Body Corporate Search QLD: What to Check Before You Buy a Unit or Townhouse
By Tim AllenBuyer’s Agent and Director, IPS Buyer’s Agents
A body corporate search in QLD is a look through the records of the body corporate you would be joining when you buy a unit or townhouse. The seller has to give you a body corporate certificate and the community management statement before you sign,[1][2] but the records go further: the minutes of committee and general meetings show what the body corporate has decided, and its contracts and financial records show what you will be paying for through your levies.[2]
This guide covers what the seller must give you, how to search the records and what it costs, what to look for in the levies and the sinking fund, the by-laws on pets and smoking, insurance and defects, and a checklist to take to your solicitor.
Key takeaways
- For a lot in a community titles scheme, the seller must give you the community management statement and a body corporate certificate before you sign.[1][2]
- A buyer, or their agent, can inspect the records or ask for copies; the body corporate has 7 days once it has your written request and the fee.[3]
- The sinking fund budget must plan for at least 9 years after the current financial year, so compare it with the big jobs ahead.[4]
- Unexpected costs are met with a special contribution, an additional levy often called a special levy, decided by ordinary resolution.[5]
- A search of orders shows any adjudicator’s order for the scheme in the last 6 years.[6]
What a body corporate is, and which rules apply
A body corporate is made up of every person who owns a lot in the scheme. When you buy a lot, you become a member automatically, and you can’t opt out.[2] Body corporate properties range from duplexes and townhouse complexes to high-rise unit blocks.[2]
Most bodies corporate in Queensland are governed by the Body Corporate and Community Management Act 1997. A community titles scheme has a community management statement (CMS) recorded with Titles Queensland, which tells you the regulation module that applies. A body corporate without a registered CMS falls under another Act instead, such as the Building Units and Group Titles Act 1980.[2]
The survey plan matters too, because it decides who maintains what. The body corporate must keep the common property in good and structurally sound condition, and you must keep your lot in good condition.[7] Under a building format plan, which usually applies to multi-storey unit complexes but can also cover townhouses, the body corporate is usually responsible for the outside of the building, its foundations and its roof.[8] Titles Queensland can give you the survey plan and the CMS.[7]
What the seller must give you before you sign
Under the seller disclosure scheme, the seller gives you a disclosure statement and prescribed certificates. For a lot in a community titles scheme, those include the CMS and a body corporate certificate,[1] and you should have them before you sign.[2]
- The body corporate certificate sets out how much the lot has to pay the body corporate in the current financial year, including amounts due but not paid.[9] It also covers the secretary or manager, insurance, maintenance, improvements, levies and by-laws.[2]
- The CMS shows any proposed development of the scheme, the lot entitlement schedules used to calculate your levies, the by-laws and the regulation module.[2]
- The disclosure statement doesn’t have to cover the structural soundness of the building,[1] so the building inspection and the records still matter.
If the seller doesn’t give you the disclosure documents before you sign, or the information is inaccurate or incomplete, you may be able to end the contract any time up to settlement. For inaccurate or incomplete information, the issue must be material, you must not have known about it, and you would not have signed had you known.[10] Our contract of sale guide covers the rest of the contract.
You can see the records, and get copies, if you are an owner, a mortgagee, the buyer of a lot, someone with a proper interest in the records, or the agent of one of these people. You can also appoint someone else, such as your solicitor or conveyancer, to search for you.[3] Our conveyancing guide shows where the search fits in the purchase.
- Ask in writing and pay the fee. You can ask to inspect the records, or for copies of specific documents. If you can’t name the documents, you or the person you appoint will need to search the records.[3]
- Expect access within 7 days. The body corporate must let you inspect the records, or give you copies, within 7 days of your written request and payment. Refusing access is an offence.[3]
- Know the fees. Inspection costs $39.75 if you are not a lot owner, copies cost $0.75 a page, and you don’t pay the inspection fee if you only ask for copies. The body corporate can’t add other charges, such as the manager’s time.[9]
- Search the dispute history. A search of adjudicators’ orders shows any order made for the scheme in the last 6 years, and any application lodged but not yet decided. It costs $22.10 to collect in person or $25.70 by post or email, and takes 4 to 5 working days.[6]
Ask for the minutes of committee and general meetings, the contracts the body corporate is party to (caretaking, letting, management or lift maintenance, which you will help pay for through levies) and financial records that aren’t on the certificate.[2] A body corporate certificate costs $86.95, with a $31 extra fee if you need it within 24 hours.[9]
Timing matters. A residential contract usually has a 5-business-day cooling-off period, and any condition you need, such as a satisfactory search, only binds if it is written into the contract.[10] See our cooling-off period guide and how to make an offer for how to build that time in.
