Strata Document Review – Condos and Townhomes in Victoria, BC

So, you decided to buy a strata condo or townhome somewhere in Greater Victoria. Congratulations! The lock and leave lifestyle of a condo, along with prices that are more affordable than single family homes can make condos and townhomes in Victoria, Oak Bay, Saanich and Sidney very appealing.

After several months of looking, you found the perfect home and decide to make an offer with a few of the typical conditions including finance, inspection and review of strata docs. Your mortgage broker is helping you with financing, the home inspector has been hired, and your real estate agent just sent you what seems like over a 1000 pages of strata documents.

Do you need to read all the strata documents before removing this condition on the purchase?

YES!

Strata documents tell you about the financial health of a condo or townhome development, the condition of the common property e.g. the building and its major systems, any rules or bylaws that must be adhered to as an owner and give insight into how well the strata is managed. As your Realtors, we will also review the documents so we can highlight red flags and answer any questions that came up when you reviewed the documents. However, you must also take responsibility for the review of the strata documents.

Given the price of a townhome or condo in Victoria, this is information that you need to read and understand before removing conditions and proceeding with your purchase. Not reading the strata documents is a mistake that could end up costing you a lot of money and frustration. For extra peace of mind, you can also ask your lawyer or hire an independent third-party that specializes in strata document review to help.

As a potential buyer of a strata lot in British Columbia your offer will often include a clause that provides you with the contractual right to review and approve the following strata documents:

two years of minutes, including strata council, annual general meetings, and special general meetings
two years of financial documents
current Form B
current Bylaws and any Rules
disclosure of any ongoing litigation involving the strata
all depreciation reports, building envelope condition assessments, and engineering reports
any building warranty documents, if applicable
all legal opinions obtained by the strata corporation in the past 5 to 6 years
the Strata Plan registered with the Land Title and Survey Authority
Schedule of unit entitlement
Schedule of voting rights

What are some of the questions you should be asking yourself as you are reading the strata documents of a condo or townhome that you are considering buying? And what are some of the strata document red flags or warning signs you should be on the lookout for?

Bylaws

All strata corporations in British Columbia have bylaws that apply to owners, tenants, and anyone living or visiting them. By default, the Schedule of Standard Bylaws set out in the Strata Property Act applies unless a strata has adopted different Bylaws, which must be filed with the Land Title and Survey Authority and are recorded on the strata corporation’s General Index. Here are some of the questions to ask yourself when reviewing strata bylaws:

Do the bylaws contain provisions to divide the strata corporation into sections or types?
What are the current restrictions with respect to age (55+), rentals, pets, and use (e.g. home-based business)?
Are there any parking bylaws? What is involved in installing an electrical vehicle (EV) charger?
Have any repair or maintenance obligation bylaws been added that
- Are illegal i.e. make the owners responsible for the repair of the common property?
- Leave no one responsible for the repair and maintenance of key portions of the building?
- Are not typical for the strata lot or limited common property (LCP)?
Are there any alteration/renovation or decoration bylaws that could affect your decision to purchase the unit? Will hard flooring be permitted and under what conditions, where carpet was original to the construction?
Do any of the restrictions make the unit unsuitable to your requirements or for future resale value?

Depreciation Report

The strata depreciation report reviews the current condition of the major building components of the strata e.g. roof, building envelope, pipes, elevator, etc. The depreciation report sets out an estimate of when major repairs and replacements of the components of a building need to be done over a 30-year period. It also reviews how much money is currently in the contingency fund, what the likely cost for future replacements will be, and provides three financial models outlining how the strata could fund these costs. All strata of 5 or more units must obtain a depreciation report. In the Capital Regional District (CRD) strata corporations without depreciation reports, or depreciation reports received prior to December 31, 2020 will have until July 1, 2026 to obtain a report. Here’s what to consider when reviewing a condo or townhome’s depreciation report:

Is the depreciation report current? As of July 2024, depreciation reports for strata condos and townhomes need to be updated every 5 years
Have the strata owners voted to waive the depreciation report? If so, why? While it is not uncommon to see a deferred depreciation report as of July 2024 a strata may no longer defer the depreciation report with a 3/4 vote.
Was the depreciation report done by a qualified person who has insurance? As of July 2025, the report must be obtained from one of six designated professions: engineers, architects, applied science technologists, accredited appraisers, certified reserve planners and quantity surveyors.
Does the depreciation report include at least three financial models?
Does the proposed repair model in the depreciation report indicating who is responsible for funding certain repairs match the bylaws?
Is the depreciation report complete i.e. is the inventory of building components complete and accurate? For example, is roof or building envelope missing or is the number of strata units or sections inaccurate.
Does the depreciation report recommend further investigations or an engineer’s report on specified building components of the condo or townhome?
Does the report recommend any major expenditures within the next five years?

