Strata & Building Management
What actually happens if you stop paying maintenance charges
Stopping payment of maintenance charges triggers a statutory sequence, not a negotiation: a Form 11 notice from a JMB (s.34(1)) or Form 20 from a management corporation (s.78(1)) giving not less than 14 days, interest capped at 10% per annum, then a debt claim, a warrant of attachment over your movable property, or criminal prosecution.
Quick summary
Quick answer
Best for
Risk level
Buyer action
| Best for | Owners questioning what they pay, and buyers modelling the holding cost of a high-rise before they commit. |
|---|---|
| Risk level | Medium |
| Buyer action | Send Lewis your building name, the charge you pay and what you are trying to decide, and he will tell you what to check first. |
The number on your bill
This post works through the escalation is statutory and it ends at your parcel, not at a warning letter. Know the order before you decide to withhold. Owners argue about charges constantly, and most of the argument disappears once the statutory basis is on the table.
The notice that starts the clock
Nothing happens legally until a written notice is served, and the Act prescribes which one. A joint management body serves Form 11 under s.34(1). A management corporation or subsidiary management corporation serves Form 20 under s.78(1). Both must give the owner not less than 14 days from the date of service to pay. That form and that date matter later: if enforcement is taken without a properly served notice, the enforcement is the thing that is defective. Keep the envelope, note the date, and check the form number against the type of management body your building actually has.
Interest is capped at 10% per annum
The Act caps the interest that may be charged on late payment at 10% per annum. During the developer's management period it runs on a daily basis under ss.12(6) and 52(5); under a joint management body it is s.25(6)(b); under a management corporation it is s.60(3)(c). A building that bills you at a higher rate, or that compounds it in a way the Act does not provide for, is charging you something it cannot enforce. Check the rate on your statement against the cap before you accept an arrears figure.
Three enforcement routes, and they are not sequential
Once the 14 days expire, the management body may take any of three routes. First, it may file a claim in a court of competent jurisdiction or at the Strata Management Tribunal to recover the sum as a debt — s.34(2) for a JMB, s.78(2) for an MC. Second, it may apply on oath to the Commissioner of Buildings for a warrant of attachment, which allows your movable property to be seized and auctioned — s.35(1) for a JMB, s.79(1) for an MC. Third, it may prosecute: failure to comply with the notice without reasonable excuse is an offence punishable by a fine, imprisonment, or both, under s.34(3) or s.78(3). Owners tend to assume these escalate in order. They do not — a management body may go straight to the warrant.
What happens to your daily life while you are in arrears
Separately from recovery, the prescribed by-laws in the Third Schedule to the 2015 Regulations attach consequences to being a defaulter — defined as a proprietor who has not fully paid charges or sinking fund contributions within 14 days of receiving the notice. Under regulation 6(5) the management body may stop or suspend you from using common facilities and common services, including a car park bay in the common property designated for your use. Under regulation 6(4) it may deactivate your access card, tag or transponder without prior notice once the 14 days expire, charge a reactivation fee of not more than RM50 once you settle, and require you to sign a defaulters' register book each time you need assistance entering or leaving the building. These restrictions extend to your family, tenants, lessees and occupiers — which is how a landlord's arrears end up affecting a tenant who has paid their rent in full.
Verify this against your own building
Ask management for the latest audited accounts, the current charge rate per share unit and the sinking fund balance before you rely on anything here. Rates and building costs differ; the statutory framework does not.
Buyer checklist
The ladder is: Form 11 or Form 20 with at least 14 days to pay, 10% per annum interest, then any of three remedies — a debt claim in court or the Strata Management Tribunal (s.34(2)/s.78(2)), a warrant of attachment to seize and auction your movable property applied for on oath to the Commissioner of Buildings (s.35(1)/s.79(1)), or criminal prosecution carrying a fine, imprisonment or both (s.34(3)/s.78(3)).
