Sydney Strata Renovation — Sections 109/110/111 SSMA, Special Resolution, By-laws

If you own a Sydney apartment or townhouse, you almost certainly own a lot in a strata scheme, not a detached title. That one structural fact changes everything about how you renovate. A renovation that would take a phone call and a council lodgement in a freestanding house can require committee review, a Form 17 application, a 75% special resolution at a general meeting, a Construction Certificate, an acoustic underlay to Australian Standard, and a completion deposit of up to A$25,000. Miss a step and the owners corporation can withdraw approval, make you rip the work out, and invoice you for restoration of common property.

NSW now has more than 70,000 strata schemes housing about 1.7 million residents,¹ and Sydney is by far the densest concentration. The governing law is the Strata Schemes Management Act 2015 (NSW) — usually shortened to SSMA — together with the scheme's own registered by-laws, the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979 (EP&A Act) for any Construction Certificate, and the Home Building Act 1989 (NSW) for the builder's licensing and the HBCF warranty.² This page walks a strata lot owner through each of those layers in the order a real Sydney renovation actually runs into them.

For builder licensing and HBCF cover thresholds, see the companion pillar at /sydney/hbcf-home-building-license. For detached home extensions, CDC vs DA, and BASIX, see /sydney/home-extension. This page is strictly about strata.

What strata is in NSW (70,000+ schemes, 1.7M residents)

A strata scheme is a form of multi-unit ownership created when land is subdivided into lots and common property, registered with NSW Land Registry Services on a registered strata plan.³ Buying an apartment in Sydney gives you:

• Freehold title to your lot (the airspace plus interior finishes as drawn on the strata plan)
• A share in the common property (structure, roof, exterior walls, lobbies, car park, risers, gardens)
• Automatic membership in the owners corporation — a legally separate body corporate that owns the common property and enforces the by-laws

Day-to-day decisions are made by the strata committee (up to nine members elected at the Annual General Meeting) and, for bigger decisions, by the owners corporation at a general meeting. A professional strata managing agent usually does the admin, but the legal powers sit with the owners corporation itself. Important: the managing agent does not have unilateral authority to approve renovation works beyond what the committee delegates to them in writing.

That separation matters because when you renovate, you are not just modifying your own property. Depending on scope, you are also modifying, affecting, or placing risk on common property that belongs to every other owner in the building. The SSMA gives the owners corporation power (and duty) to say yes, no, or yes-with-conditions.

Strata Schemes Management Act 2015 — the foundational law

The SSMA replaced the old Strata Schemes Management Act 1996 on 30 November 2016.² The most relevant provisions for renovation lot owners are:

• Section 109 — cosmetic work (no approval required)
• Section 110 — minor renovations (ordinary resolution or delegated committee approval)
• Section 111 — changes to common property (requires special resolution)
• Section 112 — common property rights by-law for major works
• Section 145 — enforcement: penalty notices and orders for breach of by-laws
• Section 232 — NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal (NCAT) jurisdiction for disputes

The key idea the SSMA encodes is proportionality: cosmetic work proceeds without friction, minor work gets a streamlined owners-corporation sign-off, and anything that actually touches common property or the building's external appearance needs a super-majority of the owners to agree. Most disputes between lot owners and owners corporations end up at NCAT under Section 232.⁴

The SSMA sits alongside — not on top of — the Home Building Act 1989 (licensing + HBCF) and the EP&A Act 1979 (Construction Certificate + certifier). All three regimes apply to a strata renovation simultaneously; they do not substitute for each other.

Three renovation categories: cosmetic / minor / major (Sections 109-112)

The category determines the approval pathway. Get the category wrong and the whole approval is void.

Cosmetic work — Section 109

No approval required. You do not need to notify the strata committee (though giving courtesy notice is good practice). The Act defines cosmetic work as renewals and decorations that do not affect common property. Examples explicitly accepted as cosmetic:

• Interior painting
• Hanging pictures, mirrors, shelves using standard wall fixings
• Replacing light fittings or power points on existing wiring
• Installing or replacing curtains, blinds, internal doors
• Laying new carpet on an existing subfloor
• Replacing handles, taps, or tapware that connect to existing plumbing

Cosmetic work must still be done by appropriately licensed trades where the work itself requires a licence (electrical, plumbing). The cosmetic category removes the strata-approval requirement; it does not remove the trade-licensing requirement.

Minor renovations — Section 110

Requires written owners corporation approval, typically via a resolution at a general meeting or a delegated committee resolution if the by-laws allow the committee to approve minor works. This is the category that covers most Sydney apartment remodels.

