External walls are usually the owners corporation's responsibility — they're the building's outer skin, holding everything up and keeping weather out. But "external wall" can mean different things in townhouse schemes, and the surface finish (paint, render, render colour) sometimes gets treated differently to the structure underneath.
What we're talking about
The external walls are the walls that form the outside of the building — what you see when you stand on the footpath. In a townhouse scheme, this includes:
- The brickwork, blockwork or framing
- Cladding (timber, fibre cement, weatherboard, etc.)
- Render and paint
- Window and door surrounds (the wall itself, not the windows or doors)
- Party walls — the walls shared between two townhouses
Typical position
For most NSW townhouse schemes, here's how it usually breaks down:
Usually OC
- External brickwork or framing
- Render and external paint
- Cladding
- Weep holes, lintels and structural elements
- Party walls (between townhouses)
- Cracks that affect the building structure
Usually owner
- Interior wall surfaces and paint
- Picture hooks, shelving, fixings you've added
- Decorations attached to external walls (where allowed)
- Damage caused by your activities (e.g. drilling into masonry)
Often grey
- Repainting in scheme-wide colour changes
- Walls fully enclosing a courtyard
- Garden walls and boundary walls
- Hairline cracking — cosmetic vs structural
- Walls in additions made by previous owners
⚠ Important — townhouse schemes can be different
In apartment buildings, the lot generally ends at the inside face of the external wall. In townhouses, the position can vary. Some older townhouse schemes were registered with the entire wall (including the inside face) as common property. Others put the inner skin of the wall inside the lot.
Garden walls and stand-alone walls within a courtyard can also go either way — sometimes lot property, sometimes common property. Always check your registered strata plan.
Grey areas and common disputes
Cracking — cosmetic or structural?
Small surface cracks (hairline, in render or paint) are usually maintenance items for the owners corporation, but they're not urgent unless water is getting in. Larger cracks — running through brickwork, opening up at the corners, or growing over time — can be a sign of movement and need a building consultant's view. The OC pays for the investigation. If it's structural, the OC fixes it.
Painting and colour changes
External painting is OC responsibility, but the colour and style is usually a scheme-wide decision (special resolution at a general meeting). Owners cannot simply paint their own front wall a different colour. If a previous owner did that without permission, the OC may be entitled to require it be restored to the agreed scheme colour at that owner's cost.
Party walls between townhouses
The wall between two townhouses is usually common property. Damage caused by activities in one lot (e.g. a poorly installed kitchen exhaust drilling through into the next lot, or noise issues from inadequate sound insulation) can become disputed quickly. The wall structure itself is the OC's problem; the cause of damage may shift the bill back to a specific lot owner.
Renovations and "before/after" walls
If a previous owner extended their lot — adding an enclosed verandah, putting up a pergola, or building out a wall — the position is sometimes a mess. Whether it was approved, whether a by-law was registered, and what the registered plan shows all matter. Honest answer: if you're inheriting an unapproved structure, get advice before assuming the OC will look after it.
Sources
Strata Schemes Management Act 2015 (NSW), s4 (definition of common property — includes external walls and structural elements), s106 (strict duty to repair and maintain common property).
Seiwa Pty Ltd v The Owners — Strata Plan No 35042 [2006] NSWSC 1157 — strict duty principle applies to external wall maintenance and cracking.
NSW Fair Trading — Strata living and dispute resolution guidance.