Beware Air Conditioning Can Put Your Sale Ice

You’ve been negotiating with a purchaser for days. You’re finally ready to exchange. Then you find out there’s an unapproved air conditioning unit installed on the common property and now the purchaser is about to walk away. What do you do? Defining common property Generally, ‘common property’ comprises the land in a strata scheme that is not contained within the individual lots. Ownership of a unit, on the other hand, is comprised of the airspace within each owner’s lot, which is the area between the ceiling, floor and the boundary walls. It can also include the airspace over balconies and courtyards. Internal walls within the airspace are generally part of the lot owner’s responsibility, but all other parts of the property are defined as common property. Common property is created on registration of any strata plan or strata plan of subdivision (s 7(2) of the Strata Schemes (Freehold Development) Act 1973) and is the responsibility of the Owners Corporation.