28/10/2025
A common question that arises - what are Strata Levies?
🏢 Understanding Strata Levies
When you own a lot in a strata scheme, you don’t just own your unit — you share ownership of the building’s common property. Strata levies are how all owners contribute to maintaining and managing that shared property.
💰 What Are Strata Levies?
Strata levies are regular contributions paid by all owners to cover the costs of running and maintaining the building. They’re decided and approved at the Annual General Meeting (AGM) based on the strata budget.
Levies are not optional — they’re set under legislation and are essential to keeping the property insured, safe, and well-maintained.
📏 How Are They Calculated?
Each lot owner pays levies based on their Unit of Entitlement (UE) — this reflects the relative size, value, or proportion of ownership of each unit.
Example: If your unit represents 10% of the scheme’s total entitlement, you’ll pay 10% of the total levies.
🧾 The Two Main Funds
1. Administrative Fund
Covers the day-to-day running costs of the property, such as:
- Cleaning and maintenance of common areas
- Strata management fees (a small portion of the total budget)
- Compliance costs (fire, safety, etc.)
- Common area electricity ⚡️ and water usage
- Pools, lifts, gyms, garage doors, security systems
- Insurance — often the single biggest item
This keeps the building operational and compliant.
2. Capital Works Fun
Used for long-term repairs and replacements — roofs, driveways, lifts, painting, and other big-ticket items.
This fund is planned through a Capital Works Forecast, which is a statutory requirement ensuring the building’s future maintenance is properly funded.
🧮 How It All Comes Together
The annual budget sets out how much money each fund needs for the year.
Levies are then struck (usually quarterly) and invoiced to owners according to their UE.
Paying levies on time ensures the building runs smoothly and remains an asset that holds its value.
✅ In Short
Low levies will often reflect a poorly managed and not well maintained scheme.
Strata levies = your share of keeping the property functional, compliant, and valuable.
They’re fair, structured, and planned — and they protect your investment! 🦸🏻♂️ 🦸♀️
