Strata Maintenance Painting in WA: How to Protect Your Building and Stay Compliant

Strata maintenance in Western Australia isn’t optional. It’s baked into the legislation. If your scheme has more than 10 lots or a replacement value of over $5 million, the Strata Titles Amendment Act 2020 requires a 10-year maintenance plan that covers the condition of common property and the works needed to maintain it. Painting sits squarely within that scope.

Why Maintenance Painting Matters Beyond Aesthetics

Paint holds the building together. On rendered masonry, painted concrete, and coated steel, the coating is the first line of defence against Perth’s UV load, coastal salt air, and seasonal rain. When that coating fails, the problems begin to stack up fast:

• Water ingress through cracked or peeling render is one of the leading causes of defects in Australian multi-unit buildings.
• Concrete cancer (reinforcement corrosion causing spalling) begins when moisture reaches the steel through deteriorated coatings or cracked substrates.
• Efflorescence (those white salt deposits on masonry) signals moisture movement through the substrate. Left untreated, it indicates ongoing water penetration.
• Render delamination follows unaddressed cracking and poor adhesion, typically requiring full patch repairs before any recoat.

By the time these issues are visible to residents, the remediation costs are several times what a timely repaint would have cost.

WA Compliance Touchpoints

Since May 2020, designated strata companies in WA have been legally required to maintain a 10-year maintenance plan. That plan for strata building maintenance in Perth must include:

• A condition report on all covered common property items.
• Details on the present condition and operating state of each item.
• Anticipated works and estimated timeframes.
• Reserve fund forecasting for those works.

Painting of common property (exterior walls, balcony soffits, car park decks, fencing, and common corridors) falls within the scope. Committees can’t lawfully omit it to reduce levies. The plan needs to reflect actual conditions and anticipated expenditure.

2025 was a significant year, marking the first mandatory five-year review cycle for many WA schemes whose plans were established in 2020. If your scheme’s painting schedule hasn’t been reassessed since then, now’s the time to do so.

Cyclical Vs Reactive Maintenance

The cost argument is straightforward. Cyclical strata building maintenance in Perth (exterior paints every 7-10 years, targeted touch-up and sealant works in between) keeps costs predictable and levies stable.

Reactive maintenance means waiting until the paint fails, then addressing what’s underneath. That typically means:

• Concrete crack injection or patch repairs before repainting.
• Render replacement on sections with delamination.
• Sealant strip-out and reapplication around windows and penetrations.
• Possible structural engineer involvement where water ingress has compromised framing.

The disruption to residents is also greater. Emergency repair work rarely fits neatly around building life; cyclical programmes can be scheduled around quieter periods and communicated well in advance.

What a Strata Maintenance Painting Programme Looks Like

A property structured strata 10-year maintenance plan for painting is a phased, documented programme.

1. Site Audit

A thorough inspection of all painted surfaces: condition mapping, substrate assessment, identification of cracking, delamination, efflorescence, sealant failure, and balcony soffit deterioration.

2. Condition Report

Written documentation with photos recording the current state of each area. This becomes part of your strata company’s maintenance records and supports your compliance with the 10-year plan.

3. Prioritised Works Schedule

Not everything needs doing at once. Strata maintenance in WA is staged by urgency (water ingress risk first, cosmetic refresh second), with estimated costs and recommended timelines mapped across the plan period.

4. Multi-Year Scheduling

Subsequent repaints, touch-up programmes, and sealant renewal cycles are scheduled in advance, giving the committee and sinking fund manager visibility on future expenditure.

Common Building Issues and Treatments

These are the defects we encounter most frequently on Perth strata properties:

• Efflorescence on Masonry: Surface treatment alone won’t fix it. The moisture source needs to be identified. Once addressed, affected areas are cleaned, treated, and recoated.
• Peeling on Rendered Surfaces: Usually due to adhesion failure from previous poor prep or moisture intrusion. Requires full removal of flaking material, substrate repair, and appropriate primer before recoating.
• Balcony Soffit Cracking and Staining: Often indicates water ponding above. Soffits are treated alongside an assessment of the balcony deck waterproofing.
• Sealant failure at window and door junctions: A direct water ingress pathway. Old sealant is stripped, the joint is cleaned and primed, and a compatible flexible sealant is applied before painting.
• Render cracking at control joints: Filled, primed, and monitored. Where cracking is active (structural movement), an engineer assessment may be warranted before cosmetic treatment.

Documenting Works for Strata Records

Good documentation is what separates a compliant strata company from one that’s exposed. After every works programme, Consummo provides:

• Before-and-after photos for council records.
• Delivery dockets and product data sheets for all coatings used.
• Coating specifications (surface prep, primer, and topcoat system with application rates).
• Warranty documentation from the coating manufacturer.
• A written works report suitable for inclusion in your 10-year plan update or AGM records.

This paper trail protects the committee, meets the reporting requirements under the Strata Titles Act, and provides future managers with a clear picture of what’s been done and when. For strata building maintenance in Perth, it’s also what insurers and auditors expect to see when they ask how funds have been spent.

How We Approach Strata Building Maintenance in Perth

Consummo Painting works with strata managers, procurement managers, and councils of owners across Perth on cyclical strata maintenance in WA. What that looks like in practice:

Single Point of Contact

You work with one person who knows your building, your plan, and your schedule. No chasing multiple trades or re-explaining the project scope every time.

Cyclical Contacts

We structure agreements around your 10-year plan. Scheduled works, scheduled callbacks, and no surprises when it’s time for the next phase.

Quality Over Quantity

We take on fewer projects than we could, and that’s deliberate. It means the work gets done properly, the first time, with the craftsmanship it deserves.

For commercial painting in Perth, we handle strata buildings, office painting, and other commercial environments where disruption must be managed, and documentation is essential.

Ready to Get Your Building Assessed?

If you’re preparing a 10-year maintenance plan, approaching a mandatory review, or dealing with substrate issues that need attention before they escalate, we can help.

Strata 10-year maintenance plan painting is one of the most commonly underdocumented line items we see; we’ll assess your common property, document current conditions, and give you a clear, staged works programme you can take straight to the committee. Request your strata maintenance audit.