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Acacia Collective Help Centre

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Acacia Collective is here for the community. We believe in empowering you to know your rights and your Strata Manager's responsibilities. Explore our articles to learn more.
Have questions about strata management? Get in touch.
Maintaining Doors, Locks, and Fire Doors
Maintenance
Maintaining Doors, Locks, and Fire Doors
External doors are common property in most strata and community titled groups — but the inside paint, the locks, the screen door, and the internal doors are all the owner's. Here's the breakdown, plus what to do about pre-1990 fire doors that may contain asbestos and how to choose a deadbolt that won't trap you in a fire.
6 min read8 Apr 2026
Strata Management Committees: Roles, Powers, and Duties
Governance
Strata Management Committees: Roles, Powers, and Duties
Strata management committees in South Australia operate under both the Strata Titles Act 1988 and the Corporations Act 2001. Here's the full statutory framework including committee appointment, meeting procedure, record keeping, insurance duties, conflict of interest and the Section 47 vicarious liability rule that makes personal exposure real for every committee member.
10 min read8 Apr 2026
Strata Titles Glossary
Strata Basics
Strata Titles Glossary
Plain-English definitions of the key terms used in the Strata Titles Act 1988 (SA) - from "allotment" and "easement" through "special resolution" and "unit holder". Bookmark this page when you're working through corporation paperwork.
4 min read8 Apr 2026
Maintaining Carports: Rust, Asbestos, and Owner Misuse
Maintenance
Maintaining Carports: Rust, Asbestos, and Owner Misuse
Carports are common property in most strata and community titled groups, but they're often the most neglected part of the building — rust, asbestos roofs, oil spills, and stored junk all need active management. Here's how to handle the maintenance, the safety risks, and the enforcement powers under Section 28 (strata) and Section 101 (community).
6 min read8 Apr 2026
By-Laws Explained: Community Corporations
Legal & Compliance
By-Laws Explained: Community Corporations
By-laws are the rules every community corporation in South Australia is built on. What they can cover, how they're enforced and the Section 39 process for amending them through a special resolution lodged with the Registrar-General.
6 min read8 Apr 2026
Making an Insurance Claim: A Six-Step Guide for Strata Corporations
Insurance
Making an Insurance Claim: A Six-Step Guide for Strata Corporations
When your strata or community titled property suffers damage, the way the corporation handles the insurance claim makes the difference between a clean recovery and a long, expensive mess. Here's a six-step process from reporting through to payment, plus a sample resolution on who pays the excess.
4 min read8 Apr 2026
Asbestos in Strata and Community Titled Properties: What Committees Need to Know
Legal & Compliance
Asbestos in Strata and Community Titled Properties: What Committees Need to Know
Older strata and community titled buildings in South Australia often contain asbestos whether that's in carport roofs, fire doors, eaves, vinyl tiles or pipe lagging. Here's what your corporation needs to know about Asbestos Registers, Management Plans and the strict rules around disturbing or removing it.
6 min read8 Apr 2026
Enforcing Owner Maintenance Obligations: A Four-Step Framework
Legal & Compliance
Enforcing Owner Maintenance Obligations: A Four-Step Framework
Both the Strata Titles Act and the Community Titles Act give corporations the power to enforce owner maintenance obligations including entering a unit to carry out work and recovering the cost as a debt. Here's the four-step escalation framework from informal request through to formal Section 28 / Section 101 notice and self-help.
6 min read8 Apr 2026
Working With Contractors: Licences, ABNs, Insurance and Work Orders
Maintenance
Working With Contractors: Licences, ABNs, Insurance and Work Orders
Engaging unlicensed or uninsured contractors puts your corporation and its owners at serious legal and financial risk. Here's how to vet contractors properly (including the SA licence and ABN checks every committee should run) and why a written work order is non-negotiable.
4 min read8 Apr 2026
The Fences Act and Your Strata Group
Legal & Compliance
The Fences Act and Your Strata Group
How the Fences Act 1975 applies to strata and community titled groups in South Australia — who owns which fences, the Form 1/2/3 process for replacements and repairs, and how to handle objections from neighbouring owners.
5 min read8 Apr 2026
Community Title Management Committees: Roles, Powers, and Duties
Governance
Community Title Management Committees: Roles, Powers, and Duties
Community title management committees in South Australia operate under both the Community Titles Act 1996 and the Corporations Act 2001. Here's the full statutory framework - committee establishment, vacancies, meeting procedure, conflict of interest, duties of honesty and the immunity provisions every committee member should understand.
9 min read8 Apr 2026
Maintaining Balconies in Strata and Community Titled Properties
Maintenance
Maintaining Balconies in Strata and Community Titled Properties
Balconies are common property in most strata and community titled groups — and they're exposed to weather, rot, and (for older buildings) structural fatigue. Here's what to look for when inspecting timber and concrete balconies, and when to call a structural engineer.