Every body corporate under the main regulation modules must have an administrative fund and a sinking fund, with budgets prepared every financial year, and your levies depend on those budgets.[11] Owners set the levies at each annual general meeting by ordinary resolution, and each lot’s share is based on its contribution schedule lot entitlement in the CMS.[5]
The sinking fund pays for big or one-off items, such as painting or structural repairs to common property, and for replacing major items such as fences or carpets.[4] Its budget must cover the current financial year and reserve enough for likely spending over at least the next 9 years. A professional sinking fund forecast is optional; the committee or an owner can estimate the spending instead.[4]
When costs weren’t budgeted, or not enough was set aside, the body corporate must raise a special contribution. The government’s own example is painting that costs more than the sinking fund budget allows.[5] So compare the sinking fund balance and forecast with the work the minutes say is coming. A thin fund with a repaint, a roof or lifts ahead is a warning sign.
Levies normally rise in line with the Consumer Price Index,[11] and running costs are likely to increase over time.[2] Late levies can attract simple interest of up to 2.5% a month,[5] and as the new owner you may be liable for levies the seller hasn’t paid,[2] so check the certificate for anything owing before settlement. Our guide to the costs of buying a house in QLD covers the other costs of buying.
By-laws are the scheme’s own rules on matters such as noise, pets and parking, and the seller gives you a copy before you sign.[2] Read them against how you plan to live in, or rent out, the property.
- Pets. By-laws that ban animals outright, or ban a breed or weight, are invalid under the legislation. But while one stays in the CMS, the committee can’t approve an animal it prohibits; you would need a motion to change it. Under a by-law that allows animals with approval, you ask in writing (BCCM form 31), and the body corporate can set reasonable conditions.[12]
- Smoking. Smoking, including e-cigarettes, is banned in enclosed common areas such as foyers and stairwells. Since 1 May 2024, a body corporate can also make by-laws banning smoking on common property or an outdoor area, such as car parks or balconies.[13]
A body corporate must insure the common property, its assets and, in most cases, every building that contains a lot. The common property and assets must be insured for their full replacement value, and public risk cover must be at least $10 million for a single event.[14] The body corporate certificate covers the insurance in place.[2]
For a newer building, look in the minutes for defect claims. Queensland’s home warranty insurance lasts 6 years and 6 months, stays with the property when it is sold, and you or your legal agent can search whether a property has it. But building work in or for a multiple dwelling of more than three storeys (not counting one storey that is mainly car park) isn’t covered.[15] A building and pest inspection is still worth doing; ask the inspector what the report will and won’t cover in a unit or townhouse.
| Check | Where to find it |
|---|---|
| Levies owing and set for the year | Body corporate certificate[9] |
| Lot entitlements, by-laws, proposed development | Community management statement[2] |
| Sinking fund balance and 10-year plan | Budgets and financial records[4] |
| Special levies and big works ahead | Minutes of committee and general meetings[2] |
| Caretaking, letting and management contracts | Body corporate records[2] |
| Disputes in the last 6 years | Search of adjudicators’ orders[6] |
| Building and public risk insurance | Body corporate certificate[2] |
| Who maintains what | Survey plan and regulation module[7] |
| Home warranty cover | A QBCC insurance search[15] |
| Pets, smoking and use of the lot | By-laws in the CMS[12] |
IPS Buyer’s Agents works only for buyers. We attend inspections, negotiate the price and conditions, and work with your broker, building and pest inspector and solicitor through to settlement. See our buyer’s agent services, our first home buyer page, or how we helped first-home buyers into a three-bedroom townhouse in Lawnton. For the listing abbreviations you will meet along the way, such as BC and CMS, see our guide to real estate listing terms.
