Leopards Rest Homeowners' Association NPC v Pretty Makgoro

Leopards Rest Homeowners' Association NPC (LRHOA), a non-profit homeowners' association administering a residential community scheme in Albertsdal, Johannesburg, brought an application under section 38 read with section 39(1)(e) of the Community Schemes Ombud Service Act 9 of 2011. The respondent, Pretty Makgoro, is the registered owner of Erf 4674 in the scheme and, by virtue of ownership, a compulsory member of the association under its Memorandum of Incorporation (MOI). LRHOA alleged that the respondent had failed to pay monthly levy contributions due to the association and was in arrears in the amount of R1 741.28, including interest calculated at 1.25% per month. The respondent did not respond to the section 43 notice issued by CSOS or to subsequent opportunities to answer the claim. A certificate of non-resolution was issued on 30 October 2023 and the matter proceeded to adjudication on the papers.

• Whether LRHOA qualified as a community scheme and had standing to seek relief under the CSOS Act.
• Whether the respondent, as owner of property in the scheme and member of the homeowners' association, was obliged under the MOI to pay levy contributions.
• Whether the applicant had proved on a balance of probabilities that the respondent was indebted to it in the amount of R1 741.28.
• Whether an order for payment of arrear levies should be granted under section 39(1)(e) of the CSOS Act.
• Whether any costs order should be made.

The application was granted. The respondent was ordered to pay arrear levy contributions of R1 741.28 to the applicant on or before 31 March 2023. No order as to costs was made.

A homeowners' association that qualifies as a community scheme under the CSOS Act may obtain an adjudication order under section 39(1)(e) for payment of arrear levies where the respondent is an owner and compulsory member bound by the association's MOI, the levy obligation is established by the scheme documents, due process has been followed, and the arrears are proved on a balance of probabilities. The constitutive documents of the association create a contractual relationship binding members to pay levies.

The adjudicator observed that levies are the 'lifeblood' of shared living schemes and that non-payment can seriously destabilise a scheme by undermining maintenance, repair, insurance, security and the collective investment of owners. The adjudicator also made general remarks that costs are usually borne by the parties themselves in section 54 determinations, with costs orders being more common in dismissals under section 53 for frivolous or vexatious matters. Additionally, the payment date in the order appears anomalous because the order was issued on 9 February 2024 but required payment by 31 March 2023; the judgment does not explain this apparent clerical error.

The decision illustrates the CSOS's role in enforcing levy obligations within homeowners' associations and confirms that owners in community schemes are contractually bound by the scheme's constitutive documents, including levy provisions in the MOI. It reinforces the principle that unpaid levies may be summarily enforced through the CSOS adjudication process where the applicant proves the debt and the respondent fails to rebut the claim. The matter is also significant as a practical example of section 39(1)(e) financial relief under the CSOS Act.