Many sectional title schemes are on the brink of collapse, with owners warned that failure to pay could lead to movable assets being forfeited.
Johlene Wasserman of VDM Incorporated, a specialist in sectional title law, warned that many bodies corporate are struggling amid rising levy defaults.
A growing number of once-thriving community schemes are becoming shabby water and electricity supplies are being throttled, and theyre facing the very real threat of sewage and garbage disposal services being stopped altogether.
Imagine living in a complex where sewage runs down the street, the place reeks of filth and is falling apart.
She added that unpaid levies are crippling community schemes throughout South Africa. The Community Schemes Ombud Services CSOSs 2023/2024 Annual Report recorded over 15,000 dispute applications.
Nearly 10,000 were financial issues, dominated by levy arrears and interest disputes, about 62.5 of all cases.
CSOS itself attributed the surge to the harsh economic climate and high unemployment. Nevertheless, when owners stop paying, schemes start failing.
