Strata Disputes: How NCAT and VCAT Work, and the Steps You Must Take First
By the AgentFind Editorial Team — Australian Property Professional Directory, Sydney
The single most common mistake in a strata dispute is going straight to the tribunal. In New South Wales, mediation through NSW Fair Trading is compulsory for most strata disputes before an application to NCAT, and it is free. In Victoria, an owners corporation must follow its internal dispute resolution process before requesting dispute resolution from the Dispute Settlement Centre of Victoria or applying to VCAT. Lodge out of sequence and the application is likely to be sent back — after you have waited for it.
Key Takeaways
Strata dispute resolution is a staircase, not a door. Talk first, then use the owners corporation’s own process, then the state’s free or low-cost external step, then the tribunal. Each rung is a prerequisite for the next, and the documents you generate on the way are what the tribunal actually decides on.
- NSW: mediation through NSW Fair Trading is free and compulsory for most strata disputes before lodging at NCAT — though some matters bypass it and are heard directly.
- Victoria: the internal dispute resolution process comes first, by statute. The Owners Corporations Act 2006 requires it before DSCV or VCAT.
- Every other state and territory has its own sequence and its own forum — Queensland through the Commissioner for Body Corporate and Community Management, Western Australia through the State Administrative Tribunal.
- The paper trail decides most cases. Dated correspondence, meeting minutes and written requests beat recollection every time.
The NSW Sequence: Four Steps, In Order
NSW Fair Trading sets out four steps: talk about it with the other party; contact the owners corporation through the strata manager or committee; apply for free mediation through NSW Fair Trading; and lodge an application with NCAT as a last resort. Mediation is compulsory for most strata disputes before a Tribunal application, but some dispute types bypass mediation and are heard directly by the Tribunal.
The matters NSW Fair Trading identifies as bypassing mandatory mediation include the compulsory appointment of a strata managing agent, the allocation of unit entitlements, access to lots for inspection or repair, penalties, and inspection of strata records. That list is not exhaustive, so confirm your own dispute type before assuming either way.
Most owners are surprised that step three is free. Mediation costs nothing and can be applied for online, which makes the calculation simple: a process that costs nothing and often resolves the matter sits between you and a tribunal hearing that will cost you time, filing fees and possibly a lawyer. Use it properly rather than treating it as a box to tick.
Insider Insight: Put every request in writing, dated, even when you have already said it in person — and especially when the strata manager has been helpful on the phone. A dispute that reaches mediation or a tribunal is decided on what can be produced, not on what was said. One email per request, one subject per email, and keep the thread. Owners who do this routinely win matters that owners with better facts and no records lose.
The Victorian Sequence: Internal First, By Law
Under the Owners Corporations Act 2006, an owners corporation must follow its internal dispute resolution process before requesting dispute resolution by the Dispute Settlement Centre of Victoria or making an application to VCAT. The order is set by statute, not by convention.
In practice that means finding the owners corporation’s grievance procedure — it should be in the rules — and using it, in writing, before escalating anywhere. Where the internal process fails or is not followed, DSCV conciliation is the next step, and VCAT sits after that.
Victorian owners should also note that VCAT’s owners corporation list handles a wide range of matters, from lot-owner obligations and rule breaches to fees, repairs and manager conduct. Which is to say: the forum is broad, but the entry requirement is narrow.
Where Your Dispute Goes, By State
The tribunal or forum differs in every jurisdiction, and so does the compulsory step before it. Identify both before you write anything.
| State / Territory | Step before the forum | Where it is decided |
|---|---|---|
| NSW | Free NSW Fair Trading mediation — compulsory for most disputes | NCAT (Consumer and Commercial Division) |
| VIC | The owners corporation’s internal dispute resolution process, then DSCV | VCAT (Owners Corporations List) |
| QLD | Self-resolution, then conciliation | Commissioner for Body Corporate and Community Management (adjudication), with appeal to QCAT |
| WA | Internal resolution attempts | State Administrative Tribunal |
| SA, TAS, ACT, NT | Varies — check the scheme’s own rules and the state regulator | The state or territory court or tribunal with strata jurisdiction |
Treat that table as a starting point for a phone call, not as a substitute for one. Jurisdiction and procedure are exactly the things that change, and a dispute filed in the wrong forum is a dispute you have paid to delay.
