Version 3 out now·Faster, leaner, cheaper and more powerful.
UnitBuddy
Demo

Governance

Caretaking Contracts That Never End? UOAQ Compares Queensland Management Rights With Government Procurement

The Unit Owners Association of Queensland argues that body corporate caretaking and letting contracts are held to a lower standard than the contracts government uses for its own buildings. Here is what UOAQ says, what the Queensland rules actually require, and what committees can do before voting on an extension.

· 8 min read

On this pageStart here
  1. Start here
  2. The government comparison
  3. How the Queensland rules work
  4. The four gaps UOAQ points to
  5. No path back to market
  6. No competing quotes
  7. No disclosure of what the extension is worth
  8. A low voting threshold
  9. The other side
  10. What UOAQ wants
  11. What committees can do now
  12. What UnitBuddy tracks
  13. Sources and further reading

Start here

  • On 15 October 2026, the Unit Owners Association of Queensland (UOAQ) published a comparison between how the Queensland Government buys facilities management for its own buildings and how bodies corporate engage caretakers and letting agents.
  • UOAQ's point is that government contracts have a fixed number of extensions and then go back to market. Under the Accommodation Module, a caretaking contract can be extended again and again, so the body corporate may never get to test the market.
  • The Queensland rules allow a service contractor or letting agent engagement of up to 25 years under the Accommodation and Commercial Modules, and 10 years under the Standard Module. Extension options count toward that term.
  • An extension is decided by ordinary resolution at a general meeting. For a caretaking contract that includes an extension option, the vote must be by secret ballot and no proxies can be used.
  • UOAQ wants the Body Corporate and Community Management Act 1997 (BCCM Act) changed to add term limits, controlled extensions, competitive tendering and disclosure of what an extension is worth to the management rights holder.

The government comparison

Hospitals, schools and public offices have lifts, fire systems, air-conditioning and security that have to keep running whatever happens with the contractor. UOAQ notes that government does not treat that as a reason to keep one contractor in place for decades.

According to UOAQ, a common model for QBuild facilities and maintenance work is "3+1+1": a three-year contract with two optional one-year extensions. Other services use other terms, and UOAQ says the five-year figure itself is beside the point. What matters is that the extensions run out. A good contractor can keep the work for a while, but eventually the contract ends and the buyer can go back to market, where the incumbent is free to tender again and win.

UOAQ sums up its argument in one line: "Continuity of service does not require continuity of contractor."

How the Queensland rules work

Under the Queensland Government's guide to engaging a service contractor:

  • The developer can make the first engagement and set the initial pay. After that, the body corporate decides new engagements by ordinary resolution at a general meeting.
  • The minimum term is one year. The maximum is 10 years under the Standard Module and 25 years under the Accommodation and Commercial Modules. Small Schemes and Specified Two-lot Schemes can only engage a service contractor for up to a year, and cannot have caretaking service contractors or letting agents at all.
  • The term includes any options to extend or renew, whether they were in the original contract or added later.

On amending an engagement, the guide says:

  • An amendment is approved by ordinary resolution at a general meeting.
  • An amendment to a caretaking service contract that adds an extension or renewal option must be decided by secret ballot. No votes can be cast by proxy for any service contractor amendment.
  • A motion to extend a contract, increase pay or expand a letting agent's authorisation can only be considered once in a financial year.
  • The meeting notice must include an explanatory note in the approved form. The department's Form 20 explanatory note says each new option can be for no more than 5 years, and the unexpired term after the amendment cannot exceed the module maximum.

So once a year, a caretaker can ask owners to add up to 5 more years, as long as the remaining term stays within 25. If owners agree every year or two, the end date keeps moving and the contract never runs out. That is the pattern UOAQ is describing.

The four gaps UOAQ points to

No path back to market

A 25-year maximum sounds like an end date. UOAQ argues the bigger issue is that repeated extensions can keep a contract made early in a scheme's life running for the life of the building, so the body corporate never gets to negotiate a new one based on what it needs now.

No competing quotes

For major spending, owners must normally receive at least two quotations with the meeting notice. Commentary on the Accommodation Module, including this LookUpStrata summary, notes that the quotation rule does not apply to engaging a service contractor who is also, or will be, the letting agent. UOAQ says owners often see only the incumbent's proposal, with nothing to compare it to.

