STA Glossary of terms

Address for service

An address of a place within Australia and an optional electronic address. This where all official correspondence to the strata company will go.

Administrative fund

Money held by the strata company for day to day recurrent expenses. The amount in it must be enough to pay expenses such as the cost of looking after common property, the payment of insurance premiums and general recurrent costs.

Annual General Meeting

A meeting of the strata company which is held once in each year with not more than 15 months elapsing between the date of one annual general meeting and that of the next.

Authorised Deposit-taking Institutions

Authorised Deposit-taking Institutions (ADIs) are corporations which are authorised under the Banking Act 1959; which includes banks, building societies and credit unions

Building scheme

Is a scheme where lots are defined with upper and lower boundaries as well as lateral boundaries, with at least part of each lot defined by reference to a building shown on the scheme plan.

Building schemes can only be created at tier 1 and tier 2 levels of community schemes

By-Laws

Is a rule established by the strata company to regulate itself, as allowed or provided for by the STA. See also Schedule 1 By-Law and Schedule 2 By-Law. A by-law may prescribe for example, if pets may be kept, or who is required to take responsibility for specific areas of common property.

Capital value

Is the capital amount which an estate of fee simple in the land might reasonably be expected to realise upon sale.

[Valuation of Land Act 1978 Sect 4]

Caveat

A warning to a person searching the original Certificate of Title that there is a claim lodged on the Title to the Land, which may prohibit the Registrar of Titles from registering a dealing upon the Title.

1. A notification of a claim related to land that may have the effect of an injunction to stop a Registration in a Torrens Title Register.

Certificate of Title

A document issued by Landgate to evidence the ownership of a defined land parcel and the lodged or registered interests or claims (encumbrance) affecting the land.

Common property

Common land and facilities in a strata scheme that all strata owners can use.

Consolidation

Consolidation refers to the combining of two or more lots within a strata schemes.

Deposited plan

This is a plan of subdivision (A2 or A3 size) in relation to Crown or freehold land that has been deposited with Landgate under the TLA & LAA.

Disposition statement

A statement used to restructure the ownership of lots in a strata scheme when the strata scheme is affected by for example a plan of re-subdivision. It details the act of granting a tenure or an interest in land, or reserving or dedicating Crown land.

DPLH

The Department of Planning, Lands and Heritage has state wide responsibility for the planning for future communities. See also, WAPC.

Easement

An encumbrance over land that attaches certain rights in favour of another parcel of land, lot within a strata scheme or government agency subject to certain conditions. Easements run with the land and are not confined to a certain proprietor. They can be created by deed, resumption, or under statutory provisions on a deposited plan or Strata/Survey-Strata Plan or can be implied. They can also be created to the benefit of government instrumentalities (called an easement in gross) or between lots (sometimes called a reciprocal easement).

EGM

Extraordinary General Meeting

Encumbrance

A burden or claim on property such as a mortgage.

Exclusive use

Shutting out all others from a part or a share, for example where a parking bay is common property but is designated to be used exclusively by a particular proprietor.

Expiry day for the scheme

The day after which a leasehold scheme no longer exists and which is initially calculated as being the registration date plus the leasehold term.

Extraordinary General Meeting

A meeting of the strata company which is held in addition to the AGM.

Freehold Title

The evidence of tenure of real property by which an estate of inheritance for life is held. Compare leasehold.

Gross Rental Value

The gross annual rental that the land might reasonably be expected to realise if let on a tenancy from year to year upon condition that the landlord were liable for all rates, taxes and other charges thereon and the insurance and other outgoings necessary to maintain the value of the land.

Leasehold by-laws

Leasehold by-laws are by-laws of a leasehold scheme that provide for postponement of the expiry date of the scheme and / or for compensation payable on the expiry of the scheme. The by-laws must have the consent of the owner of a leasehold scheme and must have Planning Commission approval.

Leasehold scheme

A strata scheme where lots are held via leasehold and the lessor is the fee simple owner. The strata can be either survey-strata or built strata schemes.

