Strata Fees in BC: What They Cover and Why They Rise

Your monthly strata fee pays to run the building today and to save for the repairs it will need later. Here is what the fee covers under BC's Strata Property Act, how it is set and shared, why it goes up, and how to tell whether a building's fees are realistic before you buy.

The short version

What your strata fee pays for

The strata corporation pays the common expenses, and owners fund them through strata fees paid into two funds:

• The operating fund. Costs that usually come up once a year or more often. The Province's examples include utilities, landscaping, cleaning, minor maintenance, property management and the annual insurance premium. The cost of a depreciation report or an electrical planning report can also come from this fund.
• The contingency reserve fund. Costs that usually come up less often than once a year, or not at all, such as replacing a roof, upgrading an elevator or repaving a road.

The reserve fund and the 10% minimum

Since November 1, 2023, a strata's yearly contribution to the contingency reserve fund must be at least 10% of its operating fund contribution. The Strata Property Regulation sets no upper limit, and the Province notes that most stratas contribute more. When it sets the amount, the strata must consider its most recent depreciation report.

• Spending it. A majority vote at a general meeting can approve spending on repairs the latest depreciation report recommends, on getting a depreciation report or an electrical planning report, and on EV charging. Most other spending needs a 3/4 vote.
• Without a vote. Council can use it in an emergency, to ensure safety or prevent significant loss or damage, and to pay an insurance deductible for repairs.
• Not refundable. Your contributions stay with the building when you sell.

How fees are set each year

Strata fees follow the budget, and the owners approve it:

• The proposed budget. It goes out with the notice of the annual general meeting, at least two weeks ahead, along with a financial statement. It must show each fund's opening and expected year-end balances, operating expenses by category and each unit's monthly contributions.
• The vote. Owners can amend the budget at the meeting, then approve it by majority vote.
• If it fails. Council must bring a new budget to a special general meeting within 30 days, or a longer time set by a 3/4 vote. Until then, owners keep paying the previous fees, and spending is limited.
• After it passes. The strata must tell owners about any change in their fees within two weeks. Under the Standard Bylaws, fees are due on the first of the month. If a bylaw sets a rate, the strata can charge interest on late fees of up to 10% a year, compounded annually, and unpaid fees can lead to a lien against the unit.

How your share is calculated

Your share is set by your unit's entitlement, a number in the Schedule of Unit Entitlement filed with the strata plan at the Land Title Office. In condos and townhouses, it is often the unit's habitable area in square metres, so larger units pay more. Some stratas use the same number for every unit, or another number the Superintendent of Real Estate approved.

An example with made-up figures: if your unit entitlement is 75 out of a total of 7,500, your share is 1%. If the budget calls for $480,000 in operating fund contributions and $120,000 for the reserve, your fee is 1% of $600,000, which is $6,000 a year or $500 a month.

A few costs are shared differently:

• Limited common property. An operating cost that benefits only limited common property is shared by the units entitled to use it.
• Types and sections. Costs for one type of unit defined in the bylaws, or for a section, can be charged to those units only.
• User fees. A strata can charge for using common property, such as an extra parking stall, a locker or EV charging, if the fee is reasonable and set out in a bylaw or a ratified rule.
• A different formula. Owners can switch to another formula only by a unanimous vote, filed at the Land Title Office.

Why strata fees rise

• Insurance. The strata must insure the buildings for full replacement value, so when the cost to rebuild goes up, so does the coverage it has to buy. The Province notes that insurers usually want a replacement cost appraisal from the past two or three years. The premium normally comes from the operating budget: in the example above, a $30,000 increase, with nothing else changing, would raise the 1% unit's fee by $25 a month.
• An aging building. A depreciation report projects repair and replacement costs over 30 years and offers at least three funding models. When it shows the reserve falling behind, owners may raise contributions now rather than face a special levy later.
• Required reports. Stratas with five or more units must get a depreciation report at least every five years, and since July 1, 2024 owners can't vote to put it off. In Metro Vancouver and the Fraser Valley, apart from islands reached only by boat or air, a strata without one since the end of 2020 had to get one before July 1, 2026. Existing stratas with five or more units there must also get an electrical planning report, on capacity for EV charging, by December 31, 2026.
• Contracts and utilities. Property management, cleaning, landscaping, snow removal and the utilities the strata pays all come out of the operating fund, so their increases flow straight into the fee.
• A deficit. An operating fund deficit must be made up in the following fiscal year, which can mean a bigger jump.
• A rising floor. Because the minimum reserve contribution is 10% of the operating fund contribution, a bigger operating budget raises the minimum too.

What strata fees don't cover

• Your own insurance. The strata's policy covers the buildings, not your belongings, your improvements or your liability. If you are responsible for a loss, the strata can recover its deductible from you without proving negligence.
• Property taxes. For assessment and taxation, each strata lot and its share of the common property is one parcel, so you pay your own property tax.
• Your own unit. Under the Standard Bylaws, you repair and maintain your strata lot, and the strata looks after the structure, the exterior, exterior doors and windows, balconies and similar items. Your strata's bylaws may divide this differently.
• Extras. Special levies, user fees, fines and interest on late payments are billed on top of the fee.
• In-suite utilities. Check whether heat, hot water, gas and in-suite electricity are in the strata budget or billed to you directly.

How to judge whether a strata's fees are reasonable

Low fees aren't automatically good news: a fee held down for years can mean an underfunded reserve and a special levy ahead. Here is what I check:

• Budget against actuals. The financial statement shows what was actually spent, so you can compare it with the budget. Repeated overspending or an operating deficit points to an increase.
• The reserve contribution. Is it at the 10% minimum, or close to one of the depreciation report's funding models? The models are only for the strata's consideration, so compare what the report suggests with what the owners approved.
• The reserve balance. Form B shows the balance, less spending already approved, and any amount the strata expects to overspend its current budget.
• Upcoming work. Look for big items due soon in the depreciation report, engineering reports and minutes, and for how the strata plans to pay for them.
• Insurance. Read the insurance summary in Form B, note the deductibles and ask when the policy renews.

Compare buildings carefully: one with an elevator, a pool or heat included usually costs more to run than a townhouse complex without them. When the reserve can't cover a project, the strata can raise money with a special levy, which in most cases needs a 3/4 vote at a general meeting.

Questions buyers often ask me

What do strata fees cover in BC?

Your share of the strata's common expenses: operating costs such as insurance, utilities, cleaning, landscaping and management, plus a contribution to the contingency reserve fund for major repairs. They don't cover your own insurance, your property taxes or repairs inside your own unit.

How are strata fees calculated?

Each unit pays its share of the budget by unit entitlement, which is often based on habitable area, so larger units usually pay more. Owners can adopt a different formula only by a unanimous vote.

Can the strata raise my fees without a vote?

Generally no. Strata fees come from the annual budget, which owners approve by majority vote at the annual general meeting. If no budget passes, you keep paying the previous fees until a new one is approved.

How much should a strata have in its contingency reserve fund?

There is no set amount. The yearly contribution must be at least 10% of the operating fund contribution, and the strata must consider its depreciation report when it sets the amount.

Do I get my reserve fund contributions back when I sell?

No. Contributions to the contingency reserve fund belong to the strata corporation, so they stay with the building when you sell.

Weighing a condo or townhouse? Read the strata documents to read first, see how strata deductibles and your own policy fit together, and find out how strata fees count in How Much House Can You Afford?

This article is general information, not legal or financial advice. The rules come from the Strata Property Act, the Strata Property Regulation and the Province's strata housing pages, current at the time of writing, and the fee example uses made-up figures. For the Province's guide, see budgeting and strata fees.