SPA Change re: Special Levies

On December 12, 2013 the Province brought into force legislative amendments to allow strata corporations with majority support to apply to the BC Supreme Court to require strata owners to pay for certain repairs.

Under the amendment the court can issue an order to proceed with certain critical repairs necessary to ensure safety and prevent significant loss or damage as if the strata owners have passed a resolution endorsing a special levy.

Currently, the Strata Property Act requires a ¾ vote to impose a special levy to raise money for needed repairs to common property. Without this amendment, a number of strata corporations would have remained deadlocked and deteriorating.

In its entirety (subsection (1) already existed), the amended section 173 of the Strata Property Act now reads:

Other court remedies

173(1) On application by the strata corporation, the Supreme Court may do one or more of the following:

(a)   order an owner, tenant or other person to perform a duty he or she is required to perform under this Act, the bylaws or the rules;
(b)   order an owner, tenant or other person to stop contravening this Act, the regulations, the bylaws or the rules;
(c)   make any other orders it considers necessary to give effect to an order under paragraph (a) or (b).

(2)   If, under section 108 (2) (a),

(a)   a resolution is proposed to approve a special levy to raise money for the maintenance or repair of common property or common assets that is necessary to ensure safety or to prevent significant loss or damage, whether physical or otherwise, and
(b)   the number of votes cast in favour of the resolution is more than 1/2 of the votes cast on the resolution but less than the 3/4 vote required under section 108 (2) (a), the strata corporation may apply to the Supreme Court, on such notice as the court may require, for an order under subsection (4) of this section.

(3)   An application under subsection (2) must be made within 90 days after the vote referred to in that subsection.

(4)   On an application under subsection (2), the court may approve the resolution and, in that event, the strata corporation may proceed as if the resolution had been passed under section 108 (2) (a).

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