What is a Body Corporate?

A body corporate is made up of a collective of unit owners, within a unit title development. Unit titles are a common form of ownership of a multi-unit complex and can include properties like apartments, townhouses, car parks, industrial units, and commercial offices.

If you are the owner of a unit, you'll be a member of your body corporate, as will your fellow unit owners. Because the ownership structure is different to that of more traditional house and land setups, the rights and responsibilities also differ. Decisions about certain aspects of the units and common property are made by the owners, who work as a collective.

Every unit title development has a body corporate, which is setup when the development is being constructed. This is usually done by the developer.

The body corporate is a legal entity and is bound by the Unit Titles Act 2010 (the Act).

What does the body corporate actually do?

The body corporate is responsible for a variety of financial, management and administrative tasks. This can include a range of things, but they must:

  • Hold an Annual General Meeting (AGM)
  • Maintain and repair the common areas
  • Organise the building insurance
  • Create and run a long-term maintenance plan
  • Elect a Chairperson
  • Make sure the body corporate operational rules are enforced
  • Provide key documents to unit owners
  • Levy contributions on owners to fund the operation of the body corporate

Want help managing your body corporate?

Talk to our experienced team today

The role of a body corporate manager

Hiring a professional manager can take the stress out of running the various administrative functions that a body corporate is responsible for. They provide:

Peace of mind - by taking on the more complicated tasks of managing a body corporate, so members don’t have to

  • Local expertise - detailed knowledge of asset management, insurance, health and safety, compliance, financial management
  • Unbiased and independent support - to resolve disputes quickly and help members reach agreement
  • Access to specialised services and support networks

How we can help

Barfoot & Thompson Body Corporate has a wealth of experience in body corporate management, a dedicated team, and a range academic experts to call on - so that you don’t need to be an expert.

We work closely with property owners, chairpersons and body corporate committees to improve and protect client investments. We provide independent and unbiased advice and support, and we work collectively to resolve disputes and disagreements. We’ll also take care of all the tricky stuff like levy collection, so you don’t have to.