The Act characterises minor renovations as work that:

• Does not significantly affect common property, and
• Does not significantly affect external appearance, and
• Does not significantly affect shared services

Typical Section 110 work:

• Kitchen replacement where plumbing stays within the lot
• Bathroom replacement where the waterproofing membrane is not disturbed (rare in practice — see Risks)
• Removing or altering a non-structural internal wall
• Changing floor finishes (subject to acoustic by-laws — see below)
• Installing a split-system air conditioner internal unit (if the external unit placement is already approved)

The approval process uses a Form 17 application (or the scheme's equivalent template) submitted to the strata managing agent with scope, drawings, builder licence copies, HBCF certificate of insurance, and nominated trading hours. The committee or general meeting considers it, usually within 30-60 days. Conditions are standard: working-hours limits, completion deposit, insurance certificates, protection of common areas.

Major renovations — Sections 111 and 112

Requires a special resolution (75% of votes cast, weighted by unit entitlement) at a general meeting, and often a common property rights by-law registered under Section 112 to formalise the grant of common property rights to the lot owner for the altered element.

Work that is almost always major:

• External balcony renovation (tiles, waterproofing membrane, balustrade)
• Window or external door replacement
• Structural wall removal (any wall doing structural work, whether internal or external)
• Plumbing or gas reroute affecting vertical risers or common services
• Air conditioning external unit placement on common property
• Heating or hot-water changes that affect building-wide services
• Any change to external appearance (paint colour, awnings, external fixtures)

A Section 111 approval is not optional — it is the legal precondition for the work. Starting major work without one exposes the lot owner to a NCAT order to reinstate common property at the owner's cost.

Common property vs lot property — the strata plan distinction

This is the single most misunderstood part of Sydney strata renovation, and the waterproofing membrane under a bathroom tile is the canonical example.

The registered strata plan defines the boundary between lot and common property. In almost every Sydney scheme registered after 1974, the default is:

• Lot property — from the underside of the concrete ceiling slab down to the top of the floor finish, and the interior surfaces of the walls that border the lot
• Common property — the structural slab itself, the membrane and screed below the tile, the structural walls, the exterior walls, the roof, lobbies, risers, and shared mechanical systems

That means when you tile a bathroom floor, the tile and thinset are lot property, but the waterproofing membrane and the concrete slab underneath are common property. Disturbing the membrane — even to redo it better than original — is common-property work. It requires a Section 110 (if minor) or Section 111 (if major) approval, and it shifts liability: if water from your new bathroom damages the lot below, you are personally liable because you disturbed common property without (or outside the scope of) approval.

The only authoritative way to confirm the lot/common boundary in your scheme is to request a copy of the registered strata plan from the managing agent or directly from NSW Land Registry Services.³ Do this before sketching any scope; do not rely on what the previous owner or a real-estate agent told you.

By-laws — Form 17 application + working hours + completion deposits

Every strata scheme has an initial set of by-laws (the Initial By-laws adopted at registration) and usually several later by-laws added by special resolution. Most Sydney schemes have at least one renovation works by-law covering:

• Working hours — typically Monday to Friday 9am-5pm, Saturdays 9am-1pm, no Sundays or NSW public holidays. Some CBD and Eastern Suburbs schemes forbid Saturdays entirely.
• Tradesperson registration — copies of NSW licence, public liability insurance (usually A$20M minimum), and in some buildings criminal record checks
• Access and security — lift booking, access swipe, service-corridor protection, rubbish chute protocols
• Common area protection — floor protection from the lift to the lot door, corner guards on corridors, signage
• Completion deposit — a refundable bond the owners corporation holds during the work; typically A$2,000 to A$25,000 depending on scope and building. Held against damage to common property and refunded on satisfactory completion inspection.
• Noise and dust — dust extraction, wet-cutting for tiles, notice to neighbours 48 hours before heavy demolition days
• Acoustic flooring — where hard flooring is replaced, acoustic underlay meeting Australian Standard AS ISO 717.2 with an IIC rating of 50 or better (65+ in premium schemes)⁵

The Form 17 application is the standard template most NSW strata schemes use for lot owners to request renovation approval. It captures scope, drawings, trades, insurance, and timing, and serves as the instrument the committee or general meeting actually approves. The approval — once resolved — is minuted and forms part of the scheme's records. Keep a certified copy; you will need it for the Construction Certificate application and, years later, at resale.

Special resolution for major works (75% threshold)

A special resolution under SSMA Section 5 is a resolution of the owners corporation at a general meeting where no more than 25% of the vote cast is against the motion, with voting weighted by each lot's unit entitlement.² Unit entitlements are set on the registered strata plan and broadly reflect the relative value of each lot at scheme registration.

