A strata maintenance plan is what separates buildings that stay ahead of problems from buildings that are always reacting to them. Every strata council inherits some version of the same challenge: keeping track of what needs to happen, and when, across a building with dozens of moving parts. Without a written plan, tasks tend to happen only once someone notices a problem, which is both more expensive and more likely to leave gaps.
This isn’t a complete plan for every building, since needs vary by size, age, and amenities, but it’s a solid starting point strata councils can adapt to their own property.
Why Every Council Needs a Written Strata Maintenance Plan
Under BC’s framework for the division of repair and maintenance duties, the strata corporation is generally responsible for maintaining common property. A written strata maintenance plan turns that broad responsibility into specific, scheduled tasks that anyone on council can follow, even after turnover.
It also makes budgeting easier, because recurring costs become predictable instead of surprising.
Monthly Tasks
- Common area cleaning check-in, confirming hallways, lobbies, and elevators are being maintained to the standard in your contract
- Garbage and recycling room review, since these areas need more frequent attention than most other common spaces; see our guide on garbage and recycling room cleaning
- Amenity room inspection, particularly gyms and party rooms that see regular use; our guide to amenity room cleaning covers what to check
- Parkade walkthrough, watching for new staining, drainage issues, or emerging slip hazards
Quarterly Tasks
- Janitorial contractor audit, walking common areas with a checklist rather than relying on impression alone; see our quarterly contractor audit guide
- Carpet cleaning for high-traffic common areas, such as lobbies, elevator landings, and main hallways; our guide to commercial carpet cleaning frequency breaks this down further
- Power washing of entryways and high-traffic walkways
- Parkade scrubbing or deep cleaning, depending on how much buildup has accumulated since the last pass
Annual Tasks
- Full building exterior power wash, covering siding, stucco, and trim, typically once or twice a year depending on exposure
- Full parkade deep clean and drain inspection
- Review and renewal of all maintenance contracts, including cleaning, snow removal, and landscaping, confirming scope still matches the building’s actual needs
- Winter readiness review, confirming snow removal contracts, de-icing supply, and caretaker winter duties are all in place before the season starts; see our winter maintenance checklist
- Records review, organizing the past year’s maintenance documentation ahead of any depreciation report cycle; see our guide to maintenance records for depreciation reports
Seasonal Considerations for Your Strata Maintenance Plan
Beyond the fixed monthly, quarterly, and annual cadence, certain tasks are tied to the calendar rather than a strict interval: fall power washing and gutter clearing before the rainy season, winter caretaker duties and snow removal readiness through the cold months, and spring cleanup to clear salt and debris once winter has passed.
Building these into your strata maintenance plan as seasonal triggers, rather than trying to force them into a fixed monthly or quarterly slot, keeps the plan realistic.
Turning Your Strata Maintenance Plan Into a Living Document
A maintenance plan only works if someone owns it. Whether that’s a council member, your property manager, or your building manager, someone needs to be responsible for tracking what’s been done, what’s coming up, and flagging anything that’s fallen behind schedule.
A shared calendar or simple spreadsheet, reviewed at each council meeting, is usually enough to keep this from becoming another document that gets written once and forgotten.
The plan is also worth revisiting annually. A building’s needs change over time as it ages, as amenities are added, and as past problem areas either get resolved or turn out to need more frequent attention than originally planned.
Get Help Building Your Plan
EcoPlanet Property Services works with Greater Vancouver strata councils to build and maintain a realistic strata maintenance plan, with documented service history through our reporting app so tracking what’s been done is never a guessing game. See our strata buildings page or request a free quote to get started on a plan for your building.
