Half Duplex | Ownership
The Strata Documents to Read Before You Offer
The subject-to-documents condition exists so you can read these properly. In a two-owner strata they are shorter than in a tower and they carry more weight, because there is no professional manager standing behind them.
The short answer
Ask for the Form B information certificate, the strata plan, the bylaws, the depreciation report, the last two years of minutes, and the contingency reserve balance. In a small strata the most telling items are usually what is missing: no depreciation report, no minutes, and a reserve holding almost nothing.
The documents, and what each answers
Each of these answers a specific question. Reading them in order takes an evening and it is the cheapest risk reduction available anywhere in the purchase.
- → Form B information certificate: the current fee, any levy already approved, what is in the reserve, and any known claims
- → Strata plan: exactly what is common property and what is yours, which decides who pays for what
- → Bylaws: pets, rentals, renovations, parking, and anything else you can and cannot do
- → Depreciation report: what needs replacing, when, and roughly what it will cost
- → Minutes, last two years: where the real problems get discussed before they reach a document
- → Contingency reserve balance: whether the money to meet the depreciation report actually exists
What to look for in a very small strata
In a two-owner strata, absence is the signal. No depreciation report is common and legal, and it means nobody has assessed what the building will need. No minutes usually means no meetings, which means no record of what was agreed.
A reserve holding a token amount against a building with a roof approaching end of life is the single clearest warning available, and it is visible on the Form B.
Who should read them
You should read the bylaws yourself, because you are the one who has to live with them. A pet restriction or a rental restriction is not a technicality if it affects your household.
The financial documents are worth a professional eye. Your agent will review them, and a lawyer will read them properly as part of conveyancing. Neither is a substitute for you reading the bylaws.
Is this right for you
Works well if
- ✓ Buyers who will actually use the subject period rather than waive it
- ✓ Anyone buying into a strata of any size, which is most of this market
Does not work if
- ✕ You are competing hard and tempted to waive subjects to win
- ✕ The documents do not exist, which is itself the finding
Check before you offer
- → That the Form B is current, since it is a snapshot with a date on it
- → Whether a special levy has been approved but not yet charged
- → Whether the depreciation report was waived, and when it was last done
- → That the reserve balance is credible against the age of the building
Read next
Common questions
What is a Form B?
The strata's information certificate. It states the current monthly fee, any levy already approved, the contingency reserve balance, parking and storage allocation, and any known claims or bylaw contraventions. It is a dated snapshot, so check it is current.
What if there is no depreciation report?
Small stratas have been able to waive the requirement by owner vote and many have. Its absence is not a red flag on its own, and it does mean nobody has assessed what the building needs. Treat it as a gap in your information rather than a formality.
How long do I need to review documents?
That is a negotiation, and it belongs in the subject clause rather than being assumed. The documents themselves are short in a two-owner strata, so the constraint is usually how quickly the seller's side produces them.
Where these figures come from
- VanPlex active listings, MLS® data
Active townhouses, half duplexes, and row houses built in the last two years across Metro Vancouver and the Fraser Valley.
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