What Does a Body Corporate Manager Actually Do? The Real Day-to-Day, the Limits of the Role, and What Sits Outside It

Quick answer

A body corporate manager runs the administrative engine of the scheme. They prepare and bank the levies, keep the books and the records, prepare and chair meetings, take minutes, send notices, manage correspondence, coordinate contractors, support insurance and renewals, and act as the first point of contact between owners, the committee, and external service providers. They are the operational arm of the body corporate. They are not the decision maker, not the dispute resolver, and not a replacement for legal or financial advice.

The administrative engine of the scheme

Most owners only meet their manager when something goes wrong: a noisy neighbour, an unexpected levy, a meeting they feel went sideways. So the visible part of the role tends to be reactive. The day-to-day is anything but.

A typical week involves dozens of small administrative actions that hold the scheme together. Money flows through. Records get updated. Owners get answers. Contractors get paid. Insurance certificates get pulled. Every task on its own is small. Together, they are the difference between a scheme that runs cleanly and a scheme that drifts into arrears, missed compliance dates, and committee burnout.

The full scope below is what most QLD body corporate managers and NSW strata managing agents do under the standard agreement.

Financial administration

This is the largest single block of the role.

Levy preparation and collection

The manager prepares the levy notices each quarter (or each month, depending on the scheme), issues them to owners, banks the receipts, and reconciles the account. Owners who go into arrears get a follow-up notice, then a second letter, and eventually a debt-recovery process if the arrears are not resolved.

Bank account management

The body corporate funds (administration fund and sinking fund in QLD, administrative fund and capital works fund in NSW) sit in the body corporate’s name. The manager operates the account on behalf of the body corporate, paying invoices that the committee has approved.

Books and reports

The manager keeps the books, runs the annual reporting, and produces statements as required. At AGM time, the manager prepares the financial pack the committee uses to approve the next year’s budget.

Insurance renewal support

The manager pulls renewal quotes (often via a broker), presents the options to the committee, and processes the policy once renewed. They also handle insurance certificates of currency when an owner is selling and the buyer’s solicitor needs proof of cover.

Meetings, motions, and minutes

The other large block.

Annual General Meeting (AGM)

The manager prepares the agenda, sends out the meeting notice within the legislated timeframe, collects proxy votes, runs the meeting (or supports the chairperson to run it), records the motion outcomes, and issues the minutes. AGMs in QLD must follow the BCCM Act timing. AGMs in NSW must follow the SSMA timing. Both have hard procedural rules, and the manager makes sure the scheme stays inside them.

Committee meetings

Less formal than the AGM, but the same disciplines apply. Notice, agenda, motions, voting, minutes. Most committees meet quarterly. Some meet more often.

Extraordinary General Meetings (EGMs)

Called when something cannot wait until the next AGM. Special levies, major works approvals, by-law changes, and committee restructures often go to an EGM. The manager prepares the meeting and records the outcome.

Records management

A body corporate has to keep a roll of owners, a roll of contact details, the by-laws, the CMS, the insurance schedule, every meeting minute, every levy notice, and every key piece of correspondence. The manager keeps that record set, makes it available for owner inspection where the law requires, and provides certified copies on request (often charged as a fee for service to the requester).

When a lot is being sold, the buyer’s solicitor will normally request a section 205 information search (in QLD) or a section 184 certificate (in NSW). The manager prepares those documents from the records.

Contractor and maintenance coordination

Day-to-day common-area maintenance runs through the manager. Cleaning. Gardening. Pool servicing. Pest control. Lift servicing. Building washing. Most of these are recurring service contracts the committee approved at some point.

When something breaks (a leaking common-area pipe, a failing roller door, a damaged fence), the committee usually authorises the manager to organise a repair within an agreed dollar threshold. Anything above that threshold goes to the committee for approval first.

The manager does not normally do the work themselves. They source quotes, present options, organise the chosen contractor, confirm the work is done, and process payment.

Owner correspondence and dispute support

The manager is the first point of contact for owner queries. Most queries are routine: levy questions, AGM clarifications, requests for documents. Some are not.

When a dispute arises (alleged by-law breach, neighbour-noise complaint, owner-versus-committee disagreement), the manager’s role is to keep the correspondence neutral, factual, and audit-safe. The manager does not adjudicate the dispute. Adjudication is for the BCCMA Office of the Commissioner in QLD, or NCAT in NSW.

The manager will help the committee follow correct process: document the issue, send the right notices, give the lot owner the right to respond, and record the chain of correspondence in case the matter escalates.

What a body corporate manager does NOT do

This is the part most owners get wrong.

The manager is not a decision maker. Decisions about the scheme (budgets, contractor appointments, by-law changes, special levies) are made by the committee, or by the body corporate as a whole at AGM. The manager executes those decisions, they do not make them.

The manager is not a strata lawyer. They cannot give legal advice on a dispute, draft a by-law that is enforceable, or interpret a planning instrument. They will refer the committee to a strata lawyer when the matter calls for it.

The manager is not a financial advisor. They will not tell the committee how to invest body corporate reserves, whether to draw down on the sinking fund, or whether a particular special levy is “fair.” They will provide observations and information, and refer to a qualified accountant or quantity surveyor when needed.

The manager is not an enforcement officer. They cannot personally enforce a by-law against a non-compliant owner. They can issue formal contravention notices on the body corporate’s instruction, and support the committee through the dispute pathway, but the enforcement powers sit with the body corporate, the adjudicator (QLD), or the tribunal (NSW), not the manager.

A good manager is up-front about all of this. The bad ones overstate the role and then disappoint the committee when something hits a limit.

Queensland versus New South Wales

The role is essentially the same operationally, but the labels and the licensing differ.

In Queensland, the role is “body corporate manager” and is regulated under the Body Corporate and Community Management Act 1997. Body corporate managers in QLD are not currently subject to a state-issued occupational licence, though many hold industry accreditations through the Strata Community Association (SCA).

In New South Wales, the role is “strata managing agent” and is regulated under the Strata Schemes Management Act 2015 and the Property and Stock Agents Act 2002. Strata managing agents must hold a class 1 or class 2 strata managing agent licence issued by NSW Fair Trading. That licensing requirement is one of the bigger structural differences between the two states.

In practice, the day-to-day work looks very similar in either state.

Related Knowledge Hub pages

• Getting started: what every owner should know
• Committees and decision-making
• Meetings (AGM, EGM, committee)
• Strata managers and changing providers
• Disputes and conflict resolution

Primary sources

• Body Corporate and Community Management Act 1997 (Qld)
• Strata Schemes Management Act 2015 (NSW)
• Queensland Government, Body corporate information

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Last updated: May 2026
Written by: Jeff Blaszkowski, Founder, Body Corporate Gold Coast
Background: 20+ years in business development, including 12+ years in QLD strata (Accor, Smarter Communities, Bright & Duggan). Strata owner. Not a licensed strata manager.
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/jeffblaz

This information is general in nature and is not legal, financial, or strata advice. For advice on your specific scheme, consult a qualified strata professional or lawyer.