- Documents. Read the body corporate certificate and the CMS the seller gives you before you sign.[1][2]
- Records. Search the minutes, contracts and financial records; access must be given within 7 days.[3]
- Money. Compare the sinking fund with the work ahead, and check for levies owing.[4][2]
- Rules. Read the by-laws on pets, smoking and use of the lot.[12]
- Risk. Search the dispute history and check the insurance and any home warranty cover.[6][15]
This article is general information only, current at November 2026. It is not legal or financial advice and does not consider your circumstances. Body corporate fees change every 1 July. Check the body corporate documents and contract for your purchase with your solicitor or conveyancer before you act.
If you are weighing up a unit or townhouse and want a second pair of eyes on the body corporate, book a time with Tim Allen to talk it through.
- Queensland Government — Seller disclosure scheme (last updated 21 July 2025)
- Queensland Government — Buying a body corporate property (last updated 18 May 2026)
- Queensland Government — Accessing your body corporate’s records (last updated 1 July 2024)
- Queensland Government — Sinking fund (last updated 7 February 2018)
- Queensland Government — Owner’s contributions (last updated 7 February 2018)
- Queensland Government — Search of adjudicator and referee orders (last updated 1 July 2026)
- Queensland Government — Body corporate maintenance (last updated 14 October 2024)
- Queensland Government — Building format plan and building units plan maintenance (last updated 21 May 2026)
- Queensland Government — Fees for accessing body corporate records (last updated 1 July 2026)
- Queensland Government (Office of Fair Trading) — Contract of sale for buying a home (last updated 23 July 2025)
- Queensland Government — Body corporate budgets (last updated 7 February 2018)
- Queensland Government — Animal by-laws (last updated 18 May 2026)
- Queensland Health — Smoking laws: residential premises (last updated 20 August 2025)
- Queensland Government — Compulsory insurance for bodies corporate (last updated 9 July 2025)
- Queensland Building and Construction Commission — What is home warranty insurance (last reviewed 11 May 2025)
What is a body corporate search in QLD?
It is a check of the body corporate’s records before you buy a unit or townhouse: the minutes of committee and general meetings, contracts, budgets and financial records. A buyer or their agent can inspect the records or ask for copies, and the body corporate must give access within 7 days of a written request and the fee. Your solicitor or conveyancer can arrange it for you.
How much does a body corporate search cost in Queensland?
The body corporate’s fees are set by law: $39.75 to inspect the records if you aren’t a lot owner, or $0.75 a page for copies, with no inspection fee if you only want copies. A body corporate certificate costs $86.95, and a search of adjudicators’ orders costs $22.10 or $25.70. If a solicitor or search agent does the work, their own fee is on top.
Can a body corporate ban pets in Queensland?
Not outright. Under the legislation, by-laws that ban animals, or ban a breed or weight, are invalid. But if one is still in the scheme’s CMS, the committee can’t approve an animal it prohibits, so the by-law would need to be changed by motion. Where the by-laws allow animals with approval, you apply in writing and the body corporate can set reasonable conditions.
What is a special levy?
It is an extra levy, called a special contribution in Queensland, that a body corporate must collect when it has costs it didn’t budget for, or didn’t set aside enough for, such as painting that costs more than the sinking fund allowed. Owners decide it by ordinary resolution. Before you buy, check the minutes and the sinking fund forecast for big works coming up.
Do I have to pay the seller’s unpaid body corporate levies?
You may. Queensland’s guidance says a new owner may be liable for levies the current owner hasn’t paid. The body corporate certificate shows how much the lot owes in the current financial year, including amounts due but not paid, so ask your solicitor or conveyancer to deal with anything owing before settlement.
What is the difference between the sinking fund and the administrative fund?
The sinking fund pays for big or one-off items, such as painting, structural repairs and replacing major items like fences or carpets, and its budget must plan for at least 9 years after the current financial year. Everything else is paid from the administrative fund, and a body corporate can’t move money between the two.