Compliance9 min readWerkks Team
Singapore's high density of strata-titled developments — from private condominiums to mixed-use commercial buildings and industrial flatted factories — means that tens of thousands of people are bound by the Building Maintenance and Strata Management Act (BMSMA) without fully understanding what it requires of them.
TL;DR: A practical guide to the Building Maintenance and Strata Management Act (BMSMA) for Singapore building managers and MCSTs. Covers obligations, penalties, maintenance funds, and what to do when disputes arise.
If you are a building manager, facility manager, or management council member in Singapore, the BMSMA directly governs how you run the property, handle maintenance funds, deal with disputes, and respond to defects. Getting it wrong carries real consequences — financial penalties, legal liability, and fractious relationships with subsidiary proprietors who know their rights.
The Building Maintenance and Strata Management Act was first enacted in 2004 and governs the management and maintenance of strata-titled properties in Singapore — developments where individual units (lots) are owned separately but share common property.
The Act applies to:
When a strata-titled development is created through the lodgement of a strata title plan, a management corporation (MCST) is automatically formed. It is a legal entity — it can sue and be sued, enter contracts, and hold assets. Every subsidiary proprietor (unit owner) is automatically a member of the management corporation.
The MCST is governed by a management council, typically comprising between 3 and 14 members elected at the annual general meeting. The council must include at least a chairman, secretary, and treasurer. These office bearers have specific statutory responsibilities — failing to perform them is not just a breach of duty, it can be a criminal offence under the BMSMA.
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The BMSMA places a clear, non-negotiable obligation on the management corporation to properly maintain common property. Section 29 of the Act requires the MCST to keep the common property in a state of good repair, renew or replace fixtures or fittings forming part of the common property, and maintain all mechanical, electrical, and sanitary equipment on the common property.
"Common property" is defined broadly to include everything that is not part of a subsidiary lot — external walls, roofs, foundations, corridors, lifts, staircases, carparks, swimming pools, lobbies, and all shared infrastructure such as water supply pipes, drainage, electrical wiring, and fire protection systems that serve more than one lot. This obligation is not discretionary.
The BMSMA requires every management corporation to establish and maintain two separate funds:
Note: Critical rule: These two funds must be kept in separate bank accounts. You cannot use sinking fund money to pay for operating expenses, even temporarily. Doing so is an offence under the Act.
The Act sets minimum mandatory contributions to the sinking fund, calculated as a percentage of the annual contributions to the management fund. These minimums are higher for older buildings — buildings over 30 years old must contribute more to reflect higher expected capital expenditure.
The MCST must hold an annual general meeting (AGM) within 15 months of the previous AGM. The AGM must receive the financial statements, elect or re-elect management council members, approve the budget for the coming year, and consider motions put forward by subsidiary proprietors.
Notice of the AGM must be given to all subsidiary proprietors at least 14 days before the meeting (21 days for extraordinary general meetings). Failing to hold an AGM on time or giving inadequate notice are common procedural breaches that dissatisfied subsidiary proprietors can use to challenge council decisions.
The BMSMA requires the management corporation to insure the development against damage. The prescribed minimum insurance covers the full replacement value of the building, public liability for common property, and in some cases, specific risks depending on the development type. Failure to maintain adequate insurance leaves both the MCST and individual subsidiary proprietors exposed in the event of a major incident.
The BMSMA provides for by-laws that govern the use of lots and common property. There are default by-laws set out in the Act's schedules, plus the ability for the MCST to add to or substitute those by-laws by special resolution.
By-laws are enforceable. The MCST can apply to the Strata Titles Boards or the courts for orders compelling compliance. Subsidiary proprietors who breach by-laws can be required to pay for any damage caused.
The Strata Titles Boards (STB) provides a more accessible and lower-cost dispute resolution mechanism for strata-related disputes — an alternative to going to court.
If you are a professional building manager engaged by an MCST, you operate as a managing agent under a management agreement. Your obligations come from both that agreement and the BMSMA itself. Practically speaking, you are responsible for:
This is a significant administrative load. Many managing agents rely on spreadsheets, email threads, and paper files — which works until a regulatory inspector asks for a complete maintenance history. Purpose-built tools like Werkks help maintenance teams and managing agents keep structured job records tied to each property, making compliance reporting significantly less painful.
The BMSMA carries real teeth. Key offences and penalties include:
References
Building Maintenance and Strata Management Act (Chapter 30C) • BCA — Strata Titles and Management • Strata Titles Boards • Building Control Act • SCDF Fire Safety Requirements
The management corporation (MCST) is primarily responsible for maintaining common property in strata-titled developments. This includes structural elements, common corridors, lifts, carparks, and shared mechanical and electrical systems. Subsidiary proprietors (individual unit owners) are responsible for the interior of their own lots, but the MCST has the power to enter a lot to carry out maintenance work if the subsidiary proprietor fails to do so and the failure affects other lots or common property.
The management fund covers day-to-day operational expenses — security, cleaning, utilities for common areas, routine maintenance, and management fees. The sinking fund is for capital expenditure: major repairs, replacement of lifts or mechanical plant, repainting the building, and other non-recurring large expenditures. The BMSMA requires MCSTs to maintain both funds separately, and there are prescribed minimum contribution rates for the sinking fund based on the age and type of development.
Yes. Officers of the management corporation — including the chairman, secretary, and treasurer of the council — can be held personally liable for certain BMSMA offences if they are shown to have consented to, connived in, or were negligent in relation to the breach. Penalties include fines and in serious cases, disqualification from serving as an MCST council member. Professional building managers should maintain adequate professional indemnity insurance.
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