New BC regulations removed the option for a strata corporation to defer getting a depreciation report. If you own, are buying, or are selling into a strata — including a bare land strata — this now has a hard deadline attached to it.
Effective July 1, 2024, BC strata corporations with five or more lots must obtain a depreciation report every 5 years, with no vote-based deferral option remaining. Corporations in Metro Vancouver, the Fraser Valley, and the Capital Regional District had until July 1, 2026. Every strata corporation in the South Okanagan — including every development covered in this guide series — has until July 1, 2027.
Source: BC Real Estate Association (BCREA), "Strata Depreciation Report Mandates: A Guide for Real Estate Professionals," August 2026.
Until recently, a BC strata corporation could defer getting a depreciation report indefinitely by passing a three-quarters vote at its AGM — and in practice, plenty of strata corporations did exactly that, sometimes for years. That option no longer exists.
Under the new rules, strata corporations with five or more strata lots — including bare land strata corporations, since they typically manage shared roads and utility infrastructure — must obtain a depreciation report every 5 years, full stop. Corporations with four or fewer lots are exempt.
The report itself also got more rigorous: it must now include a 30-year projection of repair and replacement costs, three separate cash flow funding models, a mandatory executive summary, and specific coverage for air conditioning and ventilation systems where applicable. And as of July 1, 2025, only specific qualified professionals can prepare one — engineers, architects, applied science technologists, accredited appraisers, certified reserve planners, or professional quantity surveyors.
Ask directly for the current depreciation report and the Form B before removing subjects. A missing or overdue report is a real flag — it can mean the strata hasn't planned for major repairs, which raises the odds of a surprise special levy landing on you shortly after closing.
If your strata's most recent report predates December 31, 2020, or you've never had one, your strata council needs to be budgeting for this now — not in June 2027. A rushed report costs more and gives owners less time to plan for what it recommends.
Buyers and their agents are going to start asking about this specifically. Having a current, compliant report ready to show is a real point in your favour during negotiations — and the absence of one is now a bigger red flag than it used to be, since it's no longer just "overdue," it's non-compliant.
Don't assume this doesn't apply to you because there's no building involved — bare land strata with 5+ lots are explicitly included, since roads and shared utilities still need long-term capital planning.
Lenders and insurers increasingly look at depreciation report status as part of their own risk assessment on a strata purchase. A missing report can complicate financing or insurance, not just resale value.
There's no automatic statutory penalty for non-compliance, but an owner, tenant, or mortgagee can seek a court order to force compliance, and council members who ignore it can face governance scrutiny for failing their duty of care.
This rule touches nearly every named development covered on this site — from beachfront condo-hotels to bare land strata RV resorts. Whichever one you're considering, ask about depreciation report status as a standard part of due diligence.
Pat will pull the current depreciation report status before you write an offer — and flag it clearly if a strata is behind schedule.
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