Mechanics to keep in mind:

• The meeting must be properly convened with at least 7 days' notice (14 days for the AGM) and the motion must appear in the agenda with enough detail for owners to vote informed
• A quorum is 25% of lot owners or, if less, enough owners to represent at least a quarter of the aggregate unit entitlements
• Voting is usually by show of hands, but any lot owner can require a poll (weighted by unit entitlement)
• Proxies are allowed but limited: one person cannot hold more than one proxy in schemes up to 20 lots, or more than 5% of proxies in larger schemes
• Absentee (postal or electronic) voting is valid where the by-laws authorise it

A special resolution for Section 111 major works often comes bundled with a Section 112 common property rights by-law — a separate by-law that formally grants the lot owner exclusive use or special rights over the altered common property (for example, an enclosed balcony). The by-law is registered with NSW Land Registry Services and runs with the lot; a future owner inherits both the benefit and the maintenance obligation.

Budget at least 3-6 months between first scope conversation and a special resolution being passed and registered, then add the Construction Certificate timeline on top.

Construction Certificate + Building Information Certificate

Separate from the strata approval, Sydney strata renovations may also need one or both of:

• Construction Certificate (CC) under the EP&A Act 1979, issued by a Principal Certifying Authority (PCA) — usually a private accredited certifier. Required before any work that requires development consent, which includes most structural, window, and balcony works. The CC confirms the proposed work complies with the Building Code of Australia (BCA / NCC).
• Building Information Certificate (BIC) — a certificate issued by the local council (or a certifier) that the existing building or a completed alteration does not need to be altered or demolished to comply. Often used retrospectively for minor works or to close out variations. Check with NSW Fair Trading on current scope.⁴
• Complying Development Certificate (CDC) under SEPP (Exempt and Complying Development Codes) 2008 — rarely available for strata works because strata schemes generally do not meet the CDC pathway's land-use criteria, but worth checking for straightforward internal work in low-rise townhouse schemes.

Plumbing and drainage work is separately regulated. A licensed plumber must lodge a Notice of Work before starting and issue a Certificate of Compliance to Sydney Water once complete, under the Plumbing and Drainage Act 2011.⁶ Electrical work requires a licensed electrician and, depending on scope, a Certificate of Compliance for Electrical Work (CCEW) lodged with the electricity distributor.

A common Sydney strata sequence looks like: scope design → Form 17 to strata committee → Section 110 resolution or Section 111 special resolution → Construction Certificate → licensed contractor engaged → HBCF certificate issued → work → Certificate of Compliance (plumbing, electrical) → completion inspection by strata → bond refund.

Sydney area specifics (CBD / Eastern Suburbs / Inner West / Northern Beaches)

Sydney CBD — Pyrmont, Darling Harbour, Barangaroo, Surry Hills

High-rise residential towers with shared cooling-tower and central-plant services. Renovation works are tightly constrained by:

• Short permitted working-hours windows (often 9am-4pm weekdays only, nothing on Saturdays)
• Strict lift-booking regimes and goods-lift access only
• Restrictions on penetrating acoustic/fire-rated slabs (most towers have a no-core-hole-into-slab by-law)
• Central hot water and HVAC — individual hot water or AC changes almost always Section 111

Expect completion deposits at the top end of the range (A$15,000-A$25,000) and a stricter building manager than the strata committee.

Eastern Suburbs — Bondi, Bondi Beach, Coogee, Bronte

A mix of 1960s-70s walk-up blocks and newer boutique buildings. Two recurring issues:

• Salt-air corrosion — balcony steel, window frames, and balustrades corrode faster within 1km of the coast. Renovation scope frequently catches owners by surprise because what looks cosmetic is actually remediation of a corroded structural element (Section 111 territory).
• Waterproofing membrane failure — older blocks have failing membranes; a bathroom rebuild that seemed minor under Section 110 becomes a common-property membrane replacement under Section 111 once the tile comes up.

Inner West — Newtown, Erskineville, Dulwich Hill, Marrickville

Converted warehouse buildings and heritage-listed strata conversions are common. These schemes layer:

• Heritage controls (local heritage listing or state heritage register) administered by council or Heritage NSW — external appearance changes effectively cannot happen
• Strata by-laws often incorporate heritage preservation obligations as binding rules
• Exposed brick and timber structure means many internal walls are structural even when they look like simple partitions

Get both a heritage architect and a structural engineer in before scoping.