• there is a separate title for the parcel subdivided by the scheme; and
• each lot in the scheme is a leasehold lot subject to a strata lease; and
• the scheme expires on a specified day (the expiry day for the scheme)

Leasehold strata title

A statutory form of tenure permitting certificates of title to be issued for leasehold interests in a lot defined in a strata plan or survey-strata plan.

Lessee

An individual or a corporation who has the right of use of something of value, gained through a lease agreement with the real owner of the property.

Lot lessor

The owner of a property that is leased.

Levy

Raising or collecting money by authority. In the case of strata schemes the collecting of money for the use on common property.

Lot

A distinct portion or piece of land, usually defined by a plan registered with Landgate.

Market value

What the property would receive if sold on the open market.

Mortgage

The security registered over a certificate of title when a lending institution lends money to assist in the purchase of land.

Mortgagee

The person or institution that lends money to a borrower to support the purchase of land and who registers a mortgage as a form of security.

Notifiable variations

Notifiable variation in relation to vendor disclosure refers to a variation listed under s69C i.e. the variation of a by-law, service agreement, the plan, unit entitlement or lease, license, right or privilege over the common property which occurs after the parties have contracted but before settlement.

Occupancy permit

Form 12 as provided for by the Building Act 2011 section 50

Office bearers

Someone who holds office, in this case someone who has volunteered and accepted as being a member of the Council of the strata company.

Office of State Revenue

The section of the Department of Finance which administers revenue laws and grant and subsidiary schemes in a fair and efficient manner for the community.

One stop shop

Colloquialism for a business office where multiple services are provided and a customer need only go to the "one shop" for all their needs.

Original owner

An original owner of the parcel is the party selling the lot either

• Before the plan is registered (off-the-plan), or
• Before the Strata Company has held its first Annual General Meeting (AGM), or
• Who still owns at least 50% of the lots in the scheme or 50% of the unit entitlement in the scheme.

Original proprietor

See Original Owner.

In a leasehold strata scheme an original proprietor will be a person who is entitled to a leasehold estate in all the lots in the scheme, immediately after the plan for the scheme is registered.

Outline termination proposal

A brief description of what the termination of a scheme will entail and what will replace that scheme. This is the precursor to a Termination Proposal once the proprietors have agreed to consider the termination.

Owner

• of a freehold scheme, means a person who is registered under the Transfer of Land Act 1893 as the proprietor of an estate in fee simple in the lot
• of a leasehold strata scheme means the owner of the freehold reversion in the land i.e. the underlying freehold parcel
• of a lot in a leasehold strata scheme is the person who is registered as the proprietor of the lot

Owner of a leasehold scheme

Owner of a leasehold scheme means the owner of the freehold reversion in the land i.e. the underlying freehold parcel

Owners corporation

Also called the strata company and sometimes the body corporate. In a community title scheme it is the community corporation.

Plan

A drawing made to scale to represent the top view or a horizontal cut of a structure or parcel of land.

Planning instrument

A legal document specifying compliance or otherwise with planning guidelines.

Proponent

Person or group proposing a termination. They must be a lot owner, the owner of a leasehold scheme , or a contracted buy of a lot in the scheme.

Proxy

The agency of a person deputed to act for another.

Quorum

The number of members of a body required to be present to transact business legally. This may be expressed as a percentage of the whole body or a fixed number.

Rates

Amounts charged by local government or state agencies in relation to land and which may encumber a property.

Register

The land titles Register maintained under legislation in each state to record information about parcels or land or strata lots, including names of owners and any interests or dealings affecting the titles.

Registrar of Titles

The person who is the official recorder of land titles. Within Western Australia this is a position held within Landgate.

Registration date

Date on which the scheme documents are registered.

REIWA

Real Estate Institute of WA; a member-owned, not for profit organisation representing over 1,100 agencies and more than 80 per cent of operating real estate agents in WA.

