Summary
There is no default law restricting pets in strata living, however, your strata property may have specific by-law written in relating to pets.
If so, this will be in the strata documents you received when you purchased your property. If you are a tenant – it will be in your tenancy agreement. It is your responsibility to always check before bringing a pet to the property.
The default by-law relating to the keeping of pets is contained in the Schedule 2 By-laws of the Strata Titles Act 1985 at Schedule 2, by-law 12(c)
12. Additional duties of owners and occupiers
An owner or occupier of a lot must not—
(c) keep animals on the lot or the common property, after notice in that behalf given to that person by the council
The usual interpretation of the by-law is that pets are permitted on strata properties until such a time that they become a nuisance.
The Pet Application form can be found by clicking here.
What to do next?
If there is a by-law at the complex which specifies that pets are "subject to approval from the Council of Owners", it is a good idea to present all the information relating to your pet by completing our Pet Application Form. This will need to be sent to the Strata Manager who can forward it to the Council of Owners for instruction.
Please note - tenants (or prospective tenants) will need to forward this information to their Property Manager.
If there is no specific by-law at the complex pertaining to the keeping of pets, the usual interpretation of the standard by-law above will apply.
Example
A Strata Company had written in a specific by-law regarding pets in their complex. The by-law read as follows:
A proprietor, occupier or other resident shall not -
Keep any cat or dog on the lot that he/she owns, occupies in or on the common property; or keep any other pets on the lot that he/she owns, occupies or resides in or the common property without prior written consent from the Strata Council. (sic)
In a recent SAT case, applicants from the aforementioned Strata Company have requested that the Tribunal make an order to have the respondent remove a dog living in her unit in breach of the by-laws. They claimed that the dog was disruptive, not restrained, barked all day and caused undue stress.
The decision was that the dog had to be removed from the complex. You can click here to learn more.