Strata Council vs Owner Powers: Who Decides What?

If you've ever sat at a strata AGM wondering "why is council asking us to vote on this, can't they just decide?" or, on the flip side, "wait, how did council approve that without consulting owners?", you're not alone. The line between strata council and owner powers is one of the most common sources of confusion in BC strata governance, and getting it wrong has real consequences. Council overstepping leads to voided decisions and CRT applications; council under-stepping leads to paralysis where nothing gets done. We've sat at many Sea-to-Sky council tables and the same boundary questions come up every year. This guide draws the line.

What council decides alone

Council is the elected operational body of the strata corporation. Under s. 4 the corporation has duties to its owners, and council is the body that executes those duties day-to-day. Council can decide, without an owner vote:

• Ordinary maintenance. Repairs and replacements that preserve common property as-is
• Contractor hiring within the approved annual budget
• Insurance renewals and claims handling within policy parameters
• Bylaw enforcement. Issuing warnings, fines, and hearings
• Common-property bookings and rules about their use (where bylaws allow)
• Hiring and managing the strata manager and other professionals
• Routine financial decisions like paying invoices, reconciling accounts, signing cheques
• Council meeting procedure. Agendas, frequency, attendance method

Council is also the body that calls general meetings, prepares the budget for owner approval, and recommends bylaw amendments. The approval of those things rests with owners.

What requires an owner vote

The Strata Property Act lists specific decisions that owners must make at a general meeting. The three thresholds are majority, 3/4, and unanimous. (For a full walk-through, see our voting thresholds post.)

Decisions that require majority owner vote:

• Approve the annual operating budget (s. 103)
• Approve audited financial statements
• Elect council members (s. 25)
• Approve council compensation (where bylaws permit)

Decisions that require 3/4 owner vote:

• Bylaw amendments (s. 128)
• Special levies, any payment outside the approved budget (s. 108)
• Significant change in use or appearance of common property (s. 71)
• Rental restrictions (s. 141)
• Age restrictions (s. 144)
• Approving certain large capital project plans

Decisions that require unanimous vote:

• Changes to actual physical common property (s. 1.1)
• Granting exclusive use of common property to specific lots
• Cancelling the strata plan

The "maintenance vs significant change" line

This is the single grey area we deal with most. Section 71 says council can't authorize a "significant change in the use or appearance of common property" without a 3/4 owner vote, but the SPA doesn't define "significant change" precisely. The CRT has filled in the blank case by case.

What's clearly maintenance (council decides):

• Replacing a worn roof with the same materials
• Repainting a building the same colour
• Replacing dying shrubs with similar shrubs
• Fixing broken concrete walkways with concrete
• Replacing failed lighting fixtures with equivalent units

What's clearly significant change (3/4 owner vote):

• Painting the building a new colour
• Replacing landscaping with a different design
• Converting a lawn into a parking area
• Adding new fencing where none existed
• Installing solar panels visible from common areas
• Removing trees that were part of the original design

The CRT has been consistent on this point. Councils that repaint a building in a noticeably different colour without holding a 3/4 vote risk having the work undone at the corporation's cost, with owners effectively paying twice once new contractors are engaged to revert the change.

Budget vs special levy

This is the other line councils get wrong regularly. The annual budget is approved by owners at the AGM with a majority vote. Once approved, council can spend within it. Anything outside the budget (a project that needs funds beyond what was budgeted) is a special levy and needs a 3/4 owner vote under s. 108.

Some councils try to dodge this by:

• Labelling the request as a "budget amendment" (it's not, once approved, the budget can't be amended without owner vote)
• Spreading the cost over several months as "extra fees" (also a levy, also needs 3/4)
• Taking the money from the contingency reserve fund (only allowed for unexpected repairs, not planned projects)

The CRT has caught all three patterns. The right path for any non-budget expense is a special general meeting with a 3/4 vote.

Contractor hiring vs major capital project

Council can hire a contractor for any work within budget. A routine snow-removal contract, an ordinary plumbing repair, an annual landscaping agreement: these are council decisions.

A "major capital project" is a different animal. Envelope repairs, roof replacements, boiler swaps, balcony rebuilds, parking-deck restorations: anything that costs more than the year's contingency contribution or alters the building significantly typically needs owner approval before the contract is signed. The mechanism is either:

1. The project is included in the budget as a planned capital expenditure, approved at AGM (majority)
2. The project is funded by a special levy approved at a special general meeting (3/4 vote)
3. The project involves significant change to common property, requiring a 3/4 vote even if funded from contingency (s. 71)

For more on planning major projects, see our depreciation report guide.

Bylaw enforcement: council's exclusive territory

Bylaw enforcement is one area where council has clear authority. Under s. 129 through s. 135, council issues warnings, holds hearings, and imposes fines. Owners don't vote on individual enforcement matters. They elect councillors who do this work on their behalf.

What owners can do is challenge the enforcement at the Civil Resolution Tribunal if they think it's unfair. They cannot prevent council from acting in the first place.

Insurance: mostly council

Insurance renewals, claims, and deductible recovery are all council decisions under s. 158. Owners don't vote on the policy or the carrier. Where owners do get involved is:

• Approving the insurance budget line at the AGM
• Approving any bylaw amendment that creates deductible recovery procedures
• Voting at the CRT or court if they want to challenge how council handled a claim

When council overreaches

The most common council overreach pattern: a council decides on a project that should have had an owner vote, awards the contract, work begins, and owners only find out at the next AGM. By then the work is half-done. The CRT options:

• Order the work undone (rare, expensive)
• Order council to fund the difference between authorized maintenance and the actual project
• Order a retroactive owner vote on the change

None of these are good outcomes for owners or for the councillors involved. The fix is always preventive. When in doubt about whether something needs an owner vote, call the vote. The downside of an unnecessary vote is the cost of the meeting. The downside of a missed vote can be substantial.

A quick checklist for owners and councils

Before council acts, run through these:

• Is this in the approved annual budget? (If no, special levy needed)
• Does this change the use or appearance of common property? (If yes, 3/4 vote)
• Does this physically alter common property? (If yes, unanimous vote)
• Does this change a bylaw? (If yes, 3/4 vote)
• Does this restrict rentals or age? (If yes, 3/4 vote)
• Is this routine maintenance? (If yes, council can act)

For more on running clean council and owner meetings, see our council meeting guide, quorum rules, and voting thresholds.

The bottom line

Council and owners share governance of a strata, with the SPA drawing the line. Council handles operations; owners decide on changes to the corporation's structure, bylaws, and major spending. Stratas where this line is respected run smoothly. Stratas where it's blurred (usually by an overreaching council or a passive owner body) end up at the CRT.

If you're an owner who isn't sure whether a recent decision needed your vote, or a council unsure whether to call a meeting, reach out. We help Sea-to-Sky stratas sort out the boundary regularly, and a short conversation usually clarifies the question.