REIWA contract

Joint Form of General Conditions / Contract for Sale of Land or Strata title by Offer and Acceptance.

Reserve fund

A fund established by a strata corporation to accumulate money to meet contingent expenses, other than those of a routine nature. The amount is generally collected via a Special Levy.

Resolution

A formal determination or decision by an assembly. In regard to strata schemes this particularly applies to general meetings.

Resolution without dissent

Is passed if the owners or their proxies of at least half of the units, and who have at least half of the unit entitlements, vote on the resolution and no owner votes against it.

Restricted use property

Scheme property where exclusive use and enjoyment, or special privileges, have been conferred on a number of proprietors, or schemes if in the context of a community title scheme. (i.e, it is like exclusive common property, but is for the use of more than one person).

SCA (WA)

Strata Community Australia WA: is an affiliate representing Strata Community Australia in Western Australia. SCA (WA) supports the Western Australian strata sector.

Schedule 1 by-laws

Standard by-laws defined in the amended STA covering the governance of the body corporate. Any additions or changes to Schedule 1 by-laws require resolution without dissent.

Schedule 2 by-laws

Standard by-laws defined in the STA generally covering the conduct of the residents and proprietors of the strata scheme. Any additions or changes to Schedule 2 by-laws require special resolution.

Schedule of unit entitlements

A table which relates each lot in a scheme with its allotted unit entitlement and also shows the aggregate (total) of all the unit entitlements in the scheme. It is one of the scheme documents.

• Scheme Documents
• Scheme documents are:
• a scheme notice
• a scheme plan
• a schedule of unit entitlements
• scheme by-laws
• and for a leasehold scheme a strata lease for each lot

Scheme name

The name of a registered scheme which is acceptable to the Registrar

Scheme notice

A scheme notice must specify the name of the scheme and specify the address for services. For a leasehold scheme the notice must identify that the scheme is leasehold and specify the expiry day of the scheme.

Scheme plan

Scheme plan for a strata titles scheme means the strata plan or survey-strata plan registered, or proposed to be registered, for the strata titles scheme as a scheme document.

Seller

Refers to the seller of a lot and is sometimes referred to as the vendor

Service diagram

A sheet of the Community Plan showing the location of existing service lines and pipes for installed services in the scheme.

Simple majority

Where the quorum for the meeting is met, those voting in favour are greater than 50% of those entitled to vote at that meeting.

Single tier strata scheme

Strata scheme where the lots are side by side i.e. not a multi-story block of units.

Sinking fund

see Reserve Fund.

Site value

Site Value of land means the capital amount that an estate of fee simple in the land might reasonably be expected to realise upon sale assuming that any improvements to the land, other than merged improvements, had not been made and, in the case of land that is reserved for a public purpose, assuming that the land may continue to be used for any purpose for which it is being used or could be used at the date of valuation.

Special levy

An amount of money prescribed by the strata company to be paid by each proprietor to be expended on non-routine expenses. The amount prescribed is in proportion to the unit entitlements of the respective strata lots and the total is generally held in a Reserve Fund.

• see levy

Special lot

A special lot is one where exclusive use of, or special privileges over, common property has been granted to the owners of that lot.

Special resolution

A special resolution is passed if those lot owners or other persons entitled to vote and vote in favour of a resolution have no less than 50% of the lots in the scheme or when a poll is requested, have no less than 50% of the unit entitlement in the scheme. Those who vote against the resolution do not have 25% or more of the unit entitlement in the scheme or 25% of lots in the scheme. This varies for schemes with less than 6 lots.

A new definition of special resolution will apply to community schemes. A special resolution in a community scheme requires 75 per cent of its members to vote in favour. The members of the scheme may be either lot owners or member schemes.

STA

Strata Titles Act 1985

Staged development

Where a Strata Scheme is developed over a period of time and the strata titles are issued progressively

Staged development by-laws

Staged development by-laws of a strata tiles scheme are by-laws that apply as if they were an agreement by the strata company about development of the scheme in stages.

