If you manage a strata scheme in Sydney — whether a boutique six-lot block in Mosman or a 60-lot complex in the Eastern Suburbs — the garden is not just an aesthetic feature. It is common property. And under NSW law, common property is your legal responsibility.
This article explains why compliance documentation is not a nice-to-have but a legal and financial necessity. We will walk through exactly what proper documentation looks like, why most gardening companies do not provide it, and what happens when things go wrong without it. We will also share a real case study from a Double Bay strata property that came to us after years of frustration — and what we found when we got there.
Section of the Act that creates your obligation
Visits to fix what others missed for years
Of visits documented with written reports
Years serving Sydney strata schemes
The Legal Reality Every Strata Committee Needs to Understand
The Strata Schemes Management Act 2015 (NSW) is the legislation that governs strata living in New South Wales. Most committee members know it exists. Very few have read Section 106.
Section 106: Duty of Owners Corporation to Maintain and Repair Common Property
Section 106 places a non-delegable duty on the owners corporation to maintain the common property in a state of good and serviceable repair. This includes garden beds, lawn areas, pathways through landscaped areas, irrigation systems, trees, and any other vegetation on common property. The duty cannot be contracted away — even if you hire a gardening company, the legal obligation remains with the owners corporation.
What this means in practice is simple: if something goes wrong in a common garden area and you cannot demonstrate that the area was being properly maintained, the owners corporation — and potentially individual committee members — can be held responsible.
A resident trips on an overgrown root lifting a pathway stone. The owners corporation has used the same local gardener for three years but has no written records of any visits. The gardener says they came monthly. The committee says it was more often. Nobody has proof. The insurance company declines the claim citing lack of documented maintenance. The owners corporation faces a personal injury claim with no evidence of due diligence.
This is not a hypothetical. It is the pattern we hear about repeatedly from strata managers across the North Shore and Eastern Suburbs who come to us after an incident has already occurred.
What Proper Compliance Documentation Actually Looks Like
There is a significant difference between a gardener who comes and makes things look neat, and a strata garden maintenance provider who delivers a documented, compliant service. Here is exactly what every post-visit report from Garden Managers includes:
Exact record of when the visit occurred and duration of service — critical for insurance and committee records.
Not just “garden maintenance done” — a specific breakdown of each zone: front entry, courtyard, Level 2 terrace, pool surrounds, etc.
Mowing, edging, pruning, mulching, weeding, irrigation checks, green waste removal — each task recorded individually.
Timestamped images of each area before work begins and after completion. Visual evidence that protects the committee and the contractor.
Any problems found during the visit — broken irrigation heads, signs of pest activity, dead or diseased plants, safety hazards — are documented and flagged proactively.
Forward-looking notes on what will need attention at the next scheduled service, allowing the committee to plan and budget.
The attending technician is identified by name, creating personal accountability for the work completed.
Quarterly and annual summaries ready for AGM documentation, committee reporting, and budget review.
Ask your current garden maintenance provider to email you the last three visit reports. If they cannot produce them within 24 hours, you do not have a compliance-grade service — you have a gardener.
The Double Bay Property That Three Gardeners Could Not Fix
In early 2025, we received an enquiry from the strata manager of a 14-lot residential complex in Double Bay. She had one simple question: “Can you actually tell me what’s wrong with it?”
The property had been through three separate garden maintenance companies in four years. Each had promised a fresh start. Each had delivered inconsistent results, zero communication, and no written records of any visit. The committee was frustrated. The gardens were deteriorating. And nobody knew why.
What We Found on the First Assessment Visit
- Broken irrigation throughout the eastern courtyard — four drip heads were cracked, two solenoids were seized, and one zone had not been watering at all for an estimated three to four months. The previous gardeners had been watering manually and sporadically but never reported the system fault.
- Root competition killing the feature planting — an unmanaged Ficus had been allowed to spread its root system into three adjacent garden beds, strangling the established ornamental plantings that the owners corporation had invested in during the original landscaping.
- A safety hazard that had gone unreported — a retaining wall on the northern boundary had shifted, creating a lip at the base of a commonly used pedestrian path. It was a clear trip hazard that no previous contractor had flagged in writing.
- Soil compaction and drainage failure — years of heavy foot traffic and poor mulching practice had compacted the soil in the main courtyard, causing pooling after rain and progressive plant death.
- No documentation from any previous provider — when we asked the strata manager for records from the previous contractors, she had none. Not a single written report from four years of paid garden maintenance.
What We Delivered — Two Visits
We do not believe in stringing out remediation work. Our approach is to assess thoroughly, document completely, then fix systematically.
Visit One: Full written assessment report with photographs of every issue identified. Irrigation system diagnostic with zone-by-zone pressure testing. Written remediation plan presented to the strata manager within 48 hours, with itemised costs and a clear priority order.
Visit Two: Irrigation repair — all broken heads replaced, seized solenoids replaced, zone timing recalibrated and tested. Ficus root management. Retaining wall flagged in writing to the strata manager as requiring a builder inspection (outside our scope but documented for liability protection). Soil aeration and fresh mulch throughout the main courtyard. Safety hazard formally documented and reported.
Years without a single written report
Previous contractors who missed the irrigation fault
Visits to assess and fully remediate
Unreported safety hazard found and documented
The outcome: The strata manager told us the retaining wall safety hazard report alone justified the entire engagement. The owners corporation had been unknowingly exposed to a personal injury liability for an unknown period of time. That single written report — which cost nothing extra — was the documentation they needed to action a builder inspection and protect the committee from personal liability. The gardens have been maintained on a fortnightly cycle with full written reports since, and the committee now has a complete documentary record for their AGM files.
