Sectional title schemes face a unique challenge when it comes to solar: the benefits are shared across all owners, but the decision-making and funding process runs through a body corporate, trustees, and often a special levy. That complexity has slowed solar adoption in many complexes — even where the case for it is strong. A no-capex financing model removes much of that friction.
Why Solar Makes Sense for Sectional Title Schemes
Common property in sectional title schemes — lifts, common lighting, gates, pumps, communal areas — represents a real and rising cost that gets passed on to owners through levies. Reducing that cost benefits every owner in the scheme, not just one unit.
At the same time, schemes are exposed to the same tariff increases and grid interruptions as any other property, often with added complexity: backup power for shared services like lifts, gate motors, and security systems affects every resident, not just one household.
The Traditional Barrier: Special Levies
Historically, funding a solar installation for common property has meant raising a special levy; a lump-sum capital contribution from every owner. This is often unpopular, slow to approve, and can be a significant burden for owners on fixed incomes or with existing bond repayments.
How a No-Capex Model Changes the Equation
Under a funded solar model, a financing partner installs and owns the system on the scheme’s common property. The body corporate pays for the electricity generated, typically at a rate below the current municipal or utility tariff, through the existing levy structure, without a special capital raise.
What this means in practice:
- No special levy required to fund the installation
- Immediate reduction in the electricity portion of common area costs
- Maintenance and insurance handled by the financing partner, not the body corporate
- Simplified trustee approval process, since there’s no large capital commitment to vote through
Getting Approval: What Trustees Need to Know
Even without a capital outlay, sectional title solar projects typically require:
- A trustee resolution and, depending on the scheme’s rules, a general meeting resolution
- Confirmation from the managing agent on how the PPA payment integrates with existing levy administration
- Sign-off on roof/common property access rights for installation and maintenance
Working with a financing partner experienced in body corporate structures can significantly simplify this process, since the agreements can be structured to align with existing scheme governance requirements.
The Bottom Line
For sectional title schemes, funded solar offers a way to reduce common area electricity costs and improve resilience to outages — without the friction, delay, and owner pushback that often comes with a special levy.
Considering solar for your scheme? Talk to our team about how a funded solution could work within your body corporate’s structure.