Stamp duty

A tax imposed on numerous acquisitions including real estate. All transfers of land, or sales of property, (with some exceptions) attract a duty which needs to be paid within 30 days of the settlement.

State Administrative Tribunal

This tribunal deals with a broad range of administrative, commercial and personal matters. These matters span human rights, vocational regulation, commercial and civil disputes, and development and resources issues.

Statutory easement

An easement automatically created upon the registration or approval of a subdivisional plan of survey in Landgate. They are endorsed on a Deposited Plan, Strata Plan or Survey Strata Plan lodged in Landgate. All other types of easements are created by the registration of documents. The key types of Statutory Easements created under Legislation are section 167 P&D Act, section 5D STA and section 136 TLA while others do exist.

Strata company

The strata company comes into existence automatically on the registration of the strata/survey-strata plan when the titles are issued. All owners of lots on the strata/survey-strata plan are automatically members of the strata company.

Strata conversion

The conversion of an existing strata scheme into a survey-strata scheme.

Strata council

Is the council elected by the lot proprietors to manage the scheme for the benefit of all proprietors. The council varies in size depending on the number of lots in the scheme. In small schemes all the registered proprietors may form the strata council.

Strata lease

Strata lease for a lot in a leasehold scheme means the lease registered, or proposed to be registered, for the lots a scheme document

Strata lease document

Contains the conditions of the strata lease as an agreement between the OLS and the lessee (STA 1985 (amended 2018)) 52.

Strata manager

A person engaged to carry out some of the duties of the strata company. They are instructed and controlled by the strata company.

In the new legislation a strata manager will be a person engaged to take on the duties and powers of the strata company for a fee.

Strata plan

The mechanism for creating strata schemes and strata titles under the Strata Titles Act 1985 as Amended. Strata plans define the lots in a strata scheme (areas owned individually) and common property (areas owned jointly by all lot owners in the strata scheme). Strata lots are limited in height and depth (the stratum of the lot). Strata plans show a building on at least one lot of the strata plan and stratum of the lots is always linked to buildings shown on the plan.

Strata scheme

Sometimes referred to as just Strata, is the combination of land ownership, management and governance, and legal documentation involved in the subdivision of land into strata title.

Strata Title

A certificate of title for a lot in a strata scheme created under, and subject to the provisions of the Strata Titles Act 1985 as Amended. Strata titles specify the ownership of the lot, and the lodged and registered interests and claims (encumbrances) against that ownership.

Strata Titles General Regulations

Subsidiary legislation to the Strata Titles Act.

Subdivision

Includes amalgamation and means the process of dividing or assembling land leading to the issue of a new title or titles for the land.

Survey strata

Survey Strata's do not reflect buildings as does ordinary Strata Plans. This enables the subdivision of land IDs into vacant survey strata lots very similar to conventional subdivisions.

Survey-strata lot

Land that is shown as a lot consisting of one or more parts on the survey-strata plan, but does not include a lot shown as common property or land shown as set aside for a road or reserve.

Survey-strata scheme

No buildings are shown on a survey-strata plan, even though there may in fact be buildings on the survey-strata lots.

The boundaries of survey-strata lots are surveyed by a licensed land surveyor and shown on the survey-strata plan. The lots on a survey-strata plan look much the same as lots that are shown on surveys (deposited plans, plans and diagrams) for non-strata freehold titles. Survey-strata schemes may have common property. If there is any common property in a survey-strata scheme, it is separately numbered as a lot and prefixed with the letters "CP". Survey-Strata Scheme requires WAPC approval.

Surveyor General

The professional officer charged with the general control of surveys under the department principally assisting the Minister in the administration of the Licensed Surveyors Act 1909.

Tenure

Commonly referred to as ownership, however land differs from good in that no one person can possess land in absolute ownership. Tenure is the system of holding land for the Crown.

Termination proposal

The detail of a proposed termination based on the overview but also containing an approved plan of subdivision and extensive other details of how the termination will be conducted.

