Queensland body corporate terminology made easy

Body corporate keywords and phrases for property owners in Queensland

Body corporate

A body corporate is a legal entity created by subdividing a property into lots, and being registered under under the Land Title Act 1994.

Bodies corporate establish a community titles scheme, which allows lot or unit owners to share common property and facilities with other owners and occupiers.

The body corporate has the power to carry out a range of duties, including managing and maintaining common property, deciding on levy amounts and making and enforcing by-laws.

Body corporate manager

A body corporate manager provides administrative services to the body corporate (property owners).

Body corporate property

A body corporate property is a parcel of land with a building (or buildings). Individuals own a part of the property, referred to as a lot. They may have common areas such as driveways, pathways, fences, external walls and roof.
A body corporate property has at least two lots. Residents and commercial businesses can use these lots. Lots can be a vertical block of units (high-rise). They can also be all on the one level such as townhouses or commercial offices.

Building Format Plan (BFP)

A Building Format Plan (BFP) is a subdivision of multi-storey complexes (vertical developments). Most BFP’s are a subdivision such as apartment buildings.

Community titles scheme

A community titles scheme is a title of land that allows you to privately own an area of land or part of a building. It also allows you to share common facilities with other owners and occupiers.

Community Management Statement (CMS)

A Community Management Statement (CMS) describes the rules for living in a body corporate property. It specifies the by-laws and regular models relating to the property. It also outlines the common property, exclusive use areas, and who pays for what.

Contribution schedule

A contribution schedule is one of two components that make up the lot entitlement schedule, which is recorded in your scheme’s community management statement.

The contributing schedule is used to calculate the following:

• • How much each owner must contribute to body corporate costs
  • How many votes each owner is entitled to when voting on an ordinary resolution

Contravention notice

A contravention notice is a document that details an owner or resident’s breach of by-laws and requests the person responsible to fix the issue.

The notice must state the body corporate believes the person is breaching a by-law, detail the by-law that is being breached, explain how the by-law is being breached and set a time period to fix the breach or provide a warning not to breach the by-law again.

Committee code of conduct

A committee code of conduct is a set of rules for committee members, which outline how to act in the best interests of the body corporate. Schedule 1A of the Body Corporate and Community Management Scheme Act 1997 outlines how a body corporate committee must adopt a committee code of conduct. The code of conduct will generally state committee members must act honestly and fairly, must disclose conflicts of interest, must not cause a nuisance, and must comply with body corporate legislation.

Fire safety installations

Fire safety installations are important for body corporate committees. These include structural features such as:

• • • fire windows
    • fire doors
    • dampers
    • fire protection systems such as sprinklers
    • stairwell pressurisation systems
    • firefighting equipment such as fire extinguishers, hydrants, and reels,
    • occupant safety features such as fire signage and emergency lighting, and
    • other services such as vehicle access.

Interest schedule

An interest schedule is a type of lot entitlement schedule. It is used to calculate each owners’ share of common property and body corporate assets if the scheme ends due to being sold in its entirety (usually for the purpose of redevelopment), and for calculating each lot’s local government rates and charges.

Office of the Commissioner for Body Corporate and Community Management

The Office of the Commissioner for Body Corporate and Community Management is the governing body for people living, investing or working community title schemes in Queensland. It provides information and dispute resolution services.

Occupiers Statement

An Occupiers Statement is a summary of testing and maintenance performed. This testing is undertaken on building fire systems.

Ordinary resolution

An ordinary resolution is a resolution of votes for and against a motion. A committee passes a motion when the for votes counted are more than the against votes counted.

Majority resolution

A majority resolution is a resolution of votes for and against a motion. A committee decides a motion by majority when more than 50% of the owners entitled to vote, vote a particular way. Each lot is only allowed to cast one vote for this type of resolution, and proxy voting is not allowed.

Standard Format Plan (SFP)

A Standard Format Plan (SFP) outlines the boundaries for horizontal developments. Townhouse complexes are horizontal developments. Gated communities with a building and a yard are also horizontal developments. Distances, bearings and structural elements of a building define their boundaries.

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