Trustees of Outeniqua Village Body Corporate v Thabang Desmond Letebele

The applicant, the Trustees of Outeniqua Village Body Corporate, acting through its administrator Selection Estates and pursuant to a trustees' resolution, brought a dispute-resolution application under sections 38 and 39(1)(e) of the Community Schemes Ombud Service Act 9 of 2011 (CSOS Act). The respondent, Thabang Desmond Letebele, is the registered owner of Unit 82, Outeniqua Village, Modder East, Springs, Gauteng. The body corporate alleged that the respondent had fallen into arrears on levy contributions. Despite correspondence demanding payment, the arrears remained unpaid. As at 8 November 2023, the body corporate claimed R26,836.91 in arrear levies, together with interest and credit-control charges. The respondent did not file written submissions despite being invited to do so. The adjudication was conducted on the papers without an oral hearing.

• Whether the respondent, as owner of a unit in the sectional title scheme, was legally obliged to pay levy contributions to the body corporate.
• Whether the applicant had established, on a balance of probabilities, that the respondent was indebted in the amount of R26,836.91 for arrear levies.
• Whether section 39(1)(e) of the CSOS Act empowered the adjudicator to order payment of the outstanding levies.
• Whether the body corporate was entitled to charge interest on overdue amounts in terms of Prescribed Management Rule 21(3) and a trustees' resolution.
• What payment arrangement and ancillary terms should be ordered in the circumstances.

The application was granted. The respondent was declared indebted to the applicant in the amount of R26,836.91 in respect of arrear levies and was ordered to pay that amount in 8 equal monthly instalments of R3,354.61, with the first payment due within 30 days of delivery of the order and the remaining 7 instalments due on the first day of each succeeding month. These instalments were additional to the respondent's ongoing monthly levy obligations. No penalties would accrue during the payment 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, by virtue of sections 2 and 3 of the Sectional Titles Schemes Management Act 8 of 2011, a member of the body corporate and is obliged to pay levy contributions lawfully determined by the trustees. Under section 39(1)(e) of the CSOS Act, an adjudicator may order payment of arrear levy contributions where the body corporate proves the indebtedness on a balance of probabilities. Interest on overdue amounts may be charged where authorised by a written trustees' resolution in accordance with Prescribed Management Rule 21(3).

The adjudicator made general observations about evidentiary assessment, namely that only relevant evidence should be considered and that disputes are determined on a balance of probabilities by weighing credibility and probabilities. The adjudicator also noted the statutory right of appeal under section 57 of the CSOS Act, namely that an appeal lies to the High Court only on a question of law within 30 days. No substantial wider non-binding commentary beyond these procedural remarks appears in the order.

The decision reinforces the statutory obligation of sectional title owners to pay levies to the body corporate and confirms the CSOS's role as an accessible enforcement forum for arrear levy disputes. It illustrates the interaction between the CSOS Act, the Sectional Titles Schemes Management Act 8 of 2011, and the prescribed management rules in adjudicating financial disputes within community schemes. The order is also significant in showing that an adjudicator may craft practical payment terms, including instalments and temporary suspension of penalties, while still enforcing the body corporate's claim.