No disclosure of what the extension is worth

Management rights are bought and sold, and buyers pay for the remaining term of the caretaking agreement, so five more years can add a lot to what the business is worth. UOAQ says owners are not told that figure when they vote. They don't know what a competitor would charge, and they don't know what the extension is worth to the holder.

A low voting threshold

An ordinary resolution passes if more votes are cast for it than against. It does not need a majority of all owners, so in a building with low turnout a small group can approve an extension. UOAQ rejects the idea that this is just owner apathy. It says the law was designed this way, and points out that the legislation already has higher thresholds, such as a majority or special resolution, that could be required instead.

UOAQ summarises the contrast like this:

Government facilities contractsAccommodation Module caretaking contracts
TermDefined contract periodsUp to 25 years, often reset by extensions
ExtensionsA set number, then the contract endsCan be added repeatedly within the cap
Market testingPeriodic tenderingNo general tendering requirement
ComparisonCompeting prices and servicesOften only the incumbent's proposal
Commercial effectConsidered by the buyerValue to the rights holder not disclosed
DecisionBuyer decides whether to continueOrdinary resolution of those who vote

UOAQ accepts the comparison is not exact. Government and body corporate contracts sit under different laws, and different services suit different terms. Its argument is about the principle.

The other side

Management rights businesses are usually bought with borrowed money, and their value depends heavily on the remaining term of the caretaking agreement. That gives rights holders a strong reason to want long terms and regular extensions. A caretaker with only a few years left may find the business hard to sell or refinance, and may put less into the building.

UOAQ says it has no problem with good caretakers keeping the work. An effective contractor should be free to tender for a new contract and win it again. Tendering also doesn't have to mean picking the cheapest provider. Owners can pay for better staffing, more expertise or higher standards, and a tender shows them what those cost.

What UOAQ wants

UOAQ is calling for BCCM Act reform that would provide:

  • real limits on contract terms
  • controlled extensions
  • regular access to a new contract through competitive tendering
  • information on market alternatives, and on the value the extension creates for the rights holder, before owners vote on a major extension
  • a higher approval threshold for major extensions

It also asks whether a body corporate can meet its duty under to act reasonably when it approves an extension without testing the market or getting majority owner support. That question has not been tested in this form. Treat it as an argument, not settled law.

UOAQ is asking owners to email the Attorney-General asking that any BCCM Act reform at least match the procurement standards government uses for its own buildings. It is also inviting bodies corporate to send in their latest AGM notice for its financial study, which compares scheme costs, including caretaking, with similar schemes.

What committees can do now

Reform or not, owners already have some say over an extension motion.

  1. Write down the current expiry date, the remaining term and any options already in the contract. Work out when the term would actually end if owners approved no further extensions.
  2. Before an extension vote, get the committee's own legal advice on the motion and a summary of what the caretaker is paid and does. You can also ask a facilities manager or another caretaker for a benchmark price. The law doesn't require comparisons, but it doesn't stop you collecting them.
  3. Check the duties against the building as it is now. Contracts written by the developer often describe a new building. Look at cleaning, grounds, the pool, fire safety coordination and after-hours response.
  4. Tell owners how the vote works. A caretaking extension option is decided by secret ballot, and proxies do not count, so owners have to vote at the meeting or by voting paper. Our proxy voting guide explains how proxies normally work.
  5. Push for turnout. An ordinary resolution counts only the votes cast, so make sure owners know an extension is on the agenda, what it means and how to lodge a secret ballot.
  6. Minute what information was put before owners and what they decided. If someone later claims the decision was unreasonable, that record matters.
  7. If the caretaker is not doing the job, the committee can issue a remedial action notice under the termination process in the Queensland Government guide. Get legal advice first. Disputes about the terms of an engagement are complex disputes, which go to QCAT or a specialist adjudicator rather than the Commissioner's office.

What UnitBuddy tracks

UnitBuddy keeps the building's contracts in one place with their start dates, expiry dates and extension history. The committee can see how long a caretaking agreement has left and how often it has been extended. Contractor attendance, complaints and repair requests are logged against the building, so when an extension motion comes up, owners can see how the service has actually performed.

UOAQ's piece is advocacy, and it argues one side. Its central claim still holds up against the published rules: a Queensland caretaking contract can be extended again and again by ordinary resolution, without competing quotes, and owners are not told what each extension is worth. If your building has an extension motion coming up, the committee will have to gather that information itself before owners vote.

Sources and further reading

Keep the scheme file in one place the committee and the manager can both open. Features, pricing, or book a tour.