4 min read8 Apr 2026
Termite Management in Strata and Community Titled Properties
Maintenance
Termite Management in Strata and Community Titled Properties
How strata and community corporations in South Australia should approach termite prevention, inspection, and treatment — and what owners and tenants need to know about their responsibilities.
6 min read6 Apr 2026
Unit Titles Explained: Strata vs Community
Strata Basics
Unit Titles Explained: Strata vs Community
The key differences between strata title and community title in South Australia, how to tell which type you have, what that means for ownership, building maintenance and shared services. Also covers unit boundaries, unit subsidiaries, unit entitlement, meetings, voting, the Maintenance Fund and the Section 29 rules on alterations and additions.
9 min read6 Apr 2026
How to Change Your Strata Manager
Governance
How to Change Your Strata Manager
A step-by-step guide to changing your body corporate manager in South Australia - from checking your contract through to appointing a new manager at an AGM or extraordinary general meeting.
4 min read6 Apr 2026
Surveillance and Privacy in Strata Properties
Legal & Compliance
Surveillance and Privacy in Strata Properties
What South Australian strata and community titled owners need to know about installing cameras and recording devices and how to stay on the right side of the Surveillance Devices Act 2017.
5 min read6 Apr 2026
Gutter Cleaning - The Annual Job That Saves Roofs
Maintenance
Gutter Cleaning - The Annual Job That Saves Roofs
Why regular gutter cleaning matters for strata and community titled properties; who's responsible, what goes wrong when gutters are neglected and a contractor checklist.
3 min read2 Apr 2026
Shared Plumbing - Who's Responsible For What
Maintenance
Shared Plumbing - Who's Responsible For What
Who pays for plumbing in a strata or community titled property? A guide to water supply, drainage responsibilities, water meters, and insurance for South Australian body corporates.
3 min read2 Apr 2026
Strata Building Insurance - What's Required and What's Covered
Insurance
Strata Building Insurance - What's Required and What's Covered
A comprehensive guide to body corporate insurance in South Australia: legal requirements, common property boundaries, replacement valuations and a practical insurance checklist.
5 min read2 Apr 2026
Maintenance of Common Property - Roles and Responsibilities
Maintenance
Maintenance of Common Property - Roles and Responsibilities
A practical property maintenance checklist for strata and community titled groups in South Australia covering legal obligations, common property inspections and priority planning.
5 min read2 Apr 2026
Administration and Sinking Funds Explained
Finances & Levies
Administration and Sinking Funds Explained
Understand the difference between administration funds and sinking funds in South Australian strata and community titled groups; what they cover, why they matter, and the mandatory budget requirements under SA law.
5 min read2 Apr 2026
Resolving Disputes in Strata and Community Groups
Legal & Compliance
Resolving Disputes in Strata and Community Groups
A step-by-step guide to resolving disputes in strata and community titled properties in South Australia - from direct conversation through to mediation and court action.
3 min read2 Apr 2026
Painting Common Property in Strata and Community Groups
Maintenance
Painting Common Property in Strata and Community Groups
How to manage a body corporate repaint in South Australia — from paint specifications and quotes to contractor management, levy funding, and example meeting resolutions.
4 min read2 Apr 2026
Animals in Units
Community Living
Animals in Units
How pet applications work in South Australian strata and community titled properties — legal requirements, the approval process, and a downloadable pet application form.
4 min read2 Apr 2026
Essentials For Unit Owners
Legal & Compliance
Essentials For Unit Owners
A comprehensive guide to owning a strata titled unit in South Australia — covering the law, the Strata Plan, common property, unit boundaries, meetings, voting, the maintenance fund, and your obligations under the Articles.
8 min read23 Mar 2026
Buying a Strata or Community Titled Unit
Strata Basics
Buying a Strata or Community Titled Unit
What to check before buying into a strata or community titled property in South Australia — corporation searches, governance, finances, and a practical buyer's checklist.
4 min read23 Mar 2026
Self-Managed Corporation Hints
Governance
Self-Managed Corporation Hints
Is your self-managed Strata Corporation protecting your assets and lifestyle? Use this checklist to see how your Corporation rates and identify potential risks.
3 min read23 Mar 2026
Your Rights and Roles as a Strata Unit Owner
Governance
Your Rights and Roles as a Strata Unit Owner
Understanding your rights as a strata unit owner in South Australia — how voting works, how to call a meeting, your right to inspect insurance and corporation records, and the dispute resolution path when the corporation or committee is being unreasonable.
