A legal expert explains the implications of exclusive use areas in South African sectional titles, such as parking bays, warning that it is not simply there for the taking.
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Painted numbers, long‑standing habits, and friendly agreements do not create legal rights in sectional title living.
Exclusive use areas (EUAs) are one of the most misunderstood aspects of sectional title living, says Johlene Wasserman, director of Community Schemes and Compliance at law firm VDM Incorporated.
“From parking bays to patios, far too many owners assume that traditional use, painted numbers, or a friendly nod from a trustee gives them the right to build, enclose, or claim a piece of common property as their own.”
Wasserman warns that this is not the case. According to her, disputes are ron the rise across complexes and estates in South Africa. And the current confusion is costing owners money, fuelling neighbour conflict, and placing corporate bodies at risk.
“Most problems don’t arise because the law is complicated. They arise because people rely on habit, hearsay, or hope instead of the actual law,” she says.
In explaining what an exclusive use area really is and why it matters, she says it is a portion of the common property reserved for one owner’s use. It might be a garden, a courtyard, a parking bay, a patio, or a storeroom.
“But here’s the part most people miss: the land remains common property. You don’t own it. You only have the right to use it. And that right exists in only two legal ways.”
She explains that South African law recognises just two mechanisms. The first is a registered real right (Section 27 of the Sectional Title Act or a formal, deeds office–registered property right with commercial value). This right appears on the sectional plan and can be sold, ceded, or bonded.
The second option is a rule-based personal right (Section 10 of the Sectional Titles Schemes Management Act), created through a rule approved by the Community Schemes Ombud Service. It’s not registered, nor can it be bonded, and it lasts only as long as the rule remains in force, she warns.
“Everything else - painted numbers, ‘we’ve always parked there’, trustee permission, managing agent spreadsheets, sale agreements - creates convenience, but not a legal right.”
Wasserman adds that exclusive-use areas are really about boundaries, fairness, and shared living. “When someone builds without approval or claims a space because it’s always been theirs, it affects neighbours, property values, safety, insurance, the body corporate’s legal obligations, and the overall harmony of the community. This is not just a property issue; it is a human one too.”
Wasserman explains that exclusive use does not give you the right to alter common property. The Prescribed Management Rule 30(g) states clearly that any improvement, whether it’s a pergola, carport, or braai, requires body corporate approval by ordinary resolution, unless authority has been formally delegated.
“If the structure is watertight, enclosed, and increases your floor area, it becomes an extension of your section. This will require a special resolution and a formally amended sectional plan lodged in the deeds office. Calling it ‘just a little enclosure’ doesn’t change the law.”
Wasserman says that while the body corporate is mandated to maintain all common property, including exclusive use areas, the owner has to reimburse the full cost. This prevents unlawful cross‑subsidisation and protects the financial fairness of the scheme.
A rule-based exclusive use area can, however, be converted into a registered real right, but only through a formal, multi-step legal process that involves surveyors, resolutions, amended plans, registration, and notarial cession.
“Until that process is complete, the right remains personal no matter how long you’ve used the space.”
Wasserman further warns that real right exclusive use areas must be disclosed and transferred by notarial deed when buying or selling a property. Sale agreements cannot create exclusive use rights.
According to her, exclusive-use areas are not informal privileges but tightly regulated legal rights. Understanding the difference between use and ownership, and between personal and real rights, isn’t just for trustees, directors, and property professionals. It’s for anyone who lives in a shared space, values fairness, and wants to avoid costly mistakes.
zelda.venter@inl.co.za