This article is from the Australian Property Journal archive
NEW reforms are set to make it easier for the Queensland Government to sell or redevelop community title schemes.
The reforms to body corporate legislation were discussed in the October 2022 housing summit in Queensland.
Current legislation prevents termination of community title schemes unless it’s unopposed by the owner or the District Court allows it.
Proposed changes to this means that a title scheme can be terminated when 75% of lot owners support it. This is where the body corporate agrees that termination is more beneficial financially rather than maintenance or remediation of the scheme.
Any other situation still requires that no owner contests the decision to terminate the scheme.
There are other reforms to the legislation set to come in place in addition to these changes.
Body corporates will have the ability to introduce laws preventing people from smoking in outdoor and communal areas of a CT scheme.
Pet owners are also looked after in the reforms, with bodies corporate prevented from banning pets in community title schemes except for special circumstances.
Attorney-General Shannon Fentiman says there was a clear desire for reforms in this area of legislation for the Queensland Government.
“Stakeholders made it clear at the Queensland Housing Summit that scheme termination was a key area that required reform – and the Palaszczuk Government has listened,” the Attorney-General said.
“I’ve heard many stories of rundown units, townhouses or complexes with unsustainable ongoing maintenance costs where owners want to terminate, but a single owner blocks this from occurring.”
“The Government recognises that some owners may not wish to sell their unit or move to a new home so termination arrangements must balance the rights and interests of all lot owners in a scheme.”
Consultation on the draft legislation will begin this year with a second package of body corporate reforms to be introduced later this year.
“We are delivering on our commitment to consult on changes to Queensland’s community titles legislation and will continue working with the Community Titles Legislation Working Group to consider further reforms, like management rights, bullying and harassment,” Fentiman added.