Three Ways Undocumented Garden Maintenance Creates Legal and Financial Risk
1. Personal Injury Claims Without Evidence of Due Diligence
When a resident or visitor is injured on common property, the first question an insurer or court asks is: what maintenance was being done, and when? Without written records, the owners corporation cannot demonstrate due diligence. The legal standard is not that the garden was maintained — it is that you can prove it was maintained.
Many strata insurance policies include a maintenance clause. If a claim arises from a condition that reasonable maintenance would have identified or prevented — such as an overgrown root, a dead branch, or an unstable garden feature — the insurer may seek to reduce or deny the claim if maintenance records cannot be produced.
2. AGM Challenges and Committee Disputes
Owners corporations are governed by their lot owners. Any owner at an AGM can challenge the committee’s expenditure and ask for evidence that money was properly spent. If the garden maintenance budget for the year cannot be supported by documented service records, the committee is exposed to both reputational and legal challenge from dissatisfied owners.
3. Undetected Problems Becoming Expensive Emergencies
The Double Bay case is typical. When nobody is writing things down, problems are invisible until they become expensive. A broken irrigation zone costs a few hundred dollars to repair. The same fault left three months — killing established plantings across a courtyard — can cost thousands to remediate. Compliance documentation is also an early warning system.
How Strata Garden Maintenance Providers Compare on Compliance
Not all garden maintenance services are equal when it comes to documentation and compliance. Here is an honest comparison of what different provider types typically deliver:
| Feature | Local Handyman / General Gardener | General Landscaping Company | Garden Managers (Strata Specialist) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Written post-visit report | ✗ Rarely | ~ Sometimes | ✓ Every visit, standard |
| Before-and-after photographs | ✗ No | ~ On request only | ✓ Every visit, timestamped |
| Safety hazard identification & reporting | ✗ No formal process | ~ Ad hoc verbal only | ✓ Written, formal, documented |
| Irrigation system checks | ✗ Not included | ~ Additional cost | ✓ Included in routine service |
| AGM-ready seasonal summaries | ✗ No | ✗ No | ✓ Quarterly and annual |
| NSW strata legislation familiarity | ✗ No | ~ Limited | ✓ Full Section 106 compliance focus |
| Proactive issue recommendations | ✗ Reactive only | ~ Inconsistent | ✓ Every report includes forward recommendations |
| Insurance-grade maintenance records | ✗ No | ✗ No | ✓ Yes — designed for legal and insurance use |
| Dedicated strata property manager liaison | ✗ No | ~ General contact only | ✓ Direct contact, prompt response |
| Monthly cost — small block (6–12 lots) | $300–$500 | $500–$800 | $600–$1,200 (compliance included) |
A general gardener at $400/month looks cheaper than a compliant strata specialist at $800/month — until a single undocumented injury claim costs $30,000 in legal fees and an increased insurance premium. Compliance documentation is not an added cost. It is risk mitigation that pays for itself.
Six Questions to Ask Any Strata Garden Maintenance Provider Before You Sign
If you are reviewing your current garden maintenance contract — or considering a new provider — these six questions will tell you everything you need to know about their compliance standards:
1. Can you show me a sample post-visit report?
Any provider who has been doing this properly will be able to produce a sample report immediately. If they hesitate, ask to see the last report they filed for any client. If no reports exist, walk away.
2. Do you include before-and-after photographs as standard?
Verbal descriptions of work completed are not enough for insurance or legal purposes. Timestamped photographs provide irrefutable evidence. This should be non-negotiable.
3. How do you report safety hazards identified during a visit?
A strata-aware provider will have a formal written process for flagging hazards outside their scope — structural issues, tree stability concerns, damaged infrastructure — and escalating them to the strata manager in writing. If the answer is “we’d just call you,” that is not a compliance process.
4. Are you familiar with the Strata Schemes Management Act 2015?
Not every provider needs to be a strata lawyer. But a strata-specialist garden maintenance company should understand Section 106, know what common property maintenance obligations require, and be able to speak to how their service supports your legal compliance.
5. Do you provide seasonal summaries for AGM records?
Monthly visit reports are the foundation. Quarterly and annual summaries showing the full history of service, issues, and expenditure are what give committees the documentation they need for AGMs and budget reviews.
6. Who is our direct contact, and what is your response time for urgent issues?
A strata property deserves a direct contact — not a general inbox. Urgent issues (storm damage, irrigation failure, safety hazards) need same-day response. Confirm both before signing.
Frequently Asked Questions
Related Resources for Strata Managers
If you found this article useful, these related guides may also help with your strata garden planning:
- Strata Garden Maintenance Sydney — Full Service Overview
- Strata Garden Maintenance Cost Guide Sydney 2026
- Strata Garden Maintenance in NSW — Obligations and Standards
- The Complete Guide to Strata Garden Maintenance Responsibilities
For authoritative NSW strata legislation, refer to the Strata Schemes Management Act 2015 on the NSW Legislation website and NSW Fair Trading — Strata Living guidance.
Ready to See What a Compliance-Grade Service Looks Like?
Request a sample post-visit report and find out how Garden Managers protects your owners corporation with every single visit — documented, photographed, and AGM-ready.
