Strata records can reveal how levies are spent, whether major repairs are planned and how a scheme is being
managed. In NSW, eligible people have a statutory right to inspect these records. Understanding how to make a
valid request helps owners exercise that right and buyers investigate a property before committing to a purchase.
A strata lot is defined by its registered strata plan, so the precise boundaries between a lot and common property
must be checked. All lot owners form the owners corporation, which manages the scheme, including its
common property and records.

Who can inspect strata records?

Section 182 of the Strata Schemes Management Act 2015 gives inspection rights to a lot owner, mortgagee or
covenant chargee, and to a person they authorise. A prospective buyer ordinarily needs the seller’s authority,
which can be arranged through the selling agent. A tenant does not have an automatic right under section 182
simply because they live in the scheme.

Making a request and paying the fee

The request must be made by written notice to the owners corporation and accompanied by the prescribed fee.
We recommend identifying the lot and strata plan, listing the records and date ranges sought, and including
evidence of authority where someone is acting on another person’s behalf. Send the request to the secretary or
strata managing agent acting for the owners corporation.

The current prescribed inspection fees, including GST, are:

Person inspecting	First hour	Each additional half hour or part
Owner, mortgagee or covenant chargee	$31	$16
Person authorized by an owner, mortgagee or covenant chargee	$60	$30

The same statutory fees apply to inspections in person and by electronic means. A professional strata searcher’s
fee for preparing a report is separate from the prescribed inspection fee.

Which records can be inspected

The records available under section 182 include:
i. The strata roll, meeting minutes and scheme correspondence, including emails.
ii. Financial statements and retained accounting records, including levy records, invoices and bank statements.
iii. Current insurance policies and receipts for the latest premiums.
iv. Any applicable 10-year capital works fund plan.
v. The strata managing agent’s appointment, building manager agreements and service agreement particulars.
vi. Plans, certificates and other documents required to be handed over before the first annual general meeting.

Section 182(3)(j) also covers other records or documents in the owners corporation’s custody or under its
control. Where inspection duties have been delegated to a strata managing agent, clause 42 of the Strata
Schemes Management Regulation 2016 extends access to accounting and other scheme records kept by that
agent.

The statutory right concerns access to records. It does not require the owners corporation to prepare a
professional strata inspection report for the person making the request.

How and when inspection takes place?

Section 183 allows inspection in person, through secure electronic access or by another agreed or fixed means.
If the parties do not agree within three days after receipt of the request, the owners corporation must immediately issue written notice fixing the inspection arrangements. Where it fixes an appointment, the time
must be between 9 am and 8 pm and the date no later than ten days after receipt. The notice may instead specify
a means of inspection.

You may take extracts or make copies, but must not remove original documents from the owners corporation’s
custody without consent. Records required to be kept that are created from 11 June 2024 must be kept
electronically.

The Abraham decision

In Abraham v The Owners Strata Plan No. 61419 [2021] NSWCATCD 7, NCAT required access to maintenance
records, registers and records held in the Mybos computer system. Records the building manager was
contractually required to maintain and make available to the owners corporation fell within the inspection
obligation.

The decision shows why access may extend to records held by a building manager rather than at the strata
manager’s office. It also has limits. NCAT declined to order production of a register that did not exist and held
that an order requiring ongoing monthly reports to owners fell outside section 188

Restrictions on disclosure

Records revealing how an owner voted in a secret ballot must not be disclosed unless NCAT or a court directs
otherwise.

Legal professional privilege may also protect documents from inspection. In BlueHouseCoffs Pty Ltd v The
Owners Strata Plan No 61419 [2023] NSWCATCD 145, NCAT declined to compel access to privileged
documents concerning a dispute between the owners corporation and the requesting lot owner. Privilege requires assessment of the particular documents and circumstances.

What to do if access is refused ?

Keep your request, proof of payment, any authorisation and the response. If records appear to be missing,
identify them clearly and ask for a written explanation.

Under section 188, NCAT may order an owners corporation, strata managing agent, officer or former strata
managing agent to supply information or make records available where they have been wrongfully withheld and
the applicant is entitled to them. A records inspection application is exempt from compulsory prior mediation
under section 227(4)(g). Other relief sought may have different requirements.

An application should identify the records sought, explain the applicant’s entitlement and provide evidence of
the request and refusal or failure to provide access. Evidence that particular records exist and have not been
made available can be important, as BlueHouseCoffs illustrates.

How Pannu Lawyers can assist?

At Pannu Lawyers, we can advise on your inspection rights, help prepare a request and assess the options where
access is refused. If you are buying a strata property, we can also review the strata report with you and explain
issues that may affect your purchase.

This article provides general information as at 13 October 2026. Advice should be obtained for your particular
circumstances