7 min read23 Mar 2026
Acacia Collective's Objectives
Strata Basics
Acacia Collective's Objectives
Our mission is to support Strata titled property owners. These five objectives ensure your best interests remain at the heart of everything we do.
2 min read23 Mar 2026
Meeting Hints & Tips
Governance
Meeting Hints & Tips
Practical tips for attending or chairing a strata management meeting — from introductions and note-taking to voting and keeping discussions on track.
2 min read23 Mar 2026
Strata Basics
What Does a Strata Manager Actually Do? Roles, Responsibilities and Limits
A strata manager isn't your landlord, your decision-maker, or your boss. They're a service provider engaged by the corporation. Here's what the role actually covers, what stays with the committee, and how to tell whether yours is earning their fee.
5 min read22 May 2026
Maintenance
Who Is Liable for Maintenance - Common Property and Collective Responsibility
The default rule says the corporation maintains common property and owners maintain their units — but the boundary is rarely as clean as that suggests. A practical guide to who pays when the line gets blurred, drawing on legal advice provided to a South Australian strata corporation.
7 min read28 Apr 2026
By-laws
Right of Entry to Private Property in Strata Groups
When does the corporation, another owner, or a tradesperson have a legal right to enter a unit or its yard? The implied easement under Section 9, the emergency power of entry under Section 42, and a real Magistrates Court ruling that ordered an obstructing owner to grant access.
6 min read28 Apr 2026
Meetings
Chairing Effective Meetings - The Three Laws
A meeting isn't a battleground, but it can be a jungle. Three laws — cope with conflict, focus the group, mobilise the group — that between them cover most of what a chair needs to think about, adapted for the realities of South Australian strata and community-title meetings.
6 min read28 Apr 2026
Strata Basics
Buying a Strata Unit With a Partner - Protecting Your Interests
Buying together is a major decision. Joint tenants vs tenants in common, when a binding financial agreement makes sense, and the strata-specific factors that don't apply to free-standing houses — levies, voting rights, and joint and several liability for unpaid charges.
5 min read28 Apr 2026
Maintenance
Clotheslines in Strata and Community Groups
Whether the line is shared or individual changes who maintains it. The shared/exclusive split, the South Australian "right to dry" position, and what to do when an old shared line is at end-of-life.
2 min read28 Apr 2026
Maintenance
TV Antennas - Who Owns Them?
A shared rooftop antenna saves a forest of individual aerials and is almost always common property. The two distribution systems, why poor reception usually starts at the cable not the antenna, and the by-law that prevents 24 different aerials sprouting on the roof.
4 min read28 Apr 2026
Maintenance
Stairs - Ownership, Types and What To Watch
Stairs are common property and a serious public-liability item. The materials, the early signs of failure, and the small jobs (handrails, nosings, lighting) that prevent the kind of fall that lands in court.
4 min read28 Apr 2026
Maintenance
Lighting - External and Internal, Who Owns Which?
External lighting is common property - and the single cheapest safety upgrade most groups can make. The shared/exclusive split, the case for LEDs, and the sensor-and-timer setups that cut bills without leaving the carpark dark.
4 min read28 Apr 2026
Maintenance
Driveways - Common Problems and Who Owns Them
Driveways are common property, used by everyone, paid for by all. The four common surface types, the cracks worth worrying about, and the surface treatments that quietly add a decade to a driveway's life.
4 min read28 Apr 2026
Maintenance
Windows - The Different Types and Who's Responsible
Windows sit on the boundary between unit and common property — the frame is usually common, the glass is usually owner. The shared/exclusive split, the four common window types, and the maintenance jobs that quietly extend their life by decades.
4 min read28 Apr 2026
Maintenance
Foundations, Paths and Slabs
Foundations are almost always common property — and South Australian reactive clay soils make them one of the most expensive things a corporation will ever fix. The footing types, the early signs of trouble, and why a small crack now is cheaper than underpinning later.
5 min read28 Apr 2026
Maintenance
Maintaining Roofs on Strata and Community Buildings
Roofs above units are common property and can't be charged back to a single owner under Section 27(6). The three main cladding types, the problems each one develops with age, and the inspection rhythm that catches a $400 fix before it becomes a $40,000 one.
5 min read28 Apr 2026
Maintenance
Air Conditioners - The Different Types and Who Owns Them
Air conditioner installations are one of the most common — and most contested — issues in strata. The shared-vs-individual rule, the resolution thresholds for using common property, the four main system types, and a sample policy your corporation can adapt.
6 min read28 Apr 2026
Maintenance
Hot Water Systems - Ownership and Common Configurations
When a hot water service is shared between units, it's common property - and the corporation's responsibility to maintain. The shared-vs-individual rule, the four common configurations, the anode replacement that quietly extends a tank's life, and what to know before approving solar.
5 min read28 Apr 2026