How to Change Your Strata Manager: Steps and Rules in Every State (2026)

The complaint had been on the agenda three times. The lift had been faulty for eleven weeks. Emails to the strata manager had been acknowledged - once - then silence. The insurance renewal came in 18% higher than last year with no explanation, no alternative quotes, and no response to the committee's queries. At the last AGM, someone finally said out loud what half the room had been thinking: "Can we actually get rid of them?"

Usually, yes. But how depends on two things most owners don't check first: which state you're in, and where you are in the manager's contract.

Related Guides

• How to Choose a Body Corporate Manager
• Are My Body Corporate Fees Too High?
• Strata Manager Secret Commissions

The Short Answer

Every state caps how long a strata management contract can run - three years in NSW, Victoria, Queensland and WA - so you can always change managers when the current term ends. Give the notice the contract requires, pass a resolution at a general meeting to appoint someone new, and the outgoing manager must hand over your records and money.

Ending a contract mid-term is harder. In most states you need a breach the manager hasn't fixed after written notice, the manager's agreement, or a termination right in the contract itself. Queensland is the strictest: outside the end of the term, you generally need grounds and a formal remedial action notice.

So the first question is always: when does our current term end?

Step 1: Get the Contract and Find the End Date

Ask your manager for a copy of the management agreement if the committee doesn't hold one - it belongs to the scheme and you're entitled to it. Look for:

• The term and end date - and whether the manager has already been reappointed at an AGM
• The notice period to end the contract at the end of the term - miss it and the contract may roll over or extend
• Early termination rights - what counts as a breach, how much notice the manager gets to fix it, and any early termination fee
• What happens at handover - how records, bank accounts and funds are transferred

If the term ends within the next six months, you're in the easy window. Diarise the notice deadline now.

Step 2: Go to Market Before You Give Notice

Line up the replacement first. A gap between managers means nobody is issuing levy notices, paying invoices or renewing insurance.

1. Get at least three proposals from managers that handle schemes of your size.
2. Compare the total cost, not the base fee. Additional charges for meetings, hourly work and disbursements can add 20-50% or more on top.
3. Check their credentials for your state - a licence in NSW, registration in Victoria, the minimum requirements in WA (see the table below). Queensland has no licensing, so references matter more there.
4. Ask about commissions - insurance and contractor commissions are a common hidden cost. See strata manager secret commissions.
5. Read the proposed contract as closely as the old one: term, notice periods, fee escalation, and exit terms.

Step 3: Pass the Resolution at a General Meeting

Changing managers is a decision for the owners at a general meeting, not something the committee can do alone (though in Queensland the committee can issue a remedial action notice - see below). Put a motion on the agenda of your next AGM, or call an extraordinary general meeting if the timing won't wait.

The motion should cover both halves:

1. Ending the current appointment - that the owners corporation not reappoint (or terminate) the current manager, with notice given as the contract requires.
2. Appointing the new manager - on the terms of the attached proposal and contract, and authorising the committee or two owners to sign it.

Attach the competing proposals to the meeting notice so owners can compare them.

Step 4: Give Written Notice

Send written notice of termination or non-renewal the day after the meeting. It should reference the resolution, state the date the appointment ends (respecting the contract's notice period), and ask the manager to confirm the handover arrangements. Email plus registered post is safest. Keep copies of everything.

Step 5: Manage the Handover

The outgoing manager stays responsible until the appointment ends, then must hand over the scheme's records, documents and money. Set a handover date in writing with both managers and confirm:

• All records transferred - minutes, financial records, contracts, insurance policies, correspondence, keys and access devices
• Trust account balances reconciled and funds transferred, with bank signatories updated promptly
• Insurance renewals, open maintenance jobs and outstanding levy arrears listed and handed over
• Owners and contractors told who to contact from the changeover date

Victoria and WA set a 28-day deadline for returning records and funds (see below). If a manager won't hand over records, your state's tribunal can order it.

The Rules in Each State

New South Wales

The first manager appointed at the first AGM can only be appointed for up to 12 months. After that, appointments run for up to three years (section 50 of the Strata Schemes Management Act 2015). Ending an appointment must be authorised by a resolution at a general meeting and be done in line with the agreement itself.

