My comment on the topic of Arrears of Levies is:
- The duty of the OC to repair and maintain, to pay insurance premiums, etc is hard coded into the Act and unavoidable.
- The cost of repair and maintenance, insurance, etc is funded only by levies.
- The duty of a lot owner to pay levies must be regarded as equally hard coded.
- The obligation to pay interest on arrears of levies is similarly (slightly less) hard coded but can only be reduced or waived by a general meeting.
- The obligation of the OC to collect arrears (within the provisions in the Act) must be regarded as equally hard coded.
- Community living should not oblige co-owners to support one of their number no matter how necessitous their circumstances.
The very sad truth is that if you can’t afford to pay the levies necessary to fund obligatory repairs and maintenance, insurance, etc, communal living with communal obligations is not for you. You must sell your strata unit and make arrangements which you can afford, including considering whether you can buy a house where you can do (or not do) what you like.