Coralie Mott Director, CTS Management P/L

What are the characteristics of a good body corporate manager?

In order to be a good body corporate manager a person needs to have the following: a good working knowledge and understanding of the Body Corporate & Community Management Act 1997 and associated legislation; is an excellent communicator (and listener); is patient; does not take things personally; behaves impartially and professionally; is prepared to impart knowledge and experience; has a sound understanding of financial statements and budgets; is committed to an on-going professional development program; is able to assist with proper meeting procedures; has excellent mediation skills; has outstanding telephone skills; has exceptional time management skills; has a wonderful sense of humour; and, most importantly, is a good team player.

As you would have guessed, good body corporate managers are hard to come by. The role of a body corporate manager is a difficult one. Yet, a body corporate manager can greatly contribute (or otherwise) to the harmonious environment within a community or strata titled complex. He/she has a responsibility to be positive and proactive for the benefit of all stakeholders (unit owners, the committee and the resident unit manager in particular).

Engagement of a BCM

A body corporate manager is a person who has been engaged by a body corporate of a community titles scheme (other than as an employee of the body corporate) to supply administrative services to the body corporate. The body corporate may delegate some or all of the powers of the committee or an executive member of the committee to the body corporate manager.

The body corporate manager is appointed in writing by the body corporate. The term of the engagement must not be more than three years. At the end of the term the engagement expires and the manager must have a new engagement to act as the body corporate manager.

The role of a BCM

The body corporate manager’s role is primarily an advisory one. The body corporate manager guides and assists the body corporate and its committee to ensure the body corporate complies with all of its requirements under the BCCM Act and the regulation module applying to the scheme. Despite the contract that is in place between the body corporate and the body corporate manager, a decision of a body corporate manager is void to the extent it is inconsistent with a decision of the committee.

The body corporate manager’s role is not to make decisions for the body corporate except: If under the regulation module applying to the scheme there is no committee, the body corporate in writing may authorise the body corporate manager to exercise the authorised powers of the committee or an executive member of the committee. A decision of a body corporate manager in exercising a power under an authorisation given under section 120 of the BCCM Act is a decision of the body corporate, except if the issue is a restricted issue for the committee.

This authorisation can, however, be revoked at any time.

The body corporate manager has a fiduciary duty to all lot owners as well as the body corporate. The manager’s duties are stated in the contract with the body corporate and are usually divided into three categories- secretarial, financial and administrative.

The secretarial duties include attending to communications, issuing meeting notices and minutes and attending meetings.

The financial duties include the issuing and receipting of contribution notices, operating bank accounts, preparing reconciliation and financial statements, preparing budgets and processing and paying accounts.

The administrative responsibilities include maintaining the roll and associated registers, making the records available for inspection and ensuring that the body corporate and the committee are acting in accordance with the BCCM Act.

The body corporate manager may also, from time to time, provide information, copies of documents, information certificates and disclosure statements to individual owners and/or their representatives.

Codes of conduct

Codes of conduct (sec 118, sch 2 of the BCCM Act) apply to the performance of a body corporate manager. The same codes of conduct apply to caretaking service contractors and are summarised as follows:

1 Knowledge of the act – a body corporate manager must have a good working knowledge and understanding of this.

2 Honesty, fairness and professionalism – a body corporate manager must act honestly, fairly and professionally.

3 Skill, care and diligence – a body corporate manager must exercise reasonable skill, care and diligence.

4 Acting in the body corporate’s best interests – a body corporate manager must act in the best interests of the body corporate unless it is unlawful.

5 Keeping body corporate informed of developments – a body corporate manager must keep the body corporate informed of any significant issues.

6 Ensuring employees comply with act and code – the body corporate manager must take reasonable steps to ensure an employee complies with the act.

7 Fraudulent or misleading conduct – a body corporate manager must not engage in fraudulent or misleading conduct in performing their functions under their engagement.

8 Unconscionable conduct – a body corporate manager must not engage in unconscionable conduct in performing the functions under their engagement.

9 Conflict of interest – a body corporate manager must not accept an engagement for an additional scheme if there may be a possible conflict of interest in relation to a scheme that the manager already has an engagement with.

10 Goods and services to be supplied at competitive prices – a body corporate manager must take reasonable steps to ensure that goods and services obtained for the body corporate are at competitive prices.

11 Body corporate man-ager to de-monstrate keeping of particular records – a body corporate man-ager must comply (in a timely man-ner) with a request from the body corporate or the committee to show that the records are being maintained as required under the BCCM Act.

If a body corporate manager contravenes any of the above codes the body corporate may terminate the manager’s agreement if the required remedial notice has been served in accordance with the BCCM Act. Termination is approved by ordinary resolution of the body corporate.

Licensing, or some form of regulation, of body corporate managers has been discussed, debated and deliberated by the government and the various stakeholders for many years now. It is widely agreed that this issue is way overdue to be formalised.

The role of a body corporate manager is a significant one but no more significant than that of the committee or the resident unit manager. A successful community or strata titled property is the result of professional individuals working together with the best interest of the community in mind.