1
2
3
4
5
| 1 | Check whether the notice you received is Form 11 or Form 20, and whether it matches your building's management body type. |
|---|---|
| 2 | Count 14 days from the date of service, not from the date printed on the letter. |
| 3 | Recompute the interest at 10% per annum and compare it against the figure billed. |
| 4 | If you are disputing the charge itself, pay under protest and file at the tribunal — arrears strip your right to vote and to sit on the committee. |
| 5 | If you are a tenant, ask whether the landlord is in arrears before you sign — by-law restrictions extend to occupiers. |
Common questions
How long do I have after receiving a demand for arrears?
Not less than 14 days from the date the notice is served — Form 11 under s.34(1) for a JMB, Form 20 under s.78(1) for a management corporation.
How much interest can they charge me?
The cap is 10% per annum. It is authorised by ss.12(6) and 52(5) during developer-managed periods (on a daily basis), s.25(6)(b) for a JMB, and s.60(3)(c) for a management corporation.
Can they really seize my furniture?
Yes. On a sworn application to the Commissioner of Buildings, a warrant of attachment may be issued allowing your movable property to be seized and auctioned — s.35(1) for a JMB, s.79(1) for a management corporation.
Is not paying a criminal offence?
Failure to comply with the notice without reasonable excuse is an offence punishable by a fine, imprisonment or both, under s.34(3) for a JMB and s.78(3) for a management corporation.
Lewis Chong
REN 69566 · IQI GlobalProperty advisor helping KL, JB, and Penang buyers make data-backed property decisions.
Related reading
Use one buyer framework across different news.
How your maintenance charge is actually calculated — share units, not floor area
Malaysian maintenance charges are apportioned by allocated share units under the Strata Management Act 2013, not by floor area — s.8(1) sends the computation to the First Schedule, and s.12(3), s.25(3) and s.60(3) apply it through the developer, JMB and MC periods. Here is how to read your own bill and when a different rate is lawful.
Lewis Conclusion
If you only remember one thing: ask for your share unit figure, not your square footage. It is the number that sets your bill and your vote for as long as you own the unit, and it is printed on documents you are entitled to see.
The sinking fund explained
The sinking fund is a statutory capital reserve set at a minimum of 10% of the maintenance charge under ss.12(4), 25(4), 52(3), 61(3) and 68(3) of Act 757. It may only be spent on capital items — painting, replacing fixtures, upgrading common property — and a general meeting may raise the rate but never drop it below 10%.
Lewis Conclusion
Ask two questions before you buy into any high-rise: what is the sinking fund balance, and when were the lifts, the roof and the external paint last done. If the balance is small and those items are old, the shortfall is coming to you as a special levy — it is only a question of which year.
Can management cut your water, lock your meter or bar you from the lift over arrears?
Act 757 and the 2015 Regulations give a management body no express power to cut water or electricity to a parcel over arrears. What they do allow is suspension of common facilities and services under by-law 6(5), and deactivation of your access card under by-law 6(4) with a reactivation charge of not more than RM50.
Lewis Conclusion
Know the difference before you argue. Access-card deactivation and facility suspension are lawful and management will use them; a utility cut has no express statutory footing and is worth challenging in writing straight away. Either way, settle the arrears first — every remedy here switches off the moment the account is clear.
Prefer Lewis to contact you?
Tell Lewis your budget and area — get a hand-picked 3-project shortlist with price, rental and risk notes on WhatsApp.
Prefer to chat directly? WhatsApp Lewis
Decision check
Want Lewis to apply this to your shortlist?
Send your budget, preferred area, purpose and timeline. Lewis can turn the news into a practical project comparison.
Send
Check whether the notice you received is Form 11 or Form 20, and whether it matches your building's management body type.
Send
Count 14 days from the date of service, not from the date printed on the letter.
Send
Recompute the interest at 10% per annum and compare it against the figure billed.
Send
If you are disputing the charge itself, pay under protest and file at the tribunal — arrears strip your right to vote and to sit on the committee.