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One of the most crucial yet overlooked aspects of managing a body corporate is record keeping.
Accurate and compliant record management is essential for operational efficiency and legal compliance, and failing to do so can lead to disputes, fines, and legal challenges.
So, how do you ensure your body corporate is meeting its record-keeping obligations?
Why Is Record Keeping Important?
Bodies corporate in Australia are legally required to maintain accurate records. These documents serve as the official record of the body corporate’s decisions, financial transactions, and other critical operations. Well-organised records help with transparency, accountability, legal compliance and efficiency.
What Records Must Be Kept?
The Body Corporate and Community Management Act 1997 (QLD) outlines the specific records that bodies corporate must maintain. These include:
1. Administrative and Accounting Records:
- Current community management statement and survey plans
- A body corporate roll for all lots containing the name or company ownership of the lot along with the address and any other relevant contact information
- Asset register
- Exclusive use allocations
- Lot improvements register
- Contracts register
- Correspondence to and from the body corporate
- Emails, letters, notice relating to body corporate affairs
- Formal complaints and responses
- Communication with contractors and service providers
- Correspondence related to by-law enforcement and disputes
- Correspondence relating to meetings
2. Financial and Meeting Documents
- Financial statements, budgets, and audit reports
- Records of income and expenditure
- Bank statements and reconciliations
- Invoices, receipts, and financial agreements
- Estimate of sinking fund expenditure for current year and nine subsequent years (sinking fund forecast)
- Insurance certificate of currency and insurance valuation report
3. Meeting documents & representative documentation:
- Notices of meetings and minutes from AGMs, committee meetings, and other official gatherings
- Voting papers and proxies
- notices and responses for motions passed outside a committee meeting
- Any proxy form for the original owner to act for a lot owner
- Copy of any document showing the original owner’s ability to be representative of a lot owner
4. Legal & compliance documents
- orders and notices from a court, tribunal, council or other authority
- contracts with a body corporate manager or service contractor, and letting agent authorisations
- any authority for a service contractor or letting agent to occupy common property
- agreements made under an exclusive use by-law
5. Safety Documents & Reports (including maintenance records)
- Fire and evacuation plan, if required under fire safety laws and fire safety certificates
- Defect assessment reports
- Common property safety reports
- Reports and contracts related to maintenance, repairs, and upgrades
- Records of maintenance schedules and completed works
- Building inspection reports and compliance certificates
6. Records from the original owner (developer)
- Register of assets
- Copy of development approval, if applicable
- All plans, diagrams or drawings of buildings as built (electrical, plumbing etc.)
- Contracts for developmental building work
- Contracts for the supply of utility services
- Warranty documents for
- buildings or improvements
- common property plant or equipment
- assets
How Long Must Records Be Kept?
Body corporate records can be disposed of after two (2) years (unless they are deemed to be still current). Those documents include:
- committee and general meeting materials
- correspondence that is not important or no longer of interest
- financial statements, including bank statements and invoices
Body corporate records can be disposed of after six (6) years (unless they are deemed to be still current). Those documents include:
- statement off accounts
- meeting notices and papers
- records about major repairs and installations to common property or defect assessment reports
- orders and notices from a court, tribunal, council or other authority
- contracts the body corporate is a party to
- reports given by a body corporate manager acting for the committee.
Who Keeps the Records?
- The Body Corporate Committee: Often comprised of lot owners or their representatives, the committee may take on the responsibility of organising, storing, and maintaining records.
- A Body Corporate Manager: Many bodies corporate choose to engage a professional manager to handle record-keeping tasks, ensuring compliance and efficient document management. BCsystems offers this service for their clients.
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