Summer Place Body Corporate v L Pietersen

The applicant, Summer Place Body Corporate, a community scheme situated at 8 Spruit Street, Kuils River, Cape Town, brought an application under section 38 of the Community Schemes Ombud Service Act 9 of 2011 for relief under section 39(1)(e). The respondent, L Pietersen, is the owner of Unit 75 in the scheme. The body corporate alleged that the respondent had failed to pay levies and sought an order compelling payment of the arrears. It submitted a detailed ledger showing arrear levies of R12 760.31, as well as a signed trustee resolution dated 12 April 2022 authorising the charging of interest under Prescribed Management Rule 21(3)(c). The respondent did not file any submissions despite being invited to do so. The matter was adjudicated on the papers on 30 October 2023.

• Whether the respondent, as owner of a sectional title unit, was liable to the body corporate for outstanding levies.
• Whether the CSOS adjudicator could grant relief under section 39(1)(e) of the CSOS Act for payment of arrear contributions.
• Whether the applicant had established, on a balance of probabilities, the amount of R12 760.31 as owing by the respondent.
• Whether the applicant was entitled to charge interest on overdue amounts under Prescribed Management Rule 21(3)(c).

The application was granted. The respondent was declared liable to the applicant in the sum of R12 760.31 in respect of levies and was ordered to pay that amount on or before 1 December 2023. No order as to costs was made.

An owner of a unit in a sectional title scheme is, by virtue of ownership, a member of the body corporate and liable for levies validly raised under the Sectional Titles Schemes Management Act. Where a body corporate proves arrear levies on a balance of probabilities and the owner offers no opposing version, an adjudicator may grant relief under section 39(1)(e) of the CSOS Act ordering payment of the outstanding amount. A body corporate may charge interest on overdue amounts if authorised by a written trustee resolution in terms of PMR 21(3)(c), subject to the prescribed limits.

The adjudicator noted that the applicant was entitled to continue charging interest monthly on the outstanding balance until the account was settled in full. The order also recorded the statutory right of appeal under section 57 of the CSOS Act to the High Court on a question of law only. These observations were ancillary to the core finding of liability for the arrear levies.

This adjudication illustrates the use of the CSOS dispute-resolution mechanism to recover arrear levies in sectional title schemes. It reaffirms the settled South African principle that liability for levies is a consequence of ownership of a unit and that a body corporate may recover unpaid contributions through CSOS proceedings on the papers where the owner does not dispute the claim. It also reflects the interaction between the CSOS Act, the Sectional Titles Schemes Management Act, and the prescribed management rules on interest.