What is a management committee?
A management committee ("the Committee") is a governing body that runs the affairs, or the management of a strata-titled property i.e., high-rise, multi-storey properties. Its members comprise of the owners who own a parcel on the property.
Generally, and prior to the formation of the Committee, the affairs and the management of the property is run by the developer under a body called the Joint Management Body ("JMB") - the Committee only comes into existence when the developer is issuing the strata titles to their respective owners. It is then that the JMB will cease to exist and the Committee will take over the duties of managing the property from the JMB.
All members of the Committee are elected into the management during the annual general meeting. The maximum number of members in the Committee per cycle is set at 14 and the minimum number of members required for the Committee to function is 3, unless there is only one owner of the property.
Duties and powers of the management committee
Duties:
Maintain and manage the whole property i.e. maintain the condition of the property by servicing and repairing it when it is necessary.
Determine and impose fees (‘charges’) that the residents need to pay to upkeep the common area and the facilities of the property.
Determine and impose contributions for sinking funds that the residents need to pay for refurbishing the property.
Ensure that the property is properly insured.
Comply with the local authority’s direction in relation to the maintenance and improvement of the common property or the abatement of any nuisance on the common property.
Prepare and maintain proper strata roll i.e. information of the property.
Ensure that all accounts under the management corporation are audited and that the corporation is able to provide audited financial statements when they are called to do so.
Enforce all relevant by-laws.
Undertake the necessary and prompt actions to ensure proper maintenance of the property.
Powers:
Collect charges from the owners of the property. Must be proportionate to the share units of their respective parcel on the property.
Collect sinking funds from the owners of the property. The amount is equivalent to 10% of the charges collected from the owners of the property.
Authorizes the expenditure for maintaining the property.
Purchase, hire or acquire movable properties for the use and enjoyment of the owners of the property on the common property.
Recover the sum expanded from any owners as a result of complying with the local authorities’ direction.
Hire the appropriate person to undertake the maintenance and management of the property.
Take all reasonable and necessary actions to ensure that all duties are performed and all by-laws are enforced.
Create additional by-laws for the maintenance and management of the property when and where it is necessary.
Borrow the required monies to perform their duty or exercise their power as a management committee and ensure that the money was repaid accordingly.
Membership of a management committee
Who can/cannot be a member?
Anyone can be elected to join the management committee if they are 21 years old and above, owns a parcel on the property or if their immediate family owns two parcel on the property and is nominated by the immediate family and/ or is elected by another owner to be a member of the management committee. However, there are exception to the rule:
No one can hold office for more than three consecutive terms;
A proxy appointed by an owner to attend the annual general meeting and election on their behalf cannot be eligible for election. However, the absent owner can still be appointed to the management committee if he has given consent to be appointed to the committee;
An owner or co-owner of a parcel on the property who owes the management body charges or sinking funds 7 days before the election is not eligible for election. This applies to the owner who nominates another as well i.e. if the person who nominates another has an outstanding amount due to the management body the owner who is nominated is not eligible for election as well;
Only one co-owner is eligible for election; and
An owner who owns two parcels and his nominee cannot be nominated at the same election nor can they be elected to the same management committee by other owners.
Can a person be disqualified whilst being a member of the management committee?
Yes, if the member:
Resigns dies, becomes bankrupt or no longer owns a parcel on the property;
Convicted of a certain type of offense;
His conduct generally brings disrepute or discredits the management committee;
He is mentally unstable;
He is a chairman or member of the management committee and is absent from three consecutive meetings without obtaining leave from the management committee/ chairman;
He no longer represents the company, society or statutory body who owns the parcel on the property;
He owes the management charges or sinking fund for a continuous period of three months or he breaches any by-laws and does not remedy it within 14 days.