A strata report (also called a pre-purchase strata inspection report, a strata search or a strata search report) is a compiled set of records from a strata scheme: its finances, meeting minutes, defects, disputes and insurance. You order one before buying a unit, townhouse or any property that shares common property with other owners, so you can see the shape of the scheme behind the contract, not just its asking price.
What a strata report is, and when to get one
A specialist search provider or your conveyancer usually puts the report together from the scheme's own paperwork: the owners corporation's minutes, financial accounts, correspondence and insurance certificate. Some buyers instead arrange to inspect those records themselves through the strata manager or the owners corporation secretary, generally with the seller's permission and a fee. Either way, the report reflects what the scheme has on file on the day it is compiled, not a fresh inspection of the building.
Order or request the report as early as you reasonably can once a property is in your sights, and before you are locked into an unconditional contract. If you are relying on a cooling-off period or a due diligence condition, ask your conveyancer how much time you have; the rules and the contract wording both vary by state.
The name changes by state, the idea does not
Strata and its equivalents are called different things depending on where the property sits, and the records available, who holds them and how you request them, change with the name. In New South Wales, buyers typically order a strata report or strata search built from the owners corporation's own records, as set out on the NSW Government's strata pages. Other states run the same idea through a different scheme name, such as an owners corporation in Victoria or a body corporate in Queensland, each with its own regulator and its own process for requesting records. Ask your conveyancer which scheme applies to the property you are looking at, what the report is called there, and whether it is current and complete.
What to check, section by section
| Part of the report | What to look for |
|---|---|
| Levies and special levies | The current amount, and whether a special levy is recorded, proposed or already being collected |
| Capital works (sinking) fund | The balance, and whether it matches a capital works plan and recent minutes |
| Budgets and financial statements | Whether the scheme is running a surplus or a deficit, and any levies unpaid by other owners |
| Meeting minutes | Recent AGM and committee minutes, for a recurring problem or a decision still pending |
| Defects and building works | Recorded defects, work in progress or planned, and who is meeting the cost |
| Disputes and legal matters | Tribunal applications, legal proceedings or insurance claims involving the scheme |
| Insurance | What the building policy covers, and whether it is current |
| By-laws | Rules on pets, renovations, parking, short-term letting or anything else relevant to how you plan to use the property |
Example: a strata report for a $650,000 unit lists quarterly levies of $980 for the administrative fund and $420 for the capital works fund. Add them: $980 + $420 = $1,400 a quarter. Multiply by four quarters: $1,400 × 4 = $5,600 a year. The same report records a proposed special levy of $180,000 for roof remediation, to be split across the scheme's 30 lots by unit entitlement. If this lot holds a 1/30 entitlement, its share works out to $180,000 ÷ 30 = $6,000, on top of the regular levies above. Real schemes rarely split entitlements evenly, so check the report for the actual entitlement schedule rather than dividing by the lot count.
Questions to take to your conveyancer or strata inspector
- What do the current levies and any special levy mean for the ongoing cost of owning this lot?
- Does the capital works fund balance look adequate against the scheme's own capital works plan?
- Do the minutes show a recurring problem, or something already resolved?
- Are there defects, disputes or insurance claims that could affect this lot specifically, not only the common property?
- Do any by-laws affect how you plan to use the property, such as pets, renovations or letting it out?
- Is anything the report would usually cover missing, out of date or outside its scope?
There is no universal rule for what a healthy fund balance or a normal number of defects looks like. It depends on the building, the scheme and its age, which is why these are questions for your conveyancer or strata inspector rather than a checklist you can score on your own.
What a strata report cannot tell you
A strata report shows what the scheme's own paperwork records on the day it is compiled. It cannot tell you whether the price is fair, predict future levies, or confirm that no defect exists beyond what has been logged. A building inspection covers the physical structure; the strata report covers the scheme's records. Many buyers use both, alongside a conveyancer who reads the report against the contract.
Recording it in Virtual Buyers Agent
Once you have the report and it has been reviewed, tick it off in Documents on the property's Property Hub. Nothing is uploaded, and Virtual Buyers Agent does not read or assess the report; the checklist just keeps track of what you have obtained and when. See how it works.
For New South Wales, see NSW Government: buying a strata property. Other states publish the same kind of guidance on their own fair trading or consumer affairs sites.
Reviewed 28 September 2026.