Engineering Report

An engineering report for a strata contains an analysis of one or more of a strata building’s components e.g. building envelope condition assessment (BECA), structure, mechanical systems, electrical systems, improvements or equipment. When reviewing engineering reports for a strata, ask yourself:

Are there multiple engineering reports from multiple companies? Why?
Did you notice visual deterioration e.g. rotting decks, wall cracks, etc. and have these issues been mentioned in the strata minutes and are they being addressed in the depreciation or engineering reports?
Has strata corporation allocated money for reports and/or maintenance called for in the engineering report?
Does the engineering report’s scope of work seem too narrow or is further testing recommended?
Does the engineering report for the strata require large expenditures to repair issues with the building?

Financials

The financials of a strata corporation include budget and monthly expense reports. Here are some of the red flags you should watch for when reviewing the financial documents of a strata condo or townhome:

Are the fees in accordance with Strata Property Act?
Does the budget match the bylaws with respect to the allocation of costs between the types of strata lots and sections
Do the financials indicate that strata corporation has both high deductibles and high legal fees? High deductibles and budget items for insurance deductibles may indicate issues like water leaks. High legal fees may signal a history of litigation
Is the repair and maintenance budget for the strata very small or very large?
Do the line items in the strata’s financials (e.g. cleaning, electricity, property management, professional fees, etc.) indicate significant under-expending or over-expending?
Are there are significant surpluses or deficits in the strata’s budget?
Is the strata corporation spending money from an accumulated surplus? If the strata is using the previous year’s surplus in the budget, artificially low strata fees may increase dramatically. Large surpluses may indicate little or no preventative maintenance on the common property
Are special levy funds being carried forward from the previous year? If yes, this could indicate that ‘projects’ are not being done.
Does the contingency reserve fund (CRF) contain an amount of a least 25% of the operating budget?
As of November 1, 2023 stratas are legally required to make a minimum contribution to the contingency reserve fund (CRF) of 10% when approving the budget at the annual generally meeting. Is this requirement being met?
Are there any planned expenditures from the contingency reserve fund in the next fiscal year?
Has the strata corporation borrowed money?
Does the strata corporation own any real property?
Are there any big accounts receivables (i.e. unpaid strata fees)?
Are there any questionable line items (i.e. spending on automotive budget, travel expenses, etc.)?

Form B

The form B is an information certificate that discloses a variety of information about a strata lot and the corporation including: strata fees, any amount the current owner owes, any special levies that have been approved, any amendments that are not yet filed at the LTSA, any legal proceedings, balance of contingency reserve fund, etc. Here are some of the questions, you should be asking when reviewing a Form B on a condo or townhome:

Is the Form B current? A Form B should be no more than 30 days old.
Are all sections of the Form B complete?
Do the strata fees on the Strata Lot’s Form B agree with the schedule of entitlement?
Does the information in the Form B reflect what’s going on in the minutes with respect to ongoing litigation, changes, potential budget deficit, bylaws, and special levies?
Does the information on parking and storage on Form B align with the strata plan?
If there are strata sections have you received a Form B for the applicable section and the entire strata?

Strata Insurance

In January of 2020 the insurance landscape for strata buildings changed radically. Many buildings experienced significant increases in their premiums and deductibles, while other buildings found it very difficult to get any coverage at all. On the other hand, we have been involved in sales in buildings where the insurance has gone up a manageable 20% or so. As of 2024 we have seen some premiums decrease, although deductibles for claims have tended to remain elevated. Before you remove your conditions on any strata purchase, you should be inquiring into the status of the insurance carried by the strata.

What is the strata insurance renewal date?
Can you get a copy of the claims history?
How much is the strata deductible?

Minutes

Strata corporations typically hold monthly meetings and are required to take and circulate the minutes from the strata meetings. Not all strata corporations meet monthly, so the first step is to make sure you have minutes. When reading through the strata minutes ask yourself?

Are any strata minutes missing?
Do the strata minutes seem too simple or vague?
Is there consistency in the strata meetings? Does the content or presentation of the minutes indicate a disorganized strata or is it possible that they are trying to hide something?
Are there noise complaints regarding hard surface floors?
Is there a recurring issue/complaint experienced by one or more strata owners?
Has there been a recent or frequent change of an engineer, property manager or lawyer mentioned in the strata minutes?
Do the strata minutes reference a report, legal opinion or strata document that has not been disclosed?
Is there a reference in the strata minutes to legal proceedings that have not been disclosed in the Form B?
Are there any references to an issue in a specific strata lot in the townhome development or condo building that would be a concern to you as a new owner?