Timing matters at the end of a term. Give the agent written notice that you won't be reappointing them at least three months before the term ends - otherwise the agent may be able to extend the appointment for up to three months. Mid-term termination is usually only available for a breach the agent hasn't fixed after notice, so check the agreement's breach clause carefully.

Victoria

Since the 2021 reforms, no owners corporation manager can be appointed for more than three years, and contract terms that trapped owners are void - including renewals at the manager's option, automatic renewal if the owners corporation misses a deadline, and clauses requiring a special or unanimous resolution to remove the manager.

Most Victorian managers use the industry's standard contract of appointment. Under it, either party must give 89 days' notice to end the appointment for tier 1 and 2 owners corporations (51+ lots) and 27 days for tiers 3 to 5. If no notice is given, the contract renews and can then be ended on one month's notice. Either party can terminate immediately for a breach that isn't fixed after notice. Ending the contract early without a breach can trigger an early termination fee. Records and funds must be handed back within 28 days.

Queensland

Queensland is different in two ways. First, body corporate managers don't need a licence or any formal qualification - they're regulated through a code of conduct in the body corporate legislation. Second, the body corporate can't simply end an engagement mid-term because it's unhappy.

An engagement can be ended:

• By agreement with the manager, where the contract allows it
• Under the contract's own terms
• If the manager is convicted of an indictable offence involving dishonesty, fraud or assault (ordinary resolution by secret ballot)
• After a remedial action notice - for misconduct, gross negligence, failing to carry out duties, breaching the code of conduct or failing to meet disclosure requirements. The committee can issue the notice, which must give at least 14 days to fix the problem. If it isn't fixed, the body corporate can terminate by ordinary resolution at a general meeting.

Engagements can't be longer than three years, so if none of these apply, the practical route is to decide not to renew and appoint a new manager when the term ends. The body corporate can also require the manager to transfer the engagement to someone else, with its approval.

Don't confuse the body corporate manager with a caretaker or letting agent under a management rights agreement - those contracts can run for decades and have their own rules. See caretaking and letting agreements.

Western Australia

WA doesn't license strata managers, but since 1 November 2020 anyone acting as one must meet minimum requirements: relevant qualifications, professional indemnity insurance, a criminal record check, authorisation by the strata company, and a written contract. Contracts are capped at three years and must set out the "proper grounds" on which the strata company can terminate. Managers must return the strata company's property within 28 days after the contract ends. The State Administrative Tribunal can also terminate or vary a strata management contract.

South Australia, Tasmania, the ACT and the Northern Territory

The same broad process applies - check the contract's term and notice period, resolve at a general meeting, give written notice and manage the handover - but the detailed rules differ. Check your territory or state's strata or community titles legislation, or ask a strata lawyer, before relying on a mid-term termination.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can the committee sack the strata manager on its own?

Generally no. Ending a manager's appointment is a decision for the owners at a general meeting. In Queensland, the committee can issue a remedial action notice, but terminating after it still needs a resolution at a general meeting.

How long does it take to change strata managers?

If you plan around the end of the current term, typically two to four months: a month or two to get proposals and hold the meeting, plus the contract's notice period and a handover of up to 28 days. Mid-term changes take longer if the manager disputes the grounds.

Do we have to pay an early termination fee?

Only if the contract provides for one and you end it early without a breach. Victoria's standard contract includes one, and agreements in other states can too - check yours. Waiting for the end of the term avoids it.

What if the manager won't hand over our records?

Put the request in writing with a deadline, then apply to your state's tribunal or dispute service (NCAT, VCAT, the Queensland Commissioner's office or WA's State Administrative Tribunal) for an order. Victoria and WA set a 28-day deadline for handing back records and funds.

Key Takeaways

• Find the end date first. Every major state caps contracts at three years, so the end of the term is always your cleanest exit.
• Mid-term is harder - usually a breach that isn't fixed after notice, or the manager's agreement. In Queensland you need a remedial action notice or another specific ground.
• Line up the replacement before giving notice, and compare total cost, not just the base fee.
• Decide at a general meeting, give written notice promptly, and hold the outgoing manager to the handover deadline.

This article is general information, not legal advice. Strata management rules vary by state and territory and change over time. If you're relying on a mid-term termination or dealing with a manager who won't cooperate with a handover, get advice from a strata lawyer or your state's strata dispute service.