Annual general meetings

The annual general meeting (AGM) of an owners corporation is the ideal opportunity for you to have a say on essential matters such as finances, insurance, and electing which committee members will make decisions on your behalf for the following year. Legislation requires additional information to be included on the AGM notice to draw attention to important matters that can impact your property.

The legislation that governs AGMs is the Strata Schemes Management Act 2015. Below we have listed some of the key legislative requirements that should be met in regards to AGMs.

Key things to note

• Notices of the AGM must be provided to all property owners and all tenants at least 7 days prior to the meeting.
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• The owners corporation can vote to hold their AGM meeting at any time during their financial year.
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• Should 25 per cent of owners who are entitled to vote not be present within 30 minutes of the AGM commencing, the chairperson may adjourn the meeting or declare those present to be a quorum.
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• Under certain requirements, voting on matters may be conducted by secret ballot.
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• There will be a maximum of one proxy per person for property under 20 lots and for properties greater than 20 lots a person cannot hold proxies for more than 5 per cent of the total number of lots in the property. This is a measure to curb ‘proxy farming’.
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• Only one co-owner of the same lot may be elected to the strata committee.
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• A sole owner of a lot may not nominate more than one person to the strata committee unless they own more than one lot, in which case they have one nomination for each lot owned.
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• An explanatory note of no more than 300 words is required when requesting a motion to be placed on a general meeting agenda.
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• Motions must be included on debt recovery management, annual fire safety checks, agent commissions and training services, as well as an estimate of any commissions expected to be received in the next 12 months (financial year).
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• Whether you have paid up your levies to date or not, as an owner you can propose a motion for a general meeting.
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• Owners in large strata properties are to receive a copy of the minutes of general meetings only if they request them within 14 days of the meeting.
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• The owners corporation may approve other means of voting at meetings by passing a resolution, such as voting in person or by proxy.