For Strata Councils
Years of strata history, searchable in seconds
The institutional memory of a strata lives across years of minutes, contracts, and reports nobody has time to re-read. SearchStrata gives your council one place to ask and get sourced answers from all of it.
Council members are volunteers, and the building's history is scattered across years of PDFs that no one has the time to re-read. SearchStrata turns that archive into something you can simply ask questions of — preserving institutional memory and making it easy to hand the council to whoever serves next.
What gets missed
- ⚠“What did we decide about this last time?” buried somewhere in old minutes
- ⚠New council members with no easy way to get up to speed on the building's history
- ⚠Owner questions, AGM prep, and contractor disputes that all mean digging through the archive