How do you get started with StrataBody in your first 10 minutes?
Need a fast owners corporation setup checklist? Walk through scheme profile, lots and roles, your first maintenance workflow, an owner notice, and one compliance reminder—built for Australian committees.
We get it — when your committee finally decides to try new software, the last thing anyone wants is a lengthy setup process that takes hours and requires a dedicated IT person. Good news: StrataBody is designed so that a busy volunteer can get their scheme up and running in the time it takes to drink a cup of coffee.
This guide walks you through exactly what to do in your first ten minutes, in the order that makes the most sense. There's no need to configure everything at once — just hit the most important foundations first and you'll have immediate value from day one.
Why getting the setup right matters
The way you set up your scheme in StrataBody flows through to everything else — your meeting headers, your compliance reminders, your owner notices, and even your levy calculations. Spending a few minutes getting the basics right now saves you from correcting mismatches later.
Think of it like setting up a new home. You wouldn't start decorating before you've sorted out the address, right? Same principle here.
Minute 1–2: confirm your scheme profile
The very first thing to do is confirm your scheme name, building details, and key contact settings. This might seem trivial, but your scheme name appears on meeting headers, owner notices, compliance certificates, and anywhere StrataBody generates a formal document. Getting it right immediately keeps everything looking professional and consistent.
If your committee runs multiple buildings under the one scheme — which is common for larger developments — make sure each building is listed separately with its address. This matters because maintenance requests, compliance items, and communications can then be targeted to the right building, and you'll never have a work order showing up under the wrong address.
**Quick check:** Does your scheme name match what's on your official plan of subdivision or strata plan? Using the legal name from day one avoids awkward corrections later, especially if you ever need to produce documents for an ACAT hearing, VCAT application, or similar.
Minute 3–4: add your lots and key committee members
Next, create your lot list. You don't need every owner's personal details right away — just make sure the lot numbers are correct and match your plan. If you're migrating from a spreadsheet, focus on importing your active lots first. Historical records can be added gradually.
Add your core committee members with the right roles: chair, secretary, treasurer, and any general committee members. Role assignments matter because they determine what each person can see and do in the system. Your secretary will be able to manage meeting records and owner communications. Your treasurer will have visibility over financial settings. Getting this right early means your committee can start working immediately without anyone stepping on each other's toes.
Tip
Start with a small number of users — just the committee roles — before inviting all owners. This lets you set up folder visibility, document access, and notice workflows before owners log in for the first time. Nothing more embarrassing than owners seeing a half-finished setup.
Keep initial access tight and controlled. You can always expand access once everything looks polished.
Minute 5–6: set up your first request workflow
If there's one thing that transforms daily committee life immediately, it's having a proper maintenance request workflow. Right now, most committees are losing requests in email chains, WhatsApp groups, and sticky notes on someone's fridge. StrataBody fixes this in about two minutes.
Set up your request priorities — urgent, high, normal, and low. Add a couple of assignees (usually the secretary or a committee member who manages maintenance). Set your expected response windows.
Then, create one real or sample request. Pick something your building actually deals with regularly — a common lighting issue, a garden maintenance request, or a letterbox problem. Walk it through the full workflow: create, triage, assign, update status. This lets your whole committee see how the process works before it's used for something urgent.
The payoff here is immediate. From this point forward, every request that comes in has a clear home, an owner, a priority, and a status. Nothing gets lost. Nothing gets 'replied to' with 'did this ever get sorted?' six months later.
Minute 7–8: publish your first owner-facing notice
One of the most visible things you can do on day one is send a welcome notice to owners through the portal. Keep it short and practical — tell owners that StrataBody is now the committee's platform, explain what they can access (requests, notices, documents), and let them know who to contact for urgent after-hours issues.
This first communication does two important things. First, it sets clear expectations so owners know where to go instead of emailing the secretary directly for every question. Second, it demonstrates that the committee is organised and proactive, which builds immediate trust.
You can draft this in under two minutes. A few sentences is enough. The goal isn't to write an essay — it's to open the communication channel and show owners that StrataBody is where things happen now.
Minute 9–10: set your first compliance reminder
Finally, add one upcoming compliance due date. This might be your annual insurance renewal, the next fire safety inspection, a lift service, or a pool safety check. Pick whichever is coming up soonest and enter it with a due date and a reminder window of at least 30 days.
The moment you do this, your compliance dashboard starts working. You'll see a real item in the system, you'll understand how reminders work, and your committee will have immediate visibility into an upcoming obligation.
**Why this matters:** One of the most common compliance failures in self-managed schemes is a simple oversight — an insurance policy that auto-renewed but wasn't checked, a fire inspection that was booked but never confirmed. Getting even one obligation into the system on day one creates the habit that protects your scheme.
After your first 10 minutes: what comes next
Once you've completed these five steps, you have a functioning scheme in StrataBody. You're not done — but you're live. From here, you can gradually add more documents to your folder library, set up additional compliance items, configure your levy schedules, and expand owner access at your own pace.
The beauty of StrataBody is that you don't have to do everything at once. Many committees spend their first week just using the request workflow and loving how much cleaner it is than email. Then they add meetings. Then documents. Then compliance. Each layer adds value without overwhelming the committee.
**Remember:** The goal of day one is to create structure, not perfection. Every great scheme in StrataBody started exactly where you are right now.
How Stratabody helps
- Quickly define your scheme structure with buildings, lots, and member roles.
- Create maintenance workflows with priorities, assignees, and clear due dates.
- Publish owner notices and centralise all communication records in one place.
- Start compliance tracking immediately with due-date reminders and dashboards.
- Scale your setup in phases so your committee is never overwhelmed.
Frequently asked questions
- Do we need to import every historical document before going live?
- Absolutely not. Most committees start with current-year records and their key governance documents (by-laws, current insurance certificate, most recent AGM minutes), then backfill historical files at their own pace. You can be up and running with just what matters right now.
- How many committee users should we invite on day one?
- Start with your core role holders — secretary, treasurer, chair, and one backup. Once your folder structure, visibility settings, and notice workflows are in place, you can comfortably invite broader committee and owner access without anything looking unfinished.
- Can we start without using the Owner Portal immediately?
- Yes, and many committees do exactly that. Begin with internal committee workflows — requests, compliance, meetings — and roll out owner-facing access once you're confident in how your documents and communications are organised. There's no rush.
- What if our lot numbers are wrong — can we fix them later?
- Yes. Lot details can be updated at any time. It's worth getting the numbers correct early since they appear on levy notices and communications, but any mistakes can be corrected without disrupting the rest of your setup.
Your first 10 minutes in StrataBody should create structure, not overwhelm. Get the scheme profile right, add your core committee members, start one request workflow, publish a welcome notice, and set one compliance reminder. Then take a breath — you're already ahead of most self-managed committees. The rest can be built at a pace that works for your team.
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