Strata repaint rules in Tsawwassen: when does painting need an owners' vote?
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Repainting in the same colours is maintenance the strata has to do. A new colour scheme is a change in appearance, and the Act puts that to the owners. Here is where the line sits and what to check with Delta first.
Strata painting in Tsawwassen starts with a question that comes before anyone opens a colour fan deck: who gets to decide?
Under BC's Strata Property Act, the answer turns on two things. Is the job maintenance, or a change in how the buildings look? And which fund pays for it?
This is a plain reading of the Act and the Standard Bylaws, written for council members and owners. It is not legal advice. Your own registered bylaws and strata plan can change the details, so read them alongside this.
For the work itself, see the strata painting page at Texora Painting & Drywall.
Is a repaint the council's job or the owners' decision?
Keeping the paint up is the strata corporation's duty. Section 72 of the Act says the strata corporation must repair and maintain common property and common assets. Which parts of your buildings count as common property is set by your strata plan.
The Standard Bylaws go further: Bylaw 8 has the strata repair and maintain the exterior of the building, balconies and other things attached to it, exterior doors and windows, and the fences and railings around patios and balconies, even where those sit on a strata lot or on limited common property.
One catch: section 120 says the Standard Bylaws apply only "except to the extent that different bylaws are filed in the land title office." If your strata filed its own bylaws, those win, so check the registered set before assuming the standard wording applies.
Put simply, a council does not need the owners' permission to keep the paint in good repair. It may need their permission to change what the buildings look like, and it usually needs a vote to spend the money.
When does a strata repaint with a new colour scheme need a 3/4 vote?
A repaint needs a 3/4 vote when the new colour scheme is a significant change in the appearance of common property, under section 71. The strata corporation "must not make a significant change in the use or appearance of common property" unless the change is approved by a 3/4 vote at an annual or special general meeting. The only other route is an immediate change needed for safety or to prevent significant loss or damage, and a colour change rarely fits that.
Repainting in the existing colours keeps the appearance the same, so it reads as maintenance. Taking every building from beige to charcoal is the kind of change section 71 is about. The sections we read do not define "significant", so if your council is unsure whether a new trim colour or accent door counts, putting it to a vote is the safer course.
A 3/4 vote is not three quarters of all owners. Section 1 defines it as at least 3/4 of the votes cast by eligible voters present in person or by proxy, not counting those who abstain. Turnout at the meeting matters.
Which fund pays for the repaint?
A full exterior repaint usually comes out of the contingency reserve fund, one of the two funds section 92 sets up.
The operating fund covers common expenses that come up once a year or more often. The contingency reserve fund covers expenses that usually occur less often than once a year. A full exterior repaint comes around far less often than once a year, so it usually sits in the second group.
Spending from that fund needs a vote under section 96. A majority vote is enough when the work is repair, maintenance or replacement recommended in the strata's most current depreciation report. Anything else needs a 3/4 vote.
That makes the depreciation report worth reading before the meeting: if it lists the exterior coatings as due, the funding resolution is easier to pass. Section 94 is the part of the Act that requires stratas to get that report.
Councils can't quietly fund a repaint out of day-to-day money. Section 98 caps unapproved spending at a small amount set in the bylaws, or a default in the Act when the bylaws are silent, unless the spending is needed right away for safety or to prevent significant loss or damage.
Can one owner repaint their own front door or balcony?
Not without asking. Standard Bylaw 5 requires an owner to get the strata's written approval before altering the exterior of the building, exterior doors and windows, or the fences and railings around a patio or balcony. Bylaw 6 says the same for common property, including limited common property.
The strata must not unreasonably withhold approval under Bylaw 5, and it can make the owner agree in writing to cover the costs. Bylaw 5 does not apply in a bare land strata, where the lots are defined by survey markers rather than walls, so townhouse owners in that kind of strata should read their own bylaws.
What does the City of Delta add in Tsawwassen?
The City of Delta adds form and character guidelines in Tsawwassen Town Centre and, on some newer lots, a restrictive covenant on title. The City of Delta's development considerations page lists Tsawwassen Town Centre among the development permit areas that have form and character guidelines, and points owners to DeltaMap to check whether a property sits inside one.
The same page says more recently created lots may carry a restrictive covenant on title "guiding the form and character of the site", and that renovations must be consistent with it. That page does not say whether a repaint alone needs a development permit. If your building is in Tsawwassen Town Centre or has a covenant, ask the City's Application Centre (development@delta.ca, 604-946-3380) before the vote, so the scheme your owners approve is one the City will accept.
Tsawwassen First Nation runs its own planning and development permit process on Tsawwassen Lands. If your building is on those lands, check its rules instead of the City's.
An order that keeps a strata repaint on track
- Pull the registered bylaws and the strata plan. Confirm what is common property, limited common property and strata lot.
- Read the depreciation report for the exterior coatings and when it expects them to be redone.
- Check DeltaMap, the title and the City (or Tsawwassen First Nation) for any form and character guideline or covenant.
- Get a written proposal with the scope and timeline, and sample boards if the colour is changing.
- At the general meeting, pass the funding resolution, plus a 3/4 vote on the new scheme if the look is changing.
- Give notice before work reaches anyone's unit. Standard Bylaw 7 lets the strata enter a strata lot at a reasonable time on 48 hours' written notice to inspect, repair or maintain the parts it is responsible for, and the notice has to give the date, approximate time and reason.
How we work with a strata council
We walk the property with your council or property manager, and the written proposal names the scope and timeline, so the motion in front of your owners matches the job. During the work we keep the council or manager updated and post notice to residents before the crew reaches their unit. If you want to compare painters first, our list of questions to ask an exterior painter in Tsawwassen applies to strata buildings too, and our exterior painting in Tsawwassen page covers how we handle exterior work there.
Sources on strata repaint rules
The rules above come from the Province of BC's Strata Property Act, the City of Delta's Development Considerations page and Tsawwassen First Nation's Planning and Development page, all read in November 2026.
- Province of BC, Strata Property Act: sections 1 (3/4 vote), 71, 72, 92, 94, 96, 98, 120 and Standard Bylaws 5, 6, 7 and 8.
- City of Delta, Development Considerations (form and character, restrictive covenants).
- Tsawwassen First Nation, Planning and Development.
- Our own pages: strata painting and painters in Tsawwassen.
Planning a strata repaint in Tsawwassen?
We walk the property with your council or property manager, and the written proposal names the scope and timeline your owners will vote on. Or call (778) 907-9846.
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