Under the British Columbia Strata Property Act, all strata corporations (condominiums) must have bylaws. While the Act provides a “Schedule of Standard Bylaws”, they are minimal and somewhat generic, so most strata corporations add to, and refine them to meet the needs of the majority of the owners.

Prospective buyers must examine a strata’s bylaws and rules very carefully – not just glance through them! Owners are expected to abide by them: an attitude of “Well, that one won’t apply to me!” is unacceptable, and “I didn’t know!” is not an excuse.

All those bylaws and rules might appear to be a Royal Pain! Too restrictive; unreasonable; a bit strange…. If you find them so, perhaps this particular strata is not for you.

However, let us look at the positive side of bylaws and rules:

1.                  Condominiums are the only form of communal housing which have legislation which actually permits (even requires) the residents to govern themselves. Co-op housing does not have that right, and in rental properties one is at the mercy of the landlord and the behaviour of one’s neighbours with very little recourse.

Strata owners however make their own laws (in conformity with the Act) and can enforce them. This is the closest most of us ever get to a democratic control over our living conditions!

2.                  Bylaws and rules “level the playing field”. Every owner should know them, abide by them and expect all other owners to do so – whether voluntarily or by legal action if necessary. Note that when owners do conform to the bylaws and rules, they save forcing their council, who are owners and neighbours, from the embarrassment and distasteful duty of having to enforce them.

3.                  Owners can change the bylaws and rules. Nothing is “written in stone”, so if an owner can convince a sufficient number of other owners to add, amend or delete a bylaw by passing a resolution with a ¾ majority vote, it is “so written”. (Rules require only a 51% majority.) Of course, if the other owners do not agree, that too is democracy.

What to Look For

Many of the bylaws such as Duties of Council, Finances, Agendas at Meetings, etc. are taken from the Standard Bylaws, and for the most part it is ill-advised to tinker with them too much. But there are some sections of any particular Strata Corporation’s bylaws that deserve special attention from the prospective buyer.

1.                  Duties and Responsibilities of Owners:  These may appear as an expansion of Section 4 of the Standard Bylaws (“Use of Property”) as well as elsewhere (check any “Miscellaneous” section at the end, if there is one). These bylaws are very important because they can govern everything from noise, to what window covering is acceptable, to use of barbeques, to maintenance of unit sanitary conditions, to maintenance of individual gardens, to whether flags are permitted, to….

2.                  Parking:  This can be a very contentious issue. Do you “own” a parking space? Or is it “limited common property”? Or is it assigned for an owner’s “exclusive use” under control of the strata corporation? Can it be rented to someone else? Can it be used for storage of a boat or trailer? If owned, can it be sold? How are extra parking spaces governed?

3.                  Pets:  This bylaw can be a chronic source of contention, too. Yes or No? If yes, what are the restrictions on the type and number of dogs, cats, birds, fish, etc.? What are the restrictions regarding control of animals on the common property? (E.g. where can the dog be taken for walks? Must pets be carried through hallways?) If No, can guests’ pets be brought on the property while they are visiting? For what length of time?

4.                  Age Restriction:  Human Rights legislation prohibits an owner/landlord of a rental property from discriminating on the basis of age (including children), except if the property is specifically designated for persons who are 55 years old or more. However, challenges in the BC Supreme Court have consistently resulted in upholding the right of a strata corporation to establish, by bylaw, any age restriction the Owners of the Strata Plan choose. So buyers who intend to have children at a later date, or who may want to provide for a child upon receiving custody, should be aware that they would be required to move out if there is an age restriction prohibiting, say, persons under the age of 19 from permanent residency.

5.                  Rental Restrictions:  The Act permits a strata corporation to limit (or not) the number of units which may be rented at any one time. This can be a mixed blessing. For those who are buying a unit for investment purposes, or those who like to travel for extensive periods, being able to rent out the unit is great. However, they may find that the more permanent resident owners have changed some bylaws in their absence which they find objectionable. Moreover, those more permanent residents can find it frustrating and difficult to administer the condominium because it can be hard to get a General Meeting together to regulate the affairs of the strata. On the other hand, a condominium which severely restricts the number of rental units is one where owners want a more direct, instantaneous control over their affairs and interaction with their neighbours and don’t want to deal with the frustrations which can arise from having to deal at arms length with the owner or with an annoying tenant. Buyers should be careful, therefore, to determine what kind of society they wish to belong to. Talking to current owners is a good idea.

6.                  Alteration of a Strata Lot:  Any alteration in a unit that could affect the Common Property (plumbing, electrics, bearing walls, fire alarms, etc., -- see the definition of “common property” at the beginning of the Act) must be approved by the strata council. Repainting or installing a new dining room chandelier would not be an issue. However, in an apartment building, there may be a restriction on the type of floor covering an owner can install. Noise can travel easily to the ceiling of the unit below, so an owner could discover that his intention to install a new wood, laminate or tile floor is either restricted or prohibited. Even the type of carpet underlay might be specified to minimize noise transference.

A Note on Rules

The strata council can pass Rules at any time when the need arises. They become effective immediately they are published in the Minutes of the Council Meeting. To remain in force, however, they must be ratified by a 51% majority vote at the next General Meeting.

What a buyer should be aware of is that a Rule can be made for matters concerning only the Common Property. If there are rules which appear to govern some aspect of the individual units (e.g. ‘when an owner can vacuum the floors’) they are invalid, and the buyer should question the governance of that condominium.

 Summary

Only the prospective buyers can determine if they are prepared to accept the concept of bylaws. If they can, for any particular strata property they should establish in their own minds:

1.                  Are the bylaws, in the main, fair and non-discriminatory to all owners, regardless of differences of opinion?

2.                  What bylaws are really objectionable?

3.                  Can they, nevertheless, live with them (knowing that changing them could take time)?

4.                  Are they generally being accepted by the current residents? (Ask around.)

5.                  Are they being enforced, in accordance with the Act, by the strata council when necessary, and how (quiet diplomacy, or fines, or litigation)?