Northern Beaches — Manly, Mosman, Cremorne, Neutral Bay

Low- to mid-rise boutique strata with:

• Coastal exposure (salt + wind-driven rain) driving envelope quality requirements above BCA minimums
• Bushfire overlay for elevated suburbs — BAL rating influences window, ember-screen, and decking material choices even on strata work
• Green-and-gold-painted heritage boutique blocks where external appearance is effectively frozen

Western Sydney — Parramatta, Liverpool, Penrith

Newer high-rise with more modern by-laws, often pre-approving common categories of minor work in the Initial By-laws. Generally the fastest approval lane in Sydney — but also the highest concentration of defective building reports, so have a building inspector confirm there is no combustible cladding or waterproofing class action affecting the scheme before you spend on renovation.

Cost bands A$25K-A$800K+ by category + suburb (2026)

Budgetary ranges for a typical 2-bedroom Sydney strata apartment, 2026 AUD, including licensed trades, materials, strata levies (completion deposit + admin), Construction Certificate fees where applicable, builder margin, and 10% GST:

Strata-specific cost overlays on top of the base renovation:

• Completion deposit (refundable): A$2K-A$25K held by owners corporation during work
• Strata admin fee: A$500-A$2,500 for Form 17 processing and inspections
• Common property rights by-law registration (Section 112): A$1,500-A$4,000 legal + LRS registration
• Construction Certificate + PCA fees: A$3,000-A$12,000 depending on scope
• Acoustic underlay to AS ISO 717.2 IIC 50+: A$40-A$90/m² supply + install

CBD tower jobs run 15-25% higher than equivalent Inner West work because of lift-booking, working-hours, and common-area protection overhead. Heritage-listed Inner West can run 20-40% higher once heritage-approved materials enter the spec.

Timeline immediate to 12 months by category

• Cosmetic (Section 109): start immediately, build 1-3 weeks
• Minor (Section 110): 4-8 weeks for owners corporation or delegated committee approval, plus 6-12 weeks build = 3-5 months total
• Major (Section 111 + 112): 3-6 months to pass a special resolution at a general meeting and register the common property rights by-law, plus 2-6 weeks for the Construction Certificate, plus 12-20 weeks build = 6-12 months total

If your scheme's AGM has just happened, budget for an Extraordinary General Meeting (EGM) to get a special resolution before the next AGM — the EGM itself takes 4-8 weeks to notice, convene, and minute.

Risks: withdrawal of approval, by-law breach, water damage liability

Four risks that routinely trip up Sydney strata lot owners:

• Withdrawal of approval. The strata committee or owners corporation can withdraw a Section 110 or Section 111 approval if the work is discovered to be outside the approved scope. The lot owner is then liable under Section 145 SSMA for the cost of reinstating common property — which can easily exceed the original renovation budget.
• By-law breach claims. Neighbouring lot owners can apply to NCAT under Section 232 for orders enforcing by-laws — most commonly about working hours, noise, and acoustic underlay. NCAT can issue enforceable orders and, in serious cases, penalty notices.
• Water damage liability. Because the waterproofing membrane under a bathroom tile is usually common property, a lot owner who disturbs it and causes water damage to the lot below is liable to that lot's owner (and to the owners corporation for common property damage). Building insurance generally covers sudden and accidental damage to common property but excludes damage caused by defective renovation work by a lot owner.
• Insurance gap during renovation. Building insurance covers common property; the lot owner's contents insurance covers fittings; but work-in-progress often sits in a gap unless the builder carries a construction-period insurance (contract works) policy naming the owners corporation as an interested party. Confirm this before work starts — it is a standard Form 17 condition in well-run schemes.

What Baily verifies before any Sydney strata match

Angi sends your info to 12 strangers. Baily sends it to one NSW-licensed builder with strata committee approval and by-law compliance experience. Before Baily introduces a Sydney strata lot owner to a builder, Baily confirms:

• NSW Home Building Licence is current and held in the builder's legal name (Home Building Act 1989)
• HBCF certificate of insurance (icare NSW) is in place for any work over A$20,000⁷
• A$20M+ public liability insurance certificate current (standard Sydney strata requirement)
• WorkCover NSW registration for workers compensation
• Recent Section 110 / Section 111 approvals — Baily confirms the builder has run Form 17 applications before and can supply references from at least two recent Sydney strata jobs
• Acoustic underlay product specified to AS ISO 717.2 IIC 50+ where hard flooring is planned
• Scope matched to the lot's registered strata plan — Baily has the plan on file and flags common-property touch points before scope is signed
• Plumbing and electrical sub-trades separately licensed (Plumbing and Drainage Act, Home Building Act + Energy Utilities Act)
• Working-hours compliance plan matching your scheme's specific by-law

One NSW-licensed builder, verified. Not a lead auction.

