Section 184 Certificates Are Changing: What Buyers and Sellers Need to Know From April 2026

Section 184 Certificates Are Changing: What Buyers and Sellers Need to Know From April 2026

When you buy an apartment in New South Wales, the most important document in the transaction is not the contract for sale, the title search, or the building inspection report. It is the Section 184 certificate. This single document tells you the financial position of the owners corporation, the levies attached to the lot, any outstanding amounts, and the current state of the scheme's affairs.

From 1 April 2026, the certificate has been significantly expanded. Three new categories of disclosure now appear on every Section 184 certificate issued in NSW: embedded utility networks, compliance orders against the owners corporation, and meeting history. Each of these additions closes an information gap that has cost buyers — and protected developers and committees — for years.

This article walks through what the certificate now contains, what each new disclosure actually means, the questions buyers should be asking when they receive one, and what sellers and committees need to do to ensure the certificate accurately reflects the building's position.

What a Section 184 Certificate Is

The Section 184 certificate, issued under section 184 of the Strata Schemes Management Act 2015 (NSW), is a formal information statement about a specific lot in a strata scheme. It is requested by a prospective buyer (or, more usually, by their conveyancer) before exchange of contracts, and is issued by the owners corporation through its strata manager for a prescribed fee.

The certificate confirms a defined set of facts: the contributions levied on the lot, any unpaid amounts, the financial position of the administrative and capital works funds, the by-laws applicable to the scheme, the strata committee's contact details, and any current orders or proceedings. It is, in legal effect, the OC's authoritative statement to the prospective buyer.

It is also one of the few documents in a property transaction that is binding on the issuing party. If the OC tells you in a Section 184 certificate that there are no outstanding levies on the lot, and you proceed to settle on that basis, the OC cannot subsequently claim those amounts from you as the new owner. This makes the certificate not just informational but legally protective.

What's New: The Three Additions

The 1 April 2026 reforms add three categories of disclosure that previous certificates did not require.

Embedded networks. The certificate must now disclose any utilities supplied to the scheme through an exclusive supply network — typically electricity, gas, hot water, cold water, internet, or other services. Embedded networks are private arrangements that bypass the standard retail market. They are usually entered into between the original developer and a third-party network operator, often on long-term contracts of ten years or more, and they almost always result in residents paying above-market rates for the affected services.

The disclosure is significant because, until now, buyers frequently completed purchases without realising they were locked into an embedded network for electricity or hot water. The first they learned of it was when the bills started arriving from a provider they had not chosen, at rates they could not negotiate, with no ability to switch retailers. The new disclosure makes this part of the due diligence process.

Compliance orders and enforcement actions. The certificate must now record any orders or compliance actions issued against the owners corporation, including under NSW Fair Trading's expanded enforcement powers introduced in October 2025. This includes enforceable undertakings, compliance notices, infringement notices, and any orders of NCAT or other tribunals.

This addition is particularly meaningful because, until now, an owners corporation could be operating under an active compliance notice — for failure to repair common property, for breach of meeting requirements, for any number of other matters — and a buyer would have no straightforward way to know about it. The disclosure puts the OC's compliance history in front of every prospective purchaser.

Meeting history. The certificate must now record meetings held in the past twelve months and any upcoming meetings. This includes both general meetings (AGMs and extraordinary general meetings) and committee meetings, with their dates and basic details.

The meeting disclosure surfaces information that previously required a buyer to specifically request inspection of records under section 182. A pattern of cancelled AGMs, of meetings held without proper notice, or of unusual frequency of extraordinary general meetings (which often indicates governance dysfunction) is now visible at the certificate stage.

Why These Additions Matter

The three additions together change the buyer's information set in a meaningful way.

Consider a building with combustible cladding rectification underway, an embedded electricity network signed by the developer for fifteen years at above-market rates, a Fair Trading compliance notice for failure to repair a common property defect, and three extraordinary general meetings in the past twelve months trying to deal with the resulting financial pressure.

Under the previous Section 184 framework, none of these issues was directly disclosed on the certificate. A diligent conveyancer would have requested inspection of records, reviewed minutes, and identified some of them — but many buyers did not, and the information asymmetry between sellers and buyers was significant.

Under the April 2026 framework, the embedded network is on the certificate, the compliance notice is on the certificate, and the unusual meeting frequency is on the certificate. The buyer can, with one document, identify three substantive concerns that previously required active investigation.

For sellers, this is a different reality to the one they may have been operating in. A lot that previously sold without difficulty may now attract questions. A building with hidden problems will find those problems harder to hide. The price that a lot achieves on resale is now more directly tied to the underlying health of the OC than at any point in the past.

Reading the Certificate Properly

Even with the new disclosures, the Section 184 certificate is a technical document, and reading it properly requires some understanding of what each section actually means.

The financial position of the administrative and capital works funds should be read in conjunction with the recommended contribution under the building's 10-year capital works plan. A capital works fund of $50,000 may sound substantial, but if the plan recommends $40,000 in annual contributions and the building has not been levying that amount, the fund is being depleted faster than it is being replenished.

The contributions levied on the lot show what the current owner has been paying. If the levies have been increasing rapidly — say, jumping 30% in the last twelve months — the trajectory may indicate financial pressure on the OC, recent defect issues, or insurance cost increases that have been passed through.

