Confused about what constitutes a ‘Body Corporate’ and what the roles of a Body Corporate Committee and a Body Corporate Manager are?
Let’s explain it.
The Body Corporate
A Body Corporate is formed when subdivided land is registered in order to create a Community Titles Scheme. The individual Scheme can consist of a variety of property styles such as a duplex, high rise apartments, residential unit blocks, or even a commercial block of shops or businesses.
Every owner of a lot within the Scheme is a member of the Body Corporate.
The Body Corporate Committee
A Body Corporate Committee act on behalf of all the owners within the Scheme. In Queensland, a valid committee consists of a minimum three and maximum seven members.
What does the Committee Do?
By law, a Body Corporate must elect a Committee at the Annual General Meeting each year.
There are several roles within the Committee, including Chairperson, Secretary, Treasurer and Ordinary Committee Members.
The Committee has the responsibility to make decisions on behalf of the Body Corporate. They are tasked with a variety of duties of which can include but are certainly not limited to the following:
- Preparation of proposed budgets that are approved at the Annual General Meeting;
- Managing contractors and sourcing quotations;
- Keeping accurate records and financials;
- Liaising with owners;
- Ensuring owners and residents comply with Body Corporate Bylaws;
- Ensuring that the common property of the scheme is being maintained;
- Supervising Caretakers/Building Managers (if the case may be)
Whilst the Committee has the power to act on behalf of the Body Corporate, they are not a power unto themselves.
The Committee must be transparent and act in the best interests of the Body Corporate, with decision making and subsequent resolutions being justifiable to all lot owners.
The Committee does not have the authority to simply spend body corporate funds and must work within a limit of expenditure.
Committee Members act on a voluntary basis only, and are not paid for their time and commitment to the running of the Scheme.
What Is a Body Corporate Administrator?
It is common for a Committee to work in conjunction with a Body Corporate Management company to ensure the administration of the scheme is being run effectively, and is compliant with legislative requirements.
Coordinating meetings, minutes, levies, accounting, safety compliance, insurances and the many other duties that are required to be performed is a lot of work for a volunteer committee. As Body Corporate Managers, Tower Body Corporate helps ensure that everything is done efficiently, quickly and correctly.
See our Body Corporate Services page for a more detailed outline of the many tasks we help with to ensure the Scheme is compliant and the owners interests are looked after.