Strata & Multi-Family
Strata roofing is not residential roofing on a bigger roof. The decision is made by a council rather than an owner, it has to survive a general meeting, it is paid for out of a contingency reserve fund or a special levy, and the work happens on a site where people are living the whole time. We quote and schedule it accordingly.
Since 1 July 2024, strata corporations in British Columbia with five or more lots can no longer waive or defer a depreciation report, and must obtain a new one at least every five years. Stratas in the Metro Vancouver Regional District that had no report, or whose last report predates 31 December 2020, were required to have one by 1 July 2026. For the rest of the province the date is 1 July 2027. Confirm your own strata's obligation with your property manager or the Province — the timing depends on when your strata was formed and when it last reported.
The practical consequence is that a lot of Metro Vancouver councils are now holding a fresh report with a line in it about the roof. Two things are worth knowing about that line.
First, a depreciation report gives a planning allowance, not a quote. It is typically built from the age of the assembly and a typical service life, sometimes without anyone having been on the roof. Second, the remaining-life figure is an estimate for the building as a whole. Roofs rarely fail evenly — on the same complex we routinely find north-facing slopes under trees years ahead of the south side, and one building in a row of six carrying most of the damage.
So the report tells you to start planning. It does not tell you what your roof actually needs, or what it will actually cost. That is what an inspection is for, and ours is free.
Working in Langley specifically? Our Langley strata roofing page covers the two patterns we see most there — the 1990s and 2000s townhouse stock, and the newer Willoughby and Yorkson complexes now reaching their first replacement.
A quote that a council can take to owners has to do more than state a number. Ours sets out the scope in plain terms, itemises the material and the labour, and is fixed price — so the figure you present at the meeting is the figure that gets invoiced. We photograph what we find and hand the images over, because owners who are being asked to approve a levy reasonably want to see the roof they are paying for.
Where a roof does not need doing all at once, we will say so. On a multi-building site it is often possible to take the worst buildings first and carry the rest for a contribution year or two, which is the difference between a manageable budget line and a special levy. We would rather tell you that than sell you six roofs at once.
A great deal of strata roofing across Metro Vancouver is torch-on or low-slope membrane rather than pitched shingle, particularly on the 1980s and 1990s townhouse stock around Metrotown, Edmonds, New Westminster and Richmond. Low slope is a different trade. It fails at seams, flashings and drains rather than at the shingle, standing water is the main enemy, and a system that has no positive drainage will keep failing whatever you put on it.
If your buildings are low-slope, our flat and torch-on roofing page covers those systems in detail. Where the existing structure does not drain properly, we will tell you what slope correction would involve rather than membrane over the problem and warrant around it.
Residents are home. That shapes the job more than anything else. We give the council a schedule before we start so it can go out to owners, we agree bin placement and parking displacement in advance, and we clear the site at the end of each day rather than at the end of the week. Landscaping and vehicles get protected. Tear-off is noisy and we will not pretend otherwise, but people cope with noise far better when they were told when it was coming.
British Columbia does not license roofing contractors. For a strata that means the burden of checking sits with the council, and there are three things worth asking any bidder for in writing: a WorkSafeBC clearance letter, a certificate of insurance naming the strata corporation, and a manufacturer certification you can look up in the manufacturer's own directory rather than take on trust.
Stonnex Construction Ltd. is incorporated in British Columbia, WorkSafeBC registered, carries $5M in general liability coverage, and is listed as a GAF certified contractor in GAF's own directory. We will provide all three on request, and we would encourage a council to ask every bidder for the same.
Two separate warranties apply and councils should keep both on file. The manufacturer warrants the materials — we register those on completion and pass the documentation to the strata. Our labour warranty covers our workmanship: 10 years on shingle and metal, 5 years on torch-on and flat membrane. The warranty page sets out exactly what each covers and what it does not, which is worth reading before a levy vote rather than after a leak.
Sitting on a depreciation report with a roof line in it? Send it over with your address and we will inspect the buildings, photograph what we find, and give you a fixed-price quote you can take to owners. No charge, no obligation. 604-935-6976 or info@stonnex.com.
What councils and property managers ask us most.
Yes. A large share of our work is strata — townhouse rows, low-rise complexes and multi-building sites across Metro Vancouver and the Fraser Valley. We are used to quoting for a council that has to take the number to a general meeting, and to working on an occupied site where residents are home during the day.
Bring us the report. A depreciation report gives a planning-level allowance based on typical service life, not a quote for your particular roof, and the two often differ once someone has actually been on the roof. We inspect, photograph the condition, and give you a fixed-price quote you can put in front of owners alongside the report.
Often, yes. On a multi-building site it is usually possible to do the buildings in the worst condition first and carry the rest, which spreads the cost across contribution years rather than forcing one special levy. We will tell you honestly which buildings can wait and which cannot.
We give the council a schedule before we start so it can be circulated, we protect landscaping and parked vehicles, and we clear the site at the end of each day rather than at the end of the job. Access to units, parking and the location of bins are agreed with the council in advance.
A written fixed-price quote setting out the scope, photographs of what we found, and on completion the manufacturer warranty registration for the materials. Our labour warranty is 10 years on shingle and metal and 5 years on torch-on and flat systems — the terms are set out on our warranty page.
Yes. A great deal of strata roofing in this region is torch-on or low-slope membrane rather than pitched shingle, and it is a different trade with different failure points — seams, flashings and drainage rather than shingles. Our flat and torch-on page covers those systems.