Managing a strata scheme involves far more than coordinating building maintenance. Strata managers oversee the administrative, financial and compliance responsibilities that allow owners corporations, body corporates and strata companies to meet their legal obligations. In this guide, I explain what a strata manager does. I also explain how the role differs from a strata committee and a building manager. You will see how the rules change by state. I will also show where trained admin support can help.
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Table of Contents
What Is a Strata Manager?
A strata manager is a professional hired to handle daily admin, money tasks and compliance for a shared property. The owners share duty for the common areas of the building. That can include lobbies, lifts, driveways, gardens and the roof. The manager helps the owners meet those duties.
The name of the owner group changes by state:
- In New South Wales and Victoria, it is the owners corporation.
- In Queensland, it is the body corporate.
- In Western Australia, it is the strata company.
The strata manager is engaged by that owner group and its elected committee. The manager acts on their instructions. They do not make decisions on behalf of the owners.
The scale is easy to miss. The reissued Australasian Strata Insights 2024 report estimates that about 15% of Australians live in strata or community title properties. It lists 367,970 schemes across Australia.
Every scheme needs its records, money and owner duties kept in order. That is the work a strata manager takes on.
The Core Responsibilities of a Strata Manager
A strata manager’s responsibilities generally fall into three core areas:
- Administration
- Financial management
- Compliance
Maintenance coordination and dispute support sit beside those areas. The management agreement sets the exact list. No two roles are the same.
Administration and Meetings
Administration is the backbone of the role. A strata manager may organise and run owner meetings. This includes the annual general meeting and any extra meetings.
In practice, that can mean:
- Booking the venue
- Sending notices
- Preparing the agenda
- Taking the minutes
They also keep the scheme’s records in order. In New South Wales, an agent keeps records such as the strata roll, minutes, letters, insurance policies and by-laws. These records must be open for inspection under the Strata Schemes Management Act 2015.
The manager becomes a central contact for owners, residents and contractors. That keeps messages clear and traceable.
Financial Management
Financial management is where the role carries real weight. A strata manager prepares the annual budget. They then set and issue the levies that fund it. They collect owner payments and pay suppliers. They also reconcile the scheme’s trust account and prepare financial statements for the owners. They also plan for the long term. Every scheme needs a fund for major repairs and replacements. Depending on the state, this may be called a capital works fund, sinking fund or maintenance fund.
The manager forecasts those costs. This helps keep money ready when a roof or lift reaches the end of its life. To show the scale, the reissued Australasian Strata Insights 2024 report lists more than 3.17 million strata lots across Australia. That is why accurate financial administration matters. Many agencies use dedicated real estate accounting services to keep this side precise and reconciled.
Compliance and Insurance
Strata managers help keep the scheme on the right side of the law. This can include insurance renewals, fire safety tasks and legal changes.
In New South Wales, an agent can help confirm that the owners corporation holds the required cover. This includes building damage, public liability and workers compensation where relevant.
Structured property compliance management keeps these dates from slipping. A missed renewal or expired certificate can put every owner at risk.
Maintenance Coordination and Dispute Resolution
A strata manager coordinates common property upkeep, but the wording matters. They obtain quotes, engage contractors with committee approval and confirm that work is complete. They do not carry out the repairs. Structured maintenance coordination is what keeps common areas safe and well-kept.
Disputes are part of the role too. Owners or tenants can disagree about noise, parking or common areas. The manager acts as an impartial point of reference. They guide the committee through by-law steps.
Strata Manager vs Strata Committee: Where the Line Sits
This is the point most people get wrong. The owners hold the legal duties and the money. They elect a committee to make decisions on their behalf between general meetings. The strata manager administers the scheme and acts on the committee’s instructions. They do not decide how the owners’ funds are spent on their own.
New South Wales makes the boundary clear. An owners corporation can delegate functions to a strata managing agent. It can choose which duties the agent will hold under the contract.The committee might keep control of its own meetings. It might hand the financial affairs to the agent. Authority starts with the owners. It moves through the committee and is carried out with help from the manager. Keep that order in mind and most of the confusion falls away.
Strata Manager vs Building Manager
These two titles are often mixed up. They cover different work. As mentioned earlier, the strata manager is responsible for the owner group’s administrative, financial, and compliance functions.
A building manager may also be called a caretaker or facilities manager. This role looks after the building on site. That work often covers:
- Cleaning
- Gardening
- Day-to-day maintenance of common areas
The law treats building managers as a separate role. Larger and mixed-use buildings often engage both. The two roles work side by side.
