I live in a mixed-use strata property. Commercial office owners own their car park space which they use or rent out. Retail and commercial owners pay different levies based on allocation not entitlements. Car park maintenance is not budgeted for annually, but it comes out of cleaning, electricity, pest control etc which are budgeted. I understand car park cleaning is $20000 per year but is not in the budget. Can retail owners who do not own car spaces request commercials owners to pay for car park maintenance? – Roman, QLD

Q: I live in a mixed-use strata property. Commercial office owners own their car park space which they use or rent out. Retail and commercial owners pay different levies based on allocation not entitlements. Car park maintenance is not budgeted for annually, but it comes out of cleaning, electricity, pest control etc which are budgeted. I understand car park cleaning is $20000 per year but is not in the budget. Can retail owners who do not own car spaces request commercials owners to pay for car park maintenance?

A: It’s recommended that you refer to your by-laws and CTS (Community Title Scheme) document. This will give you an understanding of how levies and fees are structured for your scheme.

If you believe the levies and fees to be unfair – in terms of not owning parking spaces yet still being required to pay, we’d suggest you contact your body corporate manager or the commercial landlord. Based on the case you present the situation could possibly be reviewed for an amendment.