The outstanding amounts on the lot require attention. A lot with overdue levies that the OC has not pursued may indicate either a difficult relationship with the current owner or a pattern of weak debt recovery — both of which can be relevant to the buyer's decision.

The by-laws applicable to the scheme should be reviewed for anything unusual: blanket bans (which may now be unenforceable post-Cooper but still need to be addressed), exclusive use by-laws over common property, restrictions on renovation, restrictions on pets, restrictions on short-term letting. The by-laws are the building's operating rules and the buyer is bound by them.

The embedded network disclosures should be checked for term, exclusivity, and the basis on which the rates are set. An embedded electricity contract for ten years at "wholesale plus 30%" is materially different from a contract for three years at competitive market rates.

The compliance orders and enforcement actions should be read carefully. A current compliance notice for failure to repair is a significantly more serious indicator than a historical undertaking that has been resolved.

The meeting history can be cross-referenced against minutes if necessary. A pattern of cancelled or quorum-failing meetings indicates governance issues that may not be visible elsewhere.

What Buyers Should Be Doing

For buyers, the April 2026 changes raise the stakes on conveyancing diligence. The certificate now contains more meaningful information, but the certificate alone is not the whole picture.

The starting point is requesting the Section 184 certificate before exchange. Most contracts include a 184 certificate as part of the standard documentation, but some do not — particularly in private sales. A buyer should not exchange contracts without a current certificate.

The second step is reading the certificate against the supporting documents. The certificate confirms the financial position of the funds; the OC's annual financial statements show how that position has evolved. The certificate identifies meetings held in the past year; the minutes of those meetings show what was discussed and decided. The certificate identifies any compliance orders; the underlying complaint or notice provides the detail.

The third step is asking specific questions arising from what the certificate reveals. If an embedded network is disclosed, the buyer's solicitor should request the contract and assess the financial implications. If a compliance order is disclosed, the buyer should understand what triggered it and what remedial steps the OC is taking. If the meeting history shows unusual activity, the buyer should request the relevant minutes.

The fourth step, for any building of size or complexity, is commissioning a professional strata report. A strata report goes beyond the certificate to include analysis of minutes, financial trends, capital works plan adequacy, defect history, and broader governance health. The cost (typically $300-$500) is trivial compared to the price of the apartment, and the information it surfaces frequently changes either the negotiation or the decision to proceed.

What Sellers and Committees Should Be Doing

For sellers and committees, the April 2026 changes mean that the building's underlying health is now more directly visible to buyers than it has ever been. This creates a clear incentive for proactive governance.

Sellers should request a copy of the current Section 184 certificate before listing the property — not at the point of contract — so they can identify any disclosures that may affect the sale and address them where possible. A current compliance notice that the seller did not know about can be discussed with the strata manager and the OC, and in some cases resolved before the property is on the market.

Committees should be auditing the certificate periodically to ensure the information is accurate and current. The certificate is binding on the OC, and an inaccurate certificate that misleads a buyer creates legal exposure for the OC. The strata manager should be presenting a draft certificate to the committee at least annually as part of governance review.

Committees should also be addressing the underlying issues that the certificate now exposes. An embedded network signed by the developer can, in some cases, be renegotiated or terminated under the contract review provisions of the SSMA. A compliance notice can be resolved by addressing the underlying breach. A pattern of poor meeting governance can be improved through better practice. Each of these is now visible to every prospective buyer of every lot in the building.

The Other States

NSW has moved first on certificate disclosure reform, but equivalent documents exist in every Australian jurisdiction.

The trajectory in other states points toward the same direction NSW has taken. Victoria's expert panel review, Queensland's new disclosure regime, and the ongoing reform programs in WA and SA all favour increased disclosure on certificates rather than reduced disclosure. The NSW April 2026 framework is a likely template for the next round of reforms in other jurisdictions.

The Strata Report and the Certificate Together

It is worth being clear about the distinction between a Section 184 certificate and a strata report, because the two are often confused.

The Section 184 certificate is a formal document issued by the owners corporation, prescribed in form, binding in effect, and limited to specific categories of information. It costs around $130 (the prescribed fee in NSW) and is available within ten days of request.

A strata report is a private inspection report, commissioned by the buyer, in which a professional inspector reviews the OC's records — including minutes, financial statements, contracts, the capital works plan, defect reports, and correspondence — and produces an analysis of the building's health. It is not prescribed in form, not binding, and not limited in scope. It costs $300-$500 and is typically available within a few business days.

A serious buyer obtains both. The certificate establishes the formal position. The strata report surfaces the substance.

How UnitBuddy Helps

UnitBuddy's certificate management module produces draft Section 184 certificates that reflect the building's current financial position, by-laws, meeting history, and compliance status — pre-populated from the underlying records and ready for the strata manager's verification. The system flags new disclosures required under the April 2026 framework, surfaces any embedded network arrangements held by the OC, and maintains the audit trail that demonstrates the certificate accurately reflects the OC's position at the time of issue.

For sellers, the platform allows a current draft to be reviewed at any time. For buyers' agents, the structured data behind the certificate provides additional context that supports informed offers and informed advice.

The Section 184 certificate has long been the most important document in apartment due diligence. The April 2026 reforms have made it significantly more powerful. Buyers who use it properly will be better protected than at any point in NSW strata history. Sellers and committees who treat it as a serious document — rather than an administrative formality — will benefit accordingly.