Reference
Glossary.
Plain-English definitions for the terms you'll meet on Dwell and around strata living.
Updated 15 September 2026
| Term | What it means |
|---|---|
| ACT directory | The map and list of every unit plan in the ACT, built from ACT Government open data. Anyone can browse it; it's the starting point for finding a complex. |
| Audit log | The permanent record of significant actions on a work order — who did what, when. Visible to managers. |
| Common property | Everything in the complex that isn't an individual unit: hallways, roofs, lifts, gardens. Common-property work orders have no unit attached and are lodged by strata managers. |
| Compliance lock | Status applied to a contractor whose trade licence or public-liability insurance has expired. Locked contractors can't be assigned new work until their records are renewed. |
| Complex | A unit plan — a building or group of buildings governed by one owners corporation. Every complex has its own page on Dwell. |
| Dispatch | Assigning a work order to a contractor. Dwell checks trade match, compliance and spend limit before it lets a dispatch through. |
| Executive committee (EC) | The owners elected to govern the complex on behalf of all owners. EC members hold the read-only executive-committee role on Dwell. |
| Levy | The fee each unit owner pays (usually quarterly) to fund the complex's management, maintenance and insurance. Tracked per unit on the Levies tab. |
| Messaging permission | A manager-granted exception that unlocks one specific contractor ↔ tenant conversation. |
| Owners corporation | The legal entity of all unit owners in a complex (also called a body corporate elsewhere). |
| Portfolio | The set of complexes (strata manager) or units (property manager, landlord) linked to an account. Professional portfolios are assigned by the Dwell administrator. |
| Preferred contractor | A contractor a manager has flagged to rank first in dispatch pickers for a complex. |
| Quote reversion | What happens when a contractor's quote exceeds the job's spend limit: the request converts to a quote request and returns to the manager for approval. |
| Site log | The per-complex record of contractor check-ins and check-outs, with notes. Common-property visits are visible to the strata manager only; unit visits also to that unit's landlord/property manager. |
| Spend limit (spend cap) | A pre-authorised maximum on a work order. Quotes above it require explicit manager approval. |
| Strata manager | The professional firm engaged by the owners corporation to run the complex day to day. Scoped to whole complexes on Dwell. |
| Property manager | The person or firm managing individual rental units on behalf of landlords. Scoped to units, not complexes, on Dwell. |
| Unit plan | The registered plan that divides a complex into units and common property — identified by a number like UP 1234. |
| Viewing as | The pills on a complex page that let you preview it through another role's eyes. A lens only — your real permissions don't change. |
| Work order | The record that tracks a maintenance job from report to invoice. See Work orders. |