Owning a Condo Unit: Your Rights and Duties

What do I own when I buy a condo?

You own a unit and a share of everything else. Section 1 of the Condominium Property Act, 2001 defines a unit as a space inside a building described on the plan by reference to floors, walls and ceilings. Section 11 puts the boundary at the finished interior surface, so plaster, paint, tiles and flooring are yours, and doors and windows belong to the unit unless the plan says otherwise. Where a wall inside the unit carries the building's load, only its interior finish is yours.

The rest is common property: land, support structures, infrastructure and services (section 1). Section 6 says all unit owners hold it together, as tenants in common, in shares proportional to their unit factors, and your share cannot be sold or charged apart from your unit. If you sell or mortgage the unit, the share goes with it. Our page on the law behind this is the Condominium Property Act 2001 in Plain English. Before you buy, ask whether the building has registered unit titles, as explained in Registering a Condominium Plan and Unit Titles.

What rights do I have as an owner?

• Deal with your unit. You may sell, transfer, lease, charge or otherwise deal with it like other registered land (section 4(3)). The corporation's rules cannot prohibit or restrict a transfer, lease or other dealing in units (section 29(4)).
• Use shared services. Each unit has rights of support, shelter, water, sewerage, drainage, gas, electricity, telephone and other services over the parcel, and a right to light through existing windows and doors (sections 14 and 15).
• Vote. Your voting power follows your unit factor, and you may vote in person or by proxy (section 23).
• Ask for information. On written request, and payment of the prescribed fee, the managing agent must give you the amount due on your unit, the budget, financial statement, insurance details, management agreement and rules within 21 days (section 35).
• Complain. The board must hear complaints from aggrieved members (section 20(6)).
• Get a certificate. The corporation must certify the amount you owe and give a statement of account when you or your agent ask (section 32(3)).

Section 54 adds that these protections apply despite any agreement to the contrary, and a waiver of them is void. The practical way to use them is to join the annual general meeting, which the board must call every year (section 27). If the corporation also controls rooftops and parking, read Parking, Rooftops and Common Areas in Condos.

Who repairs the roof of an apartment block?

The corporation does, and every owner pays for it through the levy. Roofs, outer walls, foundations, lifts, stairs, shared pipes and the grounds are not inside any one unit's boundary, so they are common property. Section 20 makes the corporation responsible for keeping common property in a state of good repair and for obeying any repair order from a local authority, planning authority or utility. The money comes from contributions levied on all units in proportion to their unit entitlement (section 20(1)(e)).

Rules can add detail, such as who repairs a balcony, so read them before you buy. For what you pay and how the levy is shared, see condo service charge.

How does voting work?

Votes are weighted by unit factor, so a larger unit has more say (section 23). If a unit has a registered mortgage and the lender has notified the corporation, the lender votes in place of the owner where a unanimous resolution is needed, and may vote in other cases if present or by proxy. A minor or an owner unable to manage property votes through a guardian, the Public Trustee or another authorised person (section 24). The Act uses three kinds of decision:

Because some decisions need every owner, one owner who will not agree can block them. That is why choosing a building with a healthy owner base matters. See condominium by-laws for how meetings and boards work.

What use restrictions and by-law enforcement apply?

The corporation must make rules for managing the units and property (section 29(1)), and they bind every owner as if each had signed them (section 29(5)). They must provide fines for breach (section 29(7)). You cannot change a unit's use, for example from home to office, unless the owners agree unanimously and the planning and local authorities approve (section 8). Rules also cannot stop you selling or renting your unit (section 29(4)).

Enforcement works in steps. A fine under the rules is a civil penalty that the corporation can recover as a civil debt (section 30(8) and (9)). An owner or tenant is liable for a breach connected with use of the unit even if someone else did it without the owner's authority (section 30(2)). You may appeal a fine to court, and the corporation must show the rules were properly made (section 30(4) and (5)). If the board refers a refusal to pay to court, a certified extract of the rules filed with the Registrar General is prima facie proof (section 30(6) and (7)). A person who breaches the rules three or more times in a month is a habitual offender, and the managing agent must refer the case to court (section 31).

What duties follow the unit if I let it out or sell it?

Pay your levy on time. It is a debt, the corporation can charge it against your title, and the buyer can be pursued for it too (section 32). Pay rates levied on your unit, because the corporation pays only for the common property (section 50). If you rent the unit out, give the corporation written notice of the tenant's name within seven days of the tenancy starting, and again within seven days of it ending, and expect the corporation to ask for a damage deposit that it must return or account for within 20 days of your notice (section 43). Your tenant must keep the rules too. For tenancy law, see the Landlord and Tenant Act 2022.

When you sell, get the corporation's certificate of what is owed first, as explained in Selling or Buying a Condo Unit on Resale. Our November 2026 apartment listings are mostly whole rental blocks, with only a few single condominium units (Land & Property listings, Nov 2026). To compare, go to Homes and Condominiums for Sale in Uganda, browse apartment listings or book an escorted site visit.

Listings available now

Live from Land & Property on 4 November 2026. Prices are the sellers' asking prices.

• Rentals for sale in Kira at 280m Kira, Wakiso · Apartment UGX 280,000,000
• Apartments making 6m For sale at 680m Kyaliwajjala, Wakiso · Apartment UGX 680,000,000
• 34 units Apartments Block in kyanja at Ugx5.5bn Kampala · Apartment UGX 5,500,000,000
• Apartments in Kyanja at Ugx1.6bn Kyanja, Kampala · Apartment UGX 1,600,000,000
• Rentals for sale at Namugongo Joggo at 180m Namugongo, Wakiso · Apartment UGX 180,000,000
• Condominiums For sale in Masoli, Gayaza road Kasangati, Wakiso · Apartment UGX 132,000,000

Frequently asked questions

Related guides

• Condominium Property Act 2001 in Plain English
• Parking, Rooftops and Common Areas in Condos
• Selling or Buying a Condo Unit on Resale
• Condominium By-Laws and the Owners' Corporation
• Registering a Condominium Plan and Unit Titles
• Landlord and Tenant Act 2022: Landlord Duties