The Trustees of Summer Place Body Corporate v Yolanda Moagi and Nkosikhona Ngqanya

The applicant, the Trustees of Summer Place Body Corporate, brought a dispute-resolution application under section 38 of the Community Schemes Ombud Service Act 9 of 2011 (CSOS Act) against the co-owners of unit 8 in the scheme, Yolanda Moagi and Nkosikhona Ngqanya. The body corporate alleged that the respondents had fallen into arrears with levy payments and utilities. The applicant relied on an earlier settlement agreement, but the adjudicator found that agreement unenforceable because it had not been properly signed by both parties. The applicant nevertheless produced a statement of account dated 1 July 2023 showing arrear levies of R18 274.90. The respondents did not file any submissions despite being afforded an opportunity to do so. After conciliation failed and a certificate of non-resolution was issued, the matter was referred for adjudication on the papers.

• Whether the CSOS had jurisdiction to grant relief under section 39(1)(e) of the CSOS Act for payment of arrear contributions.
• Whether the respondents, as owners/co-owners of a unit in a sectional title scheme, were legally liable to the body corporate for arrear levies.
• Whether the unsigned or improperly signed settlement agreement was enforceable.
• Whether, in the absence of any opposing submissions, the applicant had proved on a balance of probabilities that the respondents owed R18 274.90 in arrear levies.
• Whether payment should be ordered immediately or structured in instalments.

The application was granted. The respondents were declared jointly and severally liable to the applicant for R18 274.90 in arrear levies. They were ordered to pay the debt in 6 monthly instalments of R3 045.81 commencing on 1 September 2023 and thereafter on the first day of each successive month until paid in full. If any instalment was not paid on due date, the full outstanding balance would immediately become due and payable. No order as to costs was made.

Owners of units in a sectional title scheme are members of the body corporate and are liable for levies as an incident of ownership under the Sectional Titles Schemes Management Act 8 of 2011. Where a body corporate proves, on a balance of probabilities, that arrear levies are due, CSOS may order payment under section 39(1)(e) of the CSOS Act. An unenforceable settlement agreement does not extinguish or prevent enforcement of the underlying statutory levy obligation.

The adjudicator suggested that the respondents should be given more time to settle the debt, which informed the instalment-payment structure. This was a discretionary and practical observation rather than a binding legal principle. No broader obiter comments of significance appear from the text.

The decision illustrates the CSOS’s role in enforcing body corporate levy claims under section 39(1)(e) of the CSOS Act. It reaffirms an important principle of South African sectional-title law: levy liability is inseparable from ownership of a unit and may be recovered through CSOS processes even where an attempted settlement agreement is unenforceable. The order also shows that adjudicators may grant practical repayment arrangements while still upholding the body corporate’s statutory right to collect contributions necessary for scheme administration.