What a Tribunal Can and Cannot Do
Tribunals make orders about the things the legislation gives them power over — levies, repairs and maintenance of common property, by-law and rule breaches, records and access, manager appointment and conduct, and invalidating or making decisions in place of the owners corporation. They do not referee personalities, and they will not reward a party who skipped the earlier steps.
Two practical consequences. First, frame your application as a request for a specific order, not as a complaint: “an order that the owners corporation repair the failed membrane above lot 12 within 90 days” is an application; “the committee is unreasonable” is not. Second, expect the other side’s conduct to matter less than your own documentation of it.
FEATURED CASE STUDY
The Owner Who Won on the Email Thread
An owner in a twenty-two-lot Sydney scheme reported water staining spreading across a bedroom ceiling from common property above. The committee acknowledged it verbally at two meetings, arranged one inspection, and then went quiet for seven months while the owner chased by phone.
The owner had sent one dated email per request — eleven in total — each naming the defect, the lot, the date of the last response and what was being asked for.
At free Fair Trading mediation, the thread did the work. It established that the owners corporation had been on notice for seven months, had inspected, and had neither scoped nor funded a repair. The scheme agreed to commission a report within 21 days and complete works within 90.
No hearing, no filing fee, no lawyer. The outcome turned entirely on the fact that eleven dated emails existed and nothing contradicted them. This is an illustrative scenario built from the typical pattern above, not a specific client file.
Building a Dispute That Holds Up
Write to the other party first and keep a copy. Ask the owners corporation in writing for the specific action you want, with a date. Request the scheme’s records if you need them. Then use the compulsory external step properly, and only then consider the tribunal.
A few things make a measurable difference. Ask for one thing per letter. Include the lot number and the date of every prior contact. Attach photographs with dates where the dispute is physical. Where the dispute concerns money, set out the figures rather than describing them. And if you are an owner rather than a committee member, request an inspection of the strata records — in NSW that is one of the matters that can go directly to NCAT without mediation, which tells you how seriously the legislation treats access to them.
Finally, keep the aim in view. Most strata disputes are about getting something repaired, stopped or paid for. The fastest route to that is usually the free step everyone wants to skip.
Frequently Asked Questions
➕ Do I have to try mediation before going to NCAT?
➕ Which NSW strata disputes can skip mediation?
➕ Does strata mediation cost anything in NSW?
➕ What must happen before I can apply to VCAT in Victoria?
➕ Can NCAT or VCAT order the owners corporation to do repairs?
➕ How long does a strata dispute take?
➕ Do I need a lawyer for a strata dispute?
➕ Can I see the owners corporation’s records?
Check the Reviews Before You Pick Up the Phone
How a scheme handles disputes is largely a function of how its manager handles correspondence. Every professional listed on AgentFind shows their verified Google rating and review count on their profile, pulled from their own Google Business Profile rather than written for them.
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Ratings and review counts are sourced from each firm’s public Google Business Profile and refreshed periodically; 341 of 433 listings currently carry a Google rating. AgentFind does not write, edit or solicit these reviews.
Been through mediation or a tribunal? Tell us in the comments what the dispute was about and what actually moved it. Owners currently stuck on step one will get more from that than from any procedural guide.
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Related reading: special levies and capital works funds and building defects and combustible cladding.
Important — currency and verification notice
This article is general information only and was current at the date of publication shown above. It is not legal, financial, taxation or strata advice, and it does not take your circumstances into account.
Legislation, regulations, penalties, thresholds, scheme rules and tribunal procedures change frequently, and several of the provisions referred to here commenced or change on staged dates. Before acting on anything in this article you must independently verify the current position that applies to your property and your state or territory — including the relevant strata, property, building and consumer legislation; the jurisdiction, procedures and time limits of the applicable tribunal (for example NCAT in New South Wales or VCAT in Victoria); the content and currency of any certificate you intend to rely on, such as a section 184 or section 108 certificate; and the current status of any building defect, combustible cladding or remediation scheme affecting the building.
AgentFind is a directory service. We do not provide legal, financial or strata advice and we accept no responsibility for decisions made in reliance on this article. Obtain advice from a qualified professional — a solicitor, licensed conveyancer, accountant, licensed mortgage broker or licensed strata manager as appropriate — and confirm current requirements with the relevant government authority or regulator before committing to a transaction or a course of action.
Sources: NSW Government — Strata disputes; NSW Government — Applying for strata mediation; NCAT — Strata schemes; Consumer Affairs Victoria — complaint handling and dispute resolution; VCAT — owners corporations disputes.
