An airspace development is decided by owners, not by a developer. Most projects fail on process, not on numbers — the motion is drafted loosely, the wrong majority is sought, or common property changes are left out of the resolution. This guide sets out the sequence that works in NSW, VIC and QLD.
1. Establish the feasibility case before any meeting
Committees will not vote on a concept. They vote on a document. Before you call anything, you need an indicative model that shows pod capacity, structural allowance, construction staging and the financial outcome for owners — retained rental income, a capital lump sum from sale of airspace lots, or a hybrid.
Our Airspace Calculator produces this first-pass model in seconds, and the feasibility PDF is written to be circulated with meeting papers.
2. Get a structural capacity letter
A consulting structural engineer reviews the original drawings and confirms whether the existing columns and footings can carry additional storeys, or what retrofitting would be required. This letter is the single most persuasive item in the pack — it converts "is this even possible?" into a costed line item.
3. Draft the motion with your strata manager
The motion has to authorise several things at once, and missing any one of them means going back to owners a second time:
- Sale, lease or licence of the airspace / common property above the top floor
- Registration of a new lot or lots, and the resulting change to unit entitlements
- Alteration of common property (roof membrane, lift and stair extension, services risers)
- Any by-law changes needed for construction access and ongoing use
- Authority for the committee to execute documents within agreed commercial limits
4. Know the majority you need
Thresholds differ by state and by what you are actually doing. Adding lots and changing entitlements is a higher bar than simply licensing roof space. Our strata voting page sets out the current thresholds per jurisdiction; confirm the specific pathway with your strata manager and lawyer before notices are issued.
5. Run an information session before the general meeting
Send the pack at least 21 days out, then hold an information session — in person or online — a week before the vote. Owners who first see the proposal on the meeting agenda vote no. Owners who have already asked their questions vote on the merits.
6. Sequence approvals correctly
Owners' resolution first, then development application, then subdivision and registration, then construction. Attempting a DA before the resolution wastes money and signals to council that the applicant does not control the site.