and act proactively will be well placed to meet these new expectations and avoid intervention.
Link to the policy document: Common Property Repairs and Maintenance Compliance and Enforcement Policy
The LookUpStrata TeamThis post appears in Strata News #768.
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Read next:- NSW: Navigating the Strata Schemes Legislation Amendment Bill 2025
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- NSW: Water Leaks, Defects and Disputes in Strata Buildings
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