Most residents never attend an AGM and have no idea who is making decisions about their levy money. Here is what a body corporate is, what it can and cannot do, and what your rights are as an owner or tenant.
If you own or rent in a sectional title complex, a body corporate is making decisions that affect your daily life. They set your levy amount. They enforce conduct rules. They decide whether the roof gets fixed this year or next. Yet most residents have never attended an AGM, never read the conduct rules, and have no idea who the trustees are.
This is your plain-language guide to how they work, what they can and cannot do, and what leverage you actually have.
What a body corporate is
When a sectional title scheme is registered, all the owners of units in that scheme automatically become members of the body corporate. There is no joining process. You buy a unit, you are a member.
The body corporate is a legal entity. It can own property (the common areas), enter into contracts (security companies, managing agents, insurers), and sue or be sued. It is governed by the Sectional Titles Schemes Management Act (STSMA) of 2011 and the associated Prescribed Management Rules.
Who actually runs it: trustees
The body corporate appoints trustees at the AGM to run day-to-day operations between meetings. Trustees are typically owners in the scheme, though in some cases the managing agent or an external professional may hold a trustee position.
The number of trustees is set in the scheme's management rules. Most small to medium schemes have three to five. They serve without pay in most cases.
Your right
Any owner in a sectional title scheme can stand for election as a trustee at the AGM. If you are unhappy with how the scheme is being managed, attending the AGM and standing for election is the most direct form of influence available to you.
What trustees can and cannot do
Trustees have broad authority to act on behalf of the body corporate within defined limits. They can approve routine maintenance, manage contractors, enforce conduct rules, and make decisions up to a financial threshold set in the scheme rules.
Trustees cannot, without a special or unanimous resolution of owners:
- Raise a special levy above the threshold defined in the management rules without owner approval
- Make major alterations to common property
- Sell or encumber common property
- Waive a levy debt without authorisation
- Change the conduct rules or management rules unilaterally
The conduct rules: what they actually cover
Conduct rules govern how residents use their units and the common areas. They are distinct from the management rules, which govern how the body corporate itself operates.
Common conduct rule provisions include: pet restrictions (size, number, species), noise restrictions and quiet hours, parking allocation and visitor parking rules, move-in and renovation procedures, waste disposal, and use of communal facilities like pools and gyms.
Tenants note
As a tenant, you are bound by the conduct rules of the scheme even though you are not a member of the body corporate. Your landlord is legally responsible for ensuring you comply. A copy of the conduct rules should be provided to you before you sign a lease. If it was not, ask for it before occupation.
Levy enforcement: what happens if you do not pay
The body corporate has strong legal remedies for unpaid levies. Levy debt carries the status of a preferential claim against the unit, meaning a buyer takes on the risk of historical levy debt if it is not cleared at transfer. Transfer attorneys are required to obtain a levy clearance certificate confirming all levies are current before registering a transfer.
For persistent non-payers, the body corporate can apply to the Community Schemes Ombud Service (CSOS) or to court for judgment and execution against the debtor.
The Community Schemes Ombud Service (CSOS)
The CSOS is the dispute resolution body for sectional title and homeowner association disputes in South Africa. It handles complaints from owners, tenants, and bodies corporate about conduct rule violations, levy disputes, maintenance failures, and governance issues.
Filing a CSOS complaint is a low-cost process relative to court litigation. If you have a legitimate dispute with your body corporate and internal resolution has failed, the CSOS is the correct route before involving attorneys.
Published March 5, 2026