TLA

Transfer of Land Act: an Act of Parliament which sets up a public register of title to land, maintained by the Registrar of Titles.

Type 1 notifiable variation

A type 1 notifiable variation means that if any of the following happens a seller must notify a buyer of the details:

• the area or size of the lot is reduced by 5%
• the proportion of the UE to the aggregate UE is changed by +-5%
• anything in regard to a termination proposal is served on the seller
• Regulations defined changes

Type 1 subdivision

The addition of land from outside the parcel of a strata titles scheme to common property in the scheme or the conversion of a lot in a strata titles scheme to common property in the scheme. Formerly known as conversion of lots into common property.

Type 2 notifiable variation

A type 2 notifiable variation means that if any of the following happens a seller must notify a buyer of the details:

• a modification of a scheme plan affects the lot or common property
• the schedule of unit entitlements is modified so that it affects the lot
• Scheme by-laws are modified
• there is a contract entered for amenities or services which affects the rights of the buyer
• variation to an existing contract affects the rights of the buyer
• lease, licence or privilege over CP is granted or varied
• Regulations defined changes

Type 2 subdivision

The removal from the parcel of a strata titles scheme of land comprised of common property.

Type 3 subdivision

The consolidation of 2 or more lots in a strata titles scheme into 1 lot in the scheme which does not affect common property in the scheme. Previously known as a consolidation.

Type 4 subdivision

A subdivision which does not involve the alteration of the boundaries of the parcel and is not a type 1, type 2, or type 3 subdivision. This was formerly known as a re-subdivision.

Unanimous resolution

A resolution on which every person in the scheme who is entitled to vote votes either in person, by proxy or in writing within 28 days after the meeting.

Unimproved Land Value

The site value of land under normal sales conditions assuming it is vacant with no structural improvements, as determined yearly by the Valuer General. The value of merged improvements such as clearing, draining and filling are included where the land is within a townsite.

Unit entitlement

Is the value of the lot as a percentage of the value of the whole scheme. In a strata scheme this takes into account the value of the buildings, in a survey-strata scheme this is based on the unimproved value of the land. Unit entitlement establishes the voting rights of a proprietor, the undivided share of each proprietor in the common property and the proportion payable of each proprietor of contributions levied.

Utility / public utility

An organisation performing an essential public service, as supplying gas, electricity or transport.

Vacant lot

Lots on a Strata Plan that do not depict buildings being constructed on them. In some circumstances there may be buildings in existence but not shown on the Strata Plan.

Valuation

An estimation of the worth of something carried out by a valuer licensed under the Land Valuers Licensing Act 1978 (in some cases the Valuer General). Valuations is a unique number used by Valuation Services as a reference to a property. Represents the valuation given to a unique grouping of land.

Valuer General

The Valuer General is responsible for the provision of fair, accurate and consistent land values [valuations] for rating and taxing purposes. [http://www.landgate.wa.gov.au/corporate.nsf/web/property+valuation]

Vested

Vesting is a term relating to transfers of ownership or placement of control of land. Ownership of private freehold land may be vested in the Crown.

Vesting order

Historically reserves would be placed under the control of an authority or organisation by means of a Vesting Order issued by order of the Governor in Executive Council. Reserves would be vested in local government authorities, government departments, government instrumentalities, or private incorporated bodies, for example racing clubs and community organisations.

The Commissioner of Titles may issue an order vesting freehold land in an applicant.

The Courts (Supreme and Family Court of W. A), can issues orders vesting freehold land in an applicant.

WALGA

Western Australian Local Government Association

WAPC

Western Australian Planning Commission

The WAPC is the statutory authority with statewide responsibilities for urban, rural and regional land use planning and land development matters. The WAPC operates with the support of the Department of Planning (DoP) and is responsible for the strategic planning of the State. (see Planning and Development Act 2005) [FROM http://www.planning.wa.gov.au/651.asp]