Clotheslines in Strata and Community Groups

Who owns the clothesline?

A clothesline located on common property and used by all owners is common property, so the corporation maintains it. A clothesline within a unit's exclusive-use area (a private courtyard or balcony) is the owner's.

The maintenance duty, by jurisdiction

A shared clothesline standing on common ground is common property, and the corporation carries the duty to keep it serviceable. One inside a courtyard or on a balcony that belongs exclusively to a lot is the owner's. The section that imposes the duty varies.

• NSW. Strata Schemes Management Act 2015, s 106(1).

• VIC. Owners Corporations Act 2006, s 46.

• QLD. Body Corporate and Community Management Act 1997, s 152, with the duty in your regulation module: Standard Module s 180, Accommodation Module s 170, Commercial Module s 127, Small Schemes Module s 99.

• WA. Strata Titles Act 1985, s 91(1)(c).

• SA. Strata Titles Act 1988, ss 5 and 25. Community Titles Act 1996, ss 28 and 75.

• TAS. Strata Titles Act 1998, Schedule 1 clause 8.

• ACT. Unit Titles (Management) Act 2011, s 24(1).

• NT. Unit Titles Act 1975, s 34(b).

The practical side

Shared rotary lines rust at the centre post and the line attachments. Replacement of the whole unit is usually cheaper than chasing parts for a 30-year-old model.

Folding wall-mounted lines are common in courtyards. Hinges seize, lines perish. Replacement units cost a few hundred dollars and can be installed in under an hour.

Is there a "right to dry"?

Not as a specific statutory right anywhere in Australia. No state or territory currently writes a protected right to hang washing into its strata legislation, though the idea has been raised in several parliaments. What every jurisdiction does have is a limit on unreasonable by-laws, and a route to challenge one.

So a corporation can in principle restrict outdoor clothes drying by by-law, but a blanket ban is the kind of rule that invites a challenge as unreasonable, oppressive or unjust. In South Australia that is s 41 of the Strata Titles Act 1988; in New South Wales s 150 of the Strata Schemes Management Act 2015 lets NCAT invalidate a harsh or oppressive by-law; Victoria, Queensland, Western Australia, Tasmania, the ACT and the Northern Territory each provide an equivalent through their tribunal or commissioner. Restrictions of this kind are uncommon in residential schemes for exactly that reason.

The practical position: most groups allow individual clotheslines in exclusive-use areas but may restrict drying clothes on balconies visible from the street. If you're drafting or reviewing by-laws on this, see By-laws Explained for what a by-law can and cannot do.

End-of-life decisions

When an old shared line is past serviceable, the committee has three reasonable choices:

• Like-for-like replacement: install a new shared rotary or folding line. This is the cheapest option and works if the existing line is well-used.

• Remove and let owners sort it out: this is an appropriate action if the shared line has become an eyesore that nobody uses (most owners now have their own balcony or courtyard line, or use a dryer).

• Convert the area to other use: bike storage, planted garden or additional seating, for example. This requires general meeting approval if the change is more than incidental.

Get in touch

If your group is unsure what to do with an aging shared line, we're happy to help you scope the options. Acacia Collective manages strata and community title groups across South Australia.

Call us on 1300 79 2255 or email hello@acaciacollective.com.au.