President Place Body Corporate v Jacob R & Palesa B Mokoena

President Place Body Corporate, a registered sectional title scheme, brought an application under section 38 read with section 39(1)(e) of the Community Schemes Ombud Service Act 9 of 2011 against Jacob R and Palesa B Mokoena, the co-owners of unit 45 in the scheme. The body corporate alleged that the respondents had failed to make regular levy payments due to the scheme. According to the contribution statement submitted by the applicant, the arrear amount as at May 2023 was R10 745.33, inclusive of interest calculated at 2% per month. The applicant stated that demands had been made, internal remedies had been exhausted, and the trustees had resolved to pursue recovery through CSOS. A certificate of non-resolution was issued on 11 July 2023 after conciliation failed or did not resolve the dispute. The respondents did not file submissions in response to the CSOS section 43 notice.

• Whether the CSOS had jurisdiction to determine a levy arrears dispute between a body corporate and unit owners under section 39(1)(e) of the CSOS Act.
• Whether the body corporate had established, on a balance of probabilities, that the respondents owed arrear levy contributions in the amount claimed.
• Whether the body corporate was entitled to recover interest on overdue levy amounts.
• Whether any costs order should be made in the adjudication.

The application was granted. The respondents were ordered to pay arrear levy contributions of R10 745.33 to the applicant by 31 October 2023. No order as to costs was made.

A body corporate may obtain relief under section 39(1)(e) of the CSOS Act for unpaid levy contributions where it proves, on a balance of probabilities, that the levies were validly raised under the STSMA and remain unpaid. Contributions become due upon the passing of the relevant trustee resolution in terms of section 3(2) of the STSMA, and interest on overdue amounts may be charged where authorised by written trustee resolution under Management Rule 21(3)(c). In the absence of a rebutting response, a properly supported levy statement is sufficient to justify an adjudication order for payment.

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 interests of owners. The adjudicator also made general remarks that parties in section 54 adjudications are usually expected to bear their own costs, with costs orders more commonly arising in section 53 dismissals involving frivolous or vexatious matters.

This adjudication confirms the enforceability through CSOS of body corporate levy claims against defaulting unit owners under section 39(1)(e) of the CSOS Act. It illustrates the interaction between the CSOS Act and the STSMA, particularly that levy contributions become due pursuant to trustee resolutions and may be recovered through the ombud process. The decision also reinforces the principle that non-payment of levies threatens the functioning of sectional title schemes and that unsupported non-payment will ordinarily result in an order for payment.