For buildings with a commercial component, this overlaps with commercial property management. Facilities and key services often carry their own compliance load.
Is a Strata Manager Licensed? How Regulation Differs by State
Here is the detail that trips up owners, buyers and even people entering the industry: the regulation of strata managers is not national. It changes significantly from one state to the next, and so does the job title.
Anyone operating or investing across state borders needs to check the rules that apply in each place.
| State | The owner group | The person managing it | Regulation of the manager |
|---|---|---|---|
| NSW | Owners corporation | Strata managing agent | Must hold a Class 1 or Class 2 strata managing agent licence under the Property and Stock Agents Act 2002 |
| QLD | Body corporate | Body corporate manager | No occupational licence or formal qualification is required, but the manager must follow the code of conduct and written engagement terms |
| VIC | Owners corporation | Owners corporation manager | Paid managers must register with the Business Licensing Authority |
| WA | Strata company | Strata manager | No strata manager licence is required, but managers must meet strata-law rules for contracts, education, checks, insurance and annual returns where required |
The contrast is striking. In New South Wales, acting as an unlicensed strata managing agent is an offence. In Queensland, by contrast, a body corporate manager can start work with no formal occupational licence or qualification at all, held to account only by a code of conduct.
South Australia, Tasmania, the Australian Capital Territory and the Northern Territory each run their own separate regime and terminology again. The safest approach is to verify the current requirements with the relevant state regulator before relying on them.
The Administrative Weight Behind the Role
While strata managers are often associated with building operations, much of the role involves administration. Managing levy notices, financial records, meeting documentation, contractor correspondence and compliance schedules requires structured systems to maintain accuracy and efficiency.
When Admin Starts Taking Over
I have watched what happens when a property team is stretched too thin on this kind of work. Kellie, an operations manager I work with, had an admin team under pressure. Invoice processing was taking too much time before we put dedicated support in place.
She does not run a strata scheme, but the admin pattern is similar. Levy notices that owners and payments to contractors run on the same steady cycle.
After bringing in dedicated help, she told me, “Having virtual assistants manage our invoice processing has significantly improved our efficiency. With one person focusing on the same task daily, invoices are processed much quicker.”
That is the pattern I have seen again and again. The building rarely breaks a business. The admin behind it can quietly consume the team’s time and energy.
Trained virtual assistants for property teams can work under the appointed manager. They can prepare levy notices, organise records and manage messages. The manager keeps control of work that needs their judgement.
What I Check Before a Strata Team Delegates Admin
Before I suggest support, I map the line between authority and admin. I want to know who approves levy notices. I check who can instruct contractors. I also check who reviews insurance renewals and signs off owner updates.
Then I separate tasks into three groups:
- Tasks a trained assistant can prepare
- Tasks the appointed manager must review
- Decisions that stay with the committee or owners
This keeps the admin moving without giving away authority. It also gives the strata team a clear exception list. The manager only gets pulled into the tasks that need their judgement.
Strata Manager FAQs
Do You Need a Licence to Be a Strata Manager in Australia?
It depends on the state. New South Wales requires a strata managing agent licence. Victoria requires paid managers to register with the Business Licensing Authority. Queensland requires no licence or formal qualification. Western Australia does not license strata managers, but it sets duties under strata law.
What Is the Difference Between a Strata Manager and a Body Corporate Manager?
They describe a similar role under different state terms. Queensland calls the professional a body corporate manager. New South Wales and Western Australia use strata manager. Victoria uses owners corporation manager. The core work is administration, finance and compliance.
Who Does a Strata Manager Answer To?
The strata manager answers to the owners, known as the owners corporation, body corporate or strata company. They also answer to the committee those owners elect. The management agreement sets the manager’s authority. The committee remains accountable for the decisions.
Can a Strata Scheme Run Without a Strata Manager?
Yes. Some smaller schemes are self-managed by the owners. In Queensland, a body corporate is not legally required to appoint a manager. Larger and more complex buildings often engage one. The admin and financial load can be hard for volunteers to carry.
What Does a Strata Manager Not Do?
A strata manager does not make the owners’ decisions for them. They also do not personally carry out repairs. They coordinate contractors and administer the scheme, but the authority and hands-on work sit elsewhere.
The System Behind Every Well-Run Building
A strata manager is far more than a caretaker for a building. They are the administrative and financial engine of a shared property, turning owners’ decisions into levies collected, suppliers paid, records kept and obligations met. When you understand the split between owner decisions, manager authority and daily administration, the role becomes much easier to plan, resource and measure. If your team needs support with the admin behind this work, explore PMVA’s commercial strata management support.
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