Trustees of Lake Placid Body Corporate v Mary Lindiwe Mthombeni

The applicant, the Trustees of Lake Placid Body Corporate, acting through its administrator Selection Estates and duly authorised by trustees' resolution, brought an application to the Community Schemes Ombud Service (CSOS) under section 38 of the Community Schemes Ombud Service Act 9 of 2011. The respondent, Mary Lindiwe Mthombeni, is the registered owner of Unit 18 in the Lake Placid sectional title scheme in Germiston, Gauteng. The body corporate alleged that the respondent had fallen into arrears with levy contributions and that despite correspondence demanding payment, the account remained unpaid. As at 10 October 2023, the arrear levies were said to amount to R24,920.84. The applicant sought an order under section 39(1)(e) of the CSOS Act for payment of the outstanding balance, together with interest and credit control charges. The respondent did not file written submissions despite being requested to do so by CSOS. The adjudication was conducted on the papers without an oral hearing.

• Whether the CSOS adjudicator had grounds under section 39(1)(e) of the CSOS Act to order payment of arrear levy contributions by the respondent.
• Whether, as a registered owner in a sectional title scheme, the respondent was legally obliged to pay levy contributions to the body corporate.
• Whether the body corporate had established a lawful basis for claiming the arrear amount and interest, including reliance on trustees' resolutions and the Sectional Titles Schemes Management Act 8 of 2011.
• What relief was appropriate, including whether payment could be structured in instalments and whether costs should be awarded.

The application was granted. The respondent was declared indebted to the applicant in the amount of R24,920.84 for arrear levies. She was ordered to pay the debt in six equal monthly instalments of R4,153.47, with the first payment due within 30 days of delivery of the order and the remaining five payments due on the first day of each succeeding month. These instalments were in addition to the respondent's ongoing monthly levy obligations. No penalties were to accrue during the instalment period, but if the respondent defaulted on any instalment, the full outstanding balance would immediately become due and payable together with applicable penalties from the date of breach. No order as to costs was made.

A registered owner in a sectional title scheme is a member of the body corporate and is legally obliged to pay levy contributions validly raised by trustees' resolution under the Sectional Titles Schemes Management Act 8 of 2011. Under section 39(1)(e) of the CSOS Act, a CSOS adjudicator may order payment of arrear levies where the body corporate establishes the indebtedness on a balance of probabilities. Interest on overdue amounts may be claimed where properly authorised in terms of Prescribed Management Rule 21(3) by written trustees' resolution.

The adjudicator's remarks on the general approach to evaluating evidence, including relevance, credibility, reliability and proof on a balance of probabilities, were general explanatory observations rather than discrete binding rulings. The structuring of the debt into six instalments, the suspension of penalties during compliance, and the note regarding the right of appeal under section 57 of the CSOS Act were also case-management or explanatory observations rather than statements of general binding principle.

This adjudication is significant in the community schemes context because it reaffirms the statutory obligation of sectional title owners to pay levy contributions to the body corporate and confirms the use of CSOS as an accessible enforcement mechanism for arrear levies under section 39(1)(e) of the CSOS Act. It also illustrates how adjudicators may tailor relief pragmatically by allowing repayment in instalments while preserving the body corporate's right to enforce the full debt upon default. The order reflects the interaction between the CSOS Act, the Sectional Titles Schemes Management Act, and Prescribed Management Rules in levy recovery disputes.