FAQs

Do I need owners corporation approval to renovate my Sydney strata apartment?

It depends on the work category under the Strata Schemes Management Act 2015. Cosmetic work (Section 109 — paint, decorations, replacing fixtures on existing wiring, new carpeting) requires NO approval. Minor renovations (Section 110 — kitchen rebuild, bathroom rebuild within lot, non-structural wall changes) require WRITTEN owners corporation approval, typically via Form 17 application to the strata committee. Major renovations (Section 111-112 — structural changes, window replacement, balcony work, anything affecting common property or external appearance) require a SPECIAL RESOLUTION at a general meeting (75% majority of votes weighted by unit entitlement). The strata managing agent will tell you which category applies once you describe the scope, but get an architect or building consultant to confirm before submitting Form 17.

Can the strata committee say no to a renovation that meets the SSMA rules?

Yes, but not arbitrarily. The owners corporation can refuse or attach conditions to a Section 110 application, and can vote down a Section 111 special resolution. However, under Section 232 SSMA a lot owner can apply to NCAT if approval is unreasonably withheld. NCAT looks at whether the refusal is reasonable given the effect on common property, other lot owners, and the building. In practice most disputes settle with conditions added (hours, deposit, scope narrowing) rather than a flat refusal. Keep the Form 17 application detailed, proactively offer standard conditions, and the path is usually clear.

Is bathroom waterproofing always common property in a Sydney strata?

In almost every Sydney strata scheme registered after 1974, the waterproofing membrane under the bathroom tile is common property. The tile and thinset on top are lot property, but the membrane and the concrete slab below belong to the owners corporation. That means a bathroom rebuild that disturbs the membrane — which is almost any real rebuild — crosses into Section 110 or Section 111 territory. Always check the registered strata plan (obtain via the managing agent or NSW Land Registry Services) before scoping bathroom work, and brief your builder that membrane replacement is a common-property touch point that requires explicit approval.

What is the difference between Section 110 and Section 111?

Section 110 is for minor renovations that don't significantly affect common property, external appearance, or shared services — approved by an ordinary resolution or by a committee with delegated authority. Section 111 is for changes that alter common property and requires a special resolution (75% of votes weighted by unit entitlement) at a general meeting, often accompanied by a Section 112 common property rights by-law that is registered with NSW Land Registry Services. The effective test is: does the work touch common property or change external appearance in a non-trivial way? If yes, Section 111. If no, Section 110. Bathroom membrane, window frames, balcony tiles, structural walls, and external AC units are the usual Section 111 triggers.

How long does it take to pass a special resolution for a major strata renovation?

Budget 3-6 months for the strata approval itself. You need to: submit scope and drawings to the committee (2-4 weeks); get the motion drafted and placed on a general meeting agenda (2-4 weeks of notice); hold the meeting and pass the resolution (quorum and 75% majority weighted by unit entitlement); draft and register the Section 112 common property rights by-law (4-8 weeks through a strata lawyer and NSW Land Registry Services). If your next AGM is months away, you can call an Extraordinary General Meeting, which shortens the wait but adds meeting convening costs. After the special resolution you still need the Construction Certificate (2-6 weeks) before building. End-to-end 6-12 months is realistic for major works.

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Footnotes

1. NSW Fair Trading, "Strata schemes," describes NSW as home to more than 70,000 strata schemes with approximately 1.7 million residents. https://www.nsw.gov.au/housing-and-construction/strata ↩

2. Strata Schemes Management Act 2015 (NSW), commenced 30 November 2016. Full text and amendment history at NSW Legislation. https://legislation.nsw.gov.au/view/html/inforce/current/act-2015-050 ↩ ↩² ↩³

3. NSW Land Registry Services, strata plans and common property information. https://www.nswlrs.com.au/Information-and-Support/Strata ↩ ↩²

4. NSW Fair Trading, strata renovations and by-laws guidance. https://www.nsw.gov.au/housing-and-construction/strata/renovations ↩ ↩²

5. Standards Australia, AS ISO 717.2 — Acoustics — Rating of sound insulation in buildings and of building elements, Part 2: Impact sound insulation. Most Sydney strata by-laws reference IIC (Impact Isolation Class) ratings 50+ for hard flooring. https://www.standards.org.au ↩

6. Plumbing and Drainage Act 2011 (NSW) and Sydney Water plumbing compliance. https://www.sydneywater.com.au/plumbing-building-developing.html ↩

7. icare NSW, Home Building Compensation Fund (HBCF), mandatory for residential building work over A$20,000 in NSW. https://www.icare.nsw.gov.au/builders-and-homeowners/home-building-compensation ↩