Blog

Understanding Earthquake Deductibles in Strata Corporations

British Columbia is located in a seismically active region, making earthquake insurance a crucial consideration for strata corporations and individual homeowners alike. One of the most significant aspects of earthquake insurance is the deductible, which can be substantial. Understanding how these deductibles work and what obligations a strata corporation has in the event of a major seismic event is essential for strata councils and owners.

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“May you live in interesting times”.

We certainly never thought to be writing and sharing articles about a trade war with our American neighbours, and yet here we are. America is threatening to implement a new tariff regime which would upend decades of free trade between Canada, the USA and Mexico.  The far-reaching impacts of new tariffs are difficult to predict with precision, but will almost certainly create inflationary pressures especially if (as expected) the Canadian governments follow suit and implement counter-tariffs on American goods and products being sent in to Canada.

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Regular Review of Move Fees – A Recent Case Regarding Furnished Move Fees 

Under the Strata Property Act (SPA), section 6.9 of the Strata Property Regulation specifically permits strata corporations to impose user fees for common property, common assets, or other services provided. However, such fees must be “reasonable” and tied to the actual costs incurred by the strata. User fees, including move-in and move-out fees, play an essential role in helping strata corporations recover costs associated with specific services. 

Strata Corporations often implement move-in and move-out fees to help cover the costs associated with wear and tear on common property, as well as administrative oversight during the moving process. However, a recent decision by the BC Civil Resolution Tribunal (CRT) serves as a timely reminder of the importance of regularly reviewing these fees (and other user fees) to ensure they align with current legal standards and practices. 

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Managing Employees in Strata Corporations: The Expanding Role of Strata Managers

As we wrote about in Part 1 of this series, the role of a strata manager has never been more complex. The role of strata managers in British Columbia has significantly evolved, especially as employment laws and workplace regulations have become increasingly stringent. Traditionally, strata managers focused on property maintenance, finances and resolving resident concerns. However, today’s regulatory landscape has transformed their responsibilities, requiring them to navigate complex human resources (HR) tasks, ensure compliance with legal requirements, and manage the growing expectations of Strata Councils, which are often composed of laypersons with limited HR expertise.

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As election seasons approach, strata corporations in British Columbia must be aware of their responsibilities to ensure that residents can fully participate in the democratic process. Whether it’s a provincial, federal, or municipal election, legal obligations must be met to facilitate canvassing and the display of election signage. Below, we outline these responsibilities and reference the relevant sections of the applicable legislation.  As always, we are not a substitute for legal advice- but the legislation provisions are fairly clear and must be followed even if you may prefer not to have canvassers within your property, or election-related signage displayed on it.

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The Increasing Complexity of Strata Management: Navigating Climate Change Regulations

This will be the first of several blog posts on the evolving landscape of strata management in British Columbia. As the industry changes, strata corporations and management companies face new challenges that are driving up costs and reshaping the way we do business. Whether it’s the increasing complexity of the job relating to evolving regulatory frameworks, a shortage of skilled professionals, or the growing number of strata corporations, these factors are making it necessary for us—and others in the industry—to be more knowledgeable, experienced, and professional with our service offerings. This places a necessary upward pressure on pricing, which we’ve written about in the past. Strata councils themselves, often made up of volunteers, are also feeling the strain as they are asked to take on more responsibilities in this increasingly complex environment.

In this post, we’ll focus on one of the leading factors contributing to these changes: climate change-related regulatory compliance.

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The Provincial Government has announced Order in Council 204-2024, which was deposited today (April 22, 2024).

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We have written in the past about Court judgements reiterating the necessity for Employers to ensure their workplaces are free of harassment and bullying.  There is no question that all workplaces must be entirely free of such behaviour.  As an Employer, Stratawest has always taken our obligation to prevent abusive behaviour toward our staff very seriously and that includes those staff we work with at properties we manage. We have a zero tolerance policy for it when it occurs.  Our field is relatively challenging in this regard- as noted in our previous post on the subject we recognize that emotions will be charged when dealing with people’s homes which are almost always also their primary investment.  We try hard to be respectful of individuals who are often coming to us with a challenging issue on what may be one of their worst days, i.e. experiencing a catastrophic loss in their home.  We also try hard to ensure that appropriate limits are placed on the tone of communication directed toward us.  Unfortunately, this sometimes means taking steps such as outright prohibiting individuals from calling and/or visiting our office and demanding that all communication be in writing.We take whatever action is required to correct the situation and protect our workplace environment and we encourage all employers to do the same.

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From time to time, we try to share relevant seminars with our clients so that they can get a more in-depth analysis of major issues facing Strata Corporations.  Our friends at CCI BC (of which we are a proud long time seminar) will be hosting a free webinar addressing what they descirbe as “Dealing with an Aging Building”.  Topics will include how to identify and manage major deficiencies, discussing real life examples that highlight the challenges of dealing with an aging builidng, and providing an overview of the strata wind up process.

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Our 13^th Annual Stratawest Christmas Toy Drive & Fundraiser for Harvest Project was a massive success this holiday season. We were able to provide 20 bikes through Obsession Bikes & Bikes for Tykes to Family Services of the North Shore along with carloads of toys delivered to the North Shore Christmas Bureau, and raised over $20,000 AGAIN for our friends at Harvest Project to help continue their amazing work in our community- extending a hand up, not a hand out.

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