Michael Bauer, general manager of IHFM says that it makes sense to charge for the use of the area, as this area is reserved for the exclusive use for an owner and needs to be maintained in some way.  If it is a garden, for instance, the costs of the upkeep of that garden, e.g. replanting of plants, composting, weed removal, etc, would need to be paid for.  If it is a parking area and the road surface needs redoing or if a balcony is leaking and needs to be repaired, the costs of the maintenance need to be borne by someone.

The Act is clear that the owner of the exclusive use area is responsible for the maintenance and repair of this area.

The Section Title Act (which came into use in 1986) says that yes, an additional levy for exclusive use areas must be charged, but usually in sectional title schemes the ordinary and special levies are based on a participation quota and should already be covering all the running costs of the scheme.

“There will be an over-recovery of money from the owners,” said Bauer.  “This surplus money collected from the extra levy for the exclusive use area should then be allocated to reducing the scheme’s levies by a certain amount.”

Problems usually arise when a repair is needed and is not being done timeously.  This, said Bauer, is often a tricky situation as the body corporate can compel the owner to pay for the maintenance or repair of an exclusive use area but failing that he can be given 30 days’ notice and if he doesn’t act the body corporate will arrange for the job to be done at the owner’s expense, according to Prescribed Management Rule 70.

The other problem that the body corporate might encounter is access to the exclusive use area.  If it is a balcony for example, the owner will have to give workmen and the managing agent access via his apartment. 

“It is recommended, therefore, that the additional levy for the exclusive use of an area be used for the whole scheme.  Exclusive use levies can range from R75 to R250 per month.”

Trustees must budget correctly and only raise levies according to the actual expenses of the scheme.  If there is an over-recovery, the levies should be reduced by the proportionate amount,” said Bauer.