Communication: The Underrated Strata Management Skill.

Owners who feel informed are easier to govern, easier to vote with, and easier to satisfy when something goes wrong. Owners who feel ignored treat the council with suspicion regardless of how well the building is actually run.

The communication system

Effective strata communication has four layers: statutory communications (AGM/SGM notices, hearing notices, financial statements), operational communications (contractor visits, parking notices, emergency alerts), council updates (quarterly updates, project status, year-in-review), and a community channel (events, neighbour features). Most stratas under-invest in council updates, where the most important trust-building happens.

The tools that work in 2026

Owner portal

Most professional management firms run online portals where owners can view balance and pay fees, access bylaws/minutes/financials/notices, submit maintenance requests, and update contact info.

Email distribution

Email reaches owners faster than print but introduces challenges: stale addresses, spam filters, owners who don't use email. Maintain both email and print fallback for statutory notices.

Building digital noticeboards

Lobby screens that surface upcoming meetings, contractor schedules, and reminders. $1,500–$3,500 hardware plus monthly content.

Text / SMS for emergencies

Some buildings use opt-in SMS for time-critical issues (water shutoff, fire alarm, evacuation).

Multilingual support

In Lower Mainland buildings with significant non-English-first-language populations, key documents in Mandarin, Cantonese, Punjabi, or Korean genuinely improve participation.

The cadence that works

• Quarterly council update (4–6 sentences)
• Pre-AGM communication (4–6 weeks before, 2 weeks before, 1 week before)
• Mid-year financial summary (around July)
• Year-end community letter (late December)
• Project communications (weekly during execution; monthly during planning)

What to communicate, and what not to

Communicate

• The why behind decisions (especially fee increases, levies, projects)
• Status of major projects, including expected disruptions
• Compliance milestones (depreciation report, insurance renewal, audit)
• Bylaw changes and rules updates
• Calendar items
• Recognitions

Don't communicate (publicly)

• Specific bylaw enforcement actions against named owners
• Owner financial details
• Pending litigation or CRT actions
• Personal information
• Speculation about future events

Crisis communications

Things go wrong. The principles: timely (first update within hours), honest (what we know, what we don't), specific (concrete next steps), updated (subsequent updates on stated cadence), closed out (final summary when resolved).

For more on running the meetings these communications support, see our guide to council meetings.