Important updates to NSW strata laws

On October 27, 2025 the next phase of the NSW Government’s strata law reforms will take place. These important changes are designed to strengthen fairness, transparency and accountability across our strata communities.

At Bright & Duggan, we welcome these reforms and remain committed to supporting you every step of the way. Our role goes beyond compliance. We are here to help you navigate change with clarity, advocate for best-practice standards, and foster thriving, well-informed communities.

Supporting owners in financial hardship

The reforms introduce new measures to ensure compassionate and consistent support for owners experiencing financial difficulty:

• All strata levy notices must now include a Financial Hardship Information Statement.
• Owners can request payment plans using a standardised form.
• Strata committees must respond within 28 days and provide written reasons if a request is declined.
• No fees can be charged to an individual lot owner for entering or participating in a payment plan.
• Debt recovery cannot proceed if an owner is complying with their plan.
• Owners Corporations must provide 30 days’ notice before initiating debt recovery.

How we are supporting you:

We have updated our levy notices to include the required hardship statement and our team is here to assist you through the process. If you or someone in your community needs assistance, our easy-to-use financial relief forms are available at <insert link>.

Enhancing building manager accountability

Building managers now have clearer responsibilities to act in the best interests of owners corporations:

• Prompt reporting of safety and maintenance issues, along with proposed solutions.
• Full disclosure of any financial relationships or benefits received from suppliers.
• The NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal (NCAT) now has the authority to terminate or vary agreements if a manager acts unlawfully.

How we are supporting you:

We encourage committees to review their building manager agreements and performance regularly. If you have any concerns, please speak with your committee or your Bright & Duggan strata manager—we are here to help you assess and take appropriate steps.

Fair Trading Compliance powers for common property repairs

NSW Fair Trading now has expanded powers to investigate and enforce action on unresolved maintenance and repair issues.

How we are supporting you:

Continue reporting any common property concerns to your committee or strata manager. If issues remain unresolved, please contact your Bright & Duggan manager directly. We will help escalate the matter and, if necessary, support you through the NSW Fair Trading process.

If you have any questions or need further information, please feel free to reach out to us here or contact your strata manager directly.