Strata Plan

A strata plan is the official plan of the strata-titled property. It is registered at the Land Title and Survey Authority and shows boundaries of each strata lots (i.e. condo, townhome, bare land), unit entitlements, common property and limited common property. It is important to ask yourself the following questions when reviewing the strata plan of a condo or townhome you are considering buying:

Do you have the filed copy of the strata plan? If you are purchasing something that is not yet built the plan may not be registered yet.
What type of strata is it i.e. strata plan or bare land strata plan?
Are there any easements, restrictive covenants or right of ways that would affect your decision to purchase? This may be more relevant in the case of a bare land strata.
Does the physical layout of the condo or townhome you intend to buy match the “strata lot” depiction on the strata plan?
Does the condo or townhome you are considering have designated common property, or limited common property that may affect your buying decision? E.g. is the patio or parking limited common property vs part of the strata lot.
Are there discrepancies between the MLS listing and what is reflected in the strata plan, when it comes to size, layout or features?
How is the parking and storage shown on the strata plan? And how are they designated to the strata lot? Parking can be common property, it can also be assigned by a lease registered on title.
Are there any common facilities in the strata?

Strata Rules

Strata rules are different from strata bylaws. Rules can be created to govern use, safety and condition of common property and common assets. Examples of some common rules include permitted use of common property i.e. a meeting room, the leashing of pets in common areas, and the booking of an elevator for moving. If a rule conflicts with a bylaw, the bylaw prevails.

Do any of the rules restrict use of common property and does this restriction affect your purchase decision?
Are there any rules that contradict the current bylaws of the strata corporation?

Schedule of Unit Entitlement for Stratas

Unit entitlement is a number assigned to each strata lot (i.e. townhome or condo) that determines the share of common property and assets belonging to each owner. It is a key factor in calculating the share of strata corporation expenses and liabilities that each strata lot owner will be responsible for including strata fees and any special levies. When reviewing the schedule of unit entitlement for a strata condo or townhome you are considering, here are some of the questions you should ask:

Have the strata fees and any other costs been allocated in compliance with the schedule of unit entitlement?
Has a section 100 resolution been passed overriding the application of the schedule of unit entitlement for one or more expenses?
Is there anything atypical in the Schedule of Unit entitlement e.g. an equal division of cost amongst units, where the units are vastly different in size from on to the other?

Schedule of Voting Rights

A Schedule of Voting Rights for a strata is a form registered with the strata plan that sets out the number of votes per strata lot. Normally residential lots have only one vote.

Is there one strata lot, or type of strata lot, that dominates or has the majority or even a super-majority of votes?

Strata Corporation Correspondence

Strata corporation correspondence includes formal correspondence between the strata managers and the council, and a strata council member to a non-council member on behalf of the strata corporation, and complaint sent to the strata corporation form owners or tenants. Typically the previous 12 months of correspondence is disclosed, reviewed and approved. Strata correspondence can cover a variety of topics, but questions you should be thinking about when reviewing strata corporation correspondence include:

Is there a reference in strata correspondence to seek a legal opinion but there is nothing disclosed on the Form B or referenced in the strata corporation’s minutes?

Summary and conclusion

While buyers receive extensive strata documents, skipping the review can lead to unforeseen costs and frustrations. Key documents to review:

Minutes and Financials: check for high legal fees, litigation, deficits, and whether the budget aligns with bylaws.
Depreciation (Reserve Fund Study) and Engineering Reports: ensure reports are current, done by qualified professionals, and include necessary financial models.
Form B: verify if it’s current and complete, and matches other documents.
Insurance: investigate insurance premiums, deductibles, and claims history.
Bylaws and Rules: scrutinize bylaws for restrictions on age, rentals, pets, home business, hard floor bylaws, parking, and anything that is important to you. Identify and bylaws that may impose illegal or unusual maintenance responsibilities.
Red flags in documents: Look out for high legal fees, large special levies, insufficient contingency reserve funds, unusual spending, and discrepancies in property descriptions.
Potential maintenance or legal issues: review strata minutes and correspondence for any ongoing maintenance or legal issues.
Unit entitlement and voting rights: verify the allocation of costs and voting rights to ensure they meet expectations.

Careful examination of these documents is important to be prepared for, and to avoid, financial and legal issues.

This foregoing is for information purposes only, is not comprehensive, and should not be considered to constitute legal advice.

Have other questions about strata docs or strata condominiums, townhomes, duplexes, or bareland stratas in Victoria? Just email us with any of your questions.