Hard floors in apartments: the approval rules before the carpet comes up

Replacing carpet with timber, tiles or hybrid boards is one of the most popular apartment renovations, and one of the most reliable sources of strata disputes. The reason is simple. A hard floor in your apartment is heard most clearly in the apartment below. Footsteps, dropped objects and chair legs carry through a hard surface into the slab and out of the ceiling underneath. Carpet and underlay absorb much of that. A hard floor, laid without the right underlay and approval, often does not.

The law in NSW treats this seriously, and the rules are clearer than many owners expect. This article sets out what approval you need, what your by-laws may add, and how to get it right the first time. For the wider picture on apartment work, see our guide to renovating a strata apartment.

Hard floors are a "minor renovation" that needs approval

Under the Strata Schemes Management Act 2015, installing or replacing wood or other hard floors is specifically listed as a minor renovation (section 110). That has three practical consequences:

• You need approval before you start. Minor renovations need the approval of the owners corporation, given by resolution at a general meeting. A special resolution is not required. If your scheme has a by-law delegating these decisions to the strata committee, the committee can approve instead.
• You must give written notice first. Before seeking approval, you must give the owners corporation written notice of the proposed work, including details of the work and copies of any plans, the duration and times of the work, details of who will carry it out and their qualifications, and how rubbish and debris will be managed.
• Approval can come with conditions, but cannot be unreasonably withheld. It is common, and reasonable, for an approval to require a particular underlay, an acoustic rating, or testing after installation.

If the strata committee has been delegated the decision, it must give you written reasons within three months if it refuses. If it neither approves nor refuses with reasons within three months, the approval is taken to have been given. The owners corporation must keep a record of approved minor renovations for 10 years.

The minor renovation pathway does not cover work involving structural changes or waterproofing. If your new floor is part of a bathroom or laundry renovation, the waterproofing work falls outside section 110 and usually needs a special resolution. Our wet area waterproofing article explains why that work is treated differently.

Check your by-laws: they may set the standard

The Act tells you that you need approval. Your scheme's by-laws often tell you what standard the floor has to meet.

The model floor-coverings by-law. The Strata Schemes Management Regulation 2016 includes a model by-law on floor coverings. Under it, an owner must make sure the floor space in their lot is covered or otherwise treated enough to prevent the transmission of noise likely to disturb the peaceful enjoyment of another lot. It does not apply to kitchens, laundries, lavatories or bathrooms. Many schemes have adopted this by-law, or something close to it. Note what it does not do: it does not give a number. "Enough to prevent disturbing noise" is a test that is judged after the fact, usually after a complaint.

Scheme-specific flooring by-laws. Many buildings have gone further and adopted their own flooring by-law, which commonly sets a measurable acoustic rating the finished floor must achieve, the type of test used to prove it, and who pays for testing. Some also restrict which rooms can have hard floors. If your scheme has one, that rating is the target, and your floor will be judged against it.

Nuisance. Separately, section 153 of the Act says owners and occupiers must not use their lot in a way that causes a nuisance to the occupier of another lot, or unreasonably interferes with their use and enjoyment of it. A noisy floor can breach this even where the by-laws say nothing specific about flooring.

The first step, before you choose a single product, is to get a copy of your scheme's current consolidated by-laws from your strata manager and read every by-law that mentions floors, noise or renovations.

What about the building code?

The National Construction Code (NCC) sets sound insulation requirements for floors between apartments. For new buildings, NCC Volume One Part F7 sets an airborne sound rating of at least Rw + Ctr 50 and an impact sound rating of no more than Ln,w 62 for floors separating units.

Those figures are written for new building work. They do not automatically apply to replacing a floor finish in an existing apartment. In practice, though, they are a useful benchmark: a by-law, a committee's approval conditions, or an acoustic consultant may refer to them, or set a stricter target. When a by-law or approval adopts a rating, that rating is what you have to meet.

When it goes wrong

If a hard floor causes a noise problem, the neighbour below can complain to the owners corporation, and disputes that cannot be resolved through the owners corporation or mediation can go to the NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal (NCAT). NCAT has made orders requiring an owner to either remove a hard floor and lay carpet, or treat the floor until it meets the acoustic rating set by the by-law, and to allow the neighbour's acoustic consultant back in to re-test. One reported 2025 case involved a by-law requiring a high acoustic rating, a floor that tested below it, and an order to fix it within three months.

That is the expensive version of this job: a floor paid for twice, plus testing, legal costs and a damaged relationship with the people downstairs.

The common mistakes

• Laying first and asking later. Retrospective approval is not guaranteed, and if the floor does not meet the by-law, the owners corporation can require it to be fixed.
• Ignoring the by-law's rating. Choosing a floor because it looks right, then finding the by-law requires a rating the product combination cannot reach.
• Trusting the word "acoustic" on a box. An underlay's laboratory rating is not the same as the performance of your finished floor on your slab, in your building. The rating that counts is the one for the whole system, or the result of a test after installation. Our companion article on apartment floor acoustics, underlay and testing explains the difference.
• Forgetting the edges. A floor that is rigidly fixed to walls or skirting can carry sound around the underlay. Perimeter isolation is part of the system.
• Assuming the old floor sets a precedent. That a neighbour has timber does not mean their floor was approved, or that yours will be.

Questions to ask before you start

1. What do our by-laws say about floor coverings, noise and renovations, and is there a required acoustic rating?
2. Who approves minor renovations in our scheme: the owners corporation at a general meeting, or the strata committee under a delegation?
3. What will my written notice include, and does it give the committee everything it needs to approve?
4. Does the proposed floor and underlay system have tested results that meet the by-law rating, and will the installer follow the tested method?
5. Will the floor be tested after installation, and who pays?
6. Is any of the work in a wet area, and does that need a separate approval?

For committees

A clear flooring by-law with a measurable rating, a defined test method and a requirement for post-installation testing protects everyone, including the owner doing the work. It replaces an argument about whether noise is "disturbing" with a number that can be checked. When an application comes in, ask for the product data and tested results for the full floor system, the installation method, and a commitment to test on completion.

How we approach it

We start with your by-laws, not the product brochure. We confirm the approval pathway, prepare the written notice and supporting information, specify a floor and underlay system with tested results that meet the required rating, install it to the tested method including perimeter isolation, and arrange testing where the by-law or approval calls for it. The result, and the record that proves it, goes to you and the owners corporation.

If you are planning a hard floor in an apartment, get in touch and we will help you get approval and a floor you will not have to lift again.

Sources

• Strata Schemes Management Act 2015, NSW Legislation, sections 110 and 153
• Strata Schemes Management Regulation 2016, NSW Legislation, model by-laws (floor coverings)
• NCC 2022 Volume One, Part F7 Sound transmission and insulation, Australian Building Codes Board
• NCAT orders neighbour to fix noisy hard floors, PBL Law Group

This article is general information, not legal advice. By-laws vary between schemes and change over time, so check your scheme's current by-laws with your strata manager, and get advice for your situation before you start work. Full website disclaimer