Are Strata Levies Recoverable Under WA Retail Leases?
If you lease or own retail premises in Western Australia within a strata complex (for example, a small shop in a strata shopping centre or mixed-use building), the question of who pays the strata levies can be surprisingly complex.
Landlords naturally want to pass on as much as possible as “outgoings”. Tenants are rightly concerned not to pay more than the law allows. The problem is that strata law and WA retail leasing law use different concepts – and they don’t line up neatly.
This article explains, in practical terms:
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When strata levies can be recovered from a retail tenant;
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The difference between the Administration Fund and Reserve (Sinking) Fund; and
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Which parts of those levies must remain a landlord’s cost under WA’s Commercial Tenancy (Retail Shops) Agreements Act 1985 (WA) (the CT Act).
