Solar for Townhouses and Strata Properties in Sydney: Getting Owners Corporation Approval

 Owning a townhouse or strata unit no longer means paying full price for power while the freestanding homes down the street run on sunshine. Strata solar in Sydney has become far easier to approve under NSW law, yet many owners still stall at the same hurdle: getting owners corporation approval. This guide explains which vote you need, what your committee will ask, and how to put forward a proposal that passes the first time.

Whether you own a three-lot townhouse complex in Castle Hill or a unit in a 40-lot block in Chatswood, the legal framework is the same. The difference is in the detail, and the detail is where most applications succeed or fail.

Can You Install Solar on a Townhouse or Strata Property in Sydney?

In most cases, yes. The first question is not technical. It is about how your property is titled.

  • Torrens title townhouses: If your townhouse sits on its own Torrens title lot, you generally own the roof above you and do not need owners corporation consent. Check for any easements or a community association, then the process is much like a freestanding home.
  • Strata title townhouses and units: The roof is usually common property, owned collectively by the owners corporation. Any panels, cabling or roof penetrations on common property need approval.
  • Community title: The rules come from the scheme’s management statement, so read it before you collect quotes.

A practical tip from the field: ask your strata manager for the registered strata plan. Some townhouse schemes draw lot boundaries to include the roof space, which changes the approval you need. Ten minutes with the plan can save weeks of the wrong paperwork.

How NSW Strata Law Changed for Solar Panels

For years, solar on a common property roof needed a special resolution, meaning at least 75 per cent of votes in favour. A handful of opposed owners could block a project indefinitely.

That changed on 24 February 2021, when section 132B was added to the Strata Schemes Management Act 2015. Solar panels now count as sustainability infrastructure, and a sustainability infrastructure resolution only needs to clear a threshold of roughly half the votes cast, rather than three in four. NCAT has stated plainly that solar panels are sustainability infrastructure, so there is little room for argument on that point.

Further reforms from July 2025 strengthened the owner’s position again:

  • An owners corporation can no longer refuse sustainability infrastructure purely because of how it looks, unless the building is heritage listed or sits in a heritage conservation area.
  • Owners corporations are expected to consider the scheme’s sustainability as a standing item at each annual general meeting.

For townhouse owners, this means a single objecting neighbour can no longer veto your solar plans on taste alone.

Read More: https://www.solarnational.com.au/solar-for-townhouses-strata-sydney/

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