How to Get Strata Approval for a Vending Machine in Your Sydney Apartment Building

Key Takeaways

• A vending machine in common property needs owners corporation approval — in NSW it’s a licence granted by special resolution
• A special resolution passes unless more than 25% of unit entitlements represented at the meeting vote against it
• The free-placement model removes the two objections committees raise most: cost and upkeep
• A one-page, zero-cost proposal is usually all it takes to get the committee on board

Getting a vending machine into a Sydney apartment building comes down to one question: is the spot common property or not? If it’s common property — a lobby, foyer, common room, or gym — the owners corporation decides, and in NSW it grants that licence by special resolution, which passes unless more than 25% of the unit entitlements represented at the meeting vote against it. If it’s on private title, the owners corporation is usually out of the picture. And under a free-placement model, the building pays nothing — the operator supplies, installs, stocks, and maintains the machine at zero cost.

That’s the whole answer. Here’s how to actually make it happen.

The reason most apartment buildings never get a vending machine isn’t a lack of demand. It’s that nobody knows who to ask or what to show them. Residents want a cold drink in the lobby. The committee is worried about cost, upkeep, and liability. And because nobody puts together a clean proposal, the idea dies in a committee meeting and never comes back.

Fix the proposal, and the approval is usually a formality.

Why Approval Is Needed at All

A vending machine in the lobby isn’t like a washing machine inside someone’s unit. It sits in common property, and it runs for years. Under the Strata Schemes Management Act 2015 (NSW), granting someone the right to occupy and operate in common property is a licence to use common property — and the owners corporation grants that by special resolution.

That sounds heavier than it is. In most buildings the strata committee does the legwork: they review the proposal, recommend it, and put the motion to a general meeting. Your job is to make the committee’s job easy.

Step 1: Work Out Who Decides

Before you write a single word, check where the machine would actually go.

The strata plan tells you which is which. If you’re not sure, the building manager or strata manager can confirm in one email.

Step 2: Build a One-Page Proposal

The committee isn’t rejecting vending machines. They’re rejecting the unknowns. Kill the unknowns and you kill the objection.

A proposal that gets approved answers four questions:

1. Where it goes — the exact spot, with a photo if you have one
2. Power — confirm there’s a power point within reach
3. Cost — zero, in writing. No supply fee, no install fee, no maintenance fee, no monthly charge
4. Who maintains it — the operator, not the committee. Stocking, cleaning, breakdowns, card reader faults — all the operator’s problem

Here’s the thing that flips most committees: a vending machine is one of the only amenities you can add to a building that costs the owners corporation nothing and adds something residents actually use. No special levy. No sinking fund drawdown. No ongoing contract liability. The operator carries all of it.

Step 3: The Vote, Explained Without the Jargon

When the location is common property, the owners corporation grants the licence by special resolution.

What that actually means: the motion passes as long as no more than 25% of the unit entitlements represented at the meeting vote against it.

Put another way — you don’t need every owner to actively vote yes. You need to avoid a quarter of those present opposing it. For a zero-cost, zero-effort amenity, that’s a low bar.

Step 4: Confirm the Practical Details

Once the motion is heading toward a yes, lock in the physical stuff with the operator on a short site visit:

• Placement — level surface, clear of fire egress and doorways
• Power — a standard 10A power point within a few metres
• Access — can the machine be delivered and restocked without blocking residents?
• Fit — does the machine clear the doorways and lift it has to pass through?

A professional operator walks the building, confirms all four, and tells you if the spot won’t work before anyone commits to anything.

Step 5: Sign and Install

The final step is a placement agreement with no lock-in. You can end it with notice — most operators want 30 days. The operator then:

1. Delivers and installs the machine in one visit
2. Stocks it with drinks and snacks matched to the building (family-friendly, or health-focused if that’s what residents want)
3. Connects the cashless reader — tap-and-go, Apple Pay, Google Pay
4. Sets the restock schedule so the machine never runs empty

The building pays nothing, at any stage.

What Actually Makes a Sydney Building Say Yes

Not the machine. The operator.

Committees approve when the proposal removes risk. That means:

• Zero cost to the owners corporation — ever
• No lock-in — you can end it if residents don’t use it
• A local Sydney operator who answers the phone and comes out when something breaks
• Modern, cashless machines — no cash to collect, no coin jams, no vandalism magnet

If your building has 20+ residents or sits in a high-traffic spot, you likely qualify. And the whole thing — from first proposal to stocked machine — usually takes a few weeks.

The machine in your lobby isn’t a construction project. It’s a licence, a one-page proposal, and a vote. Get those three right and the cold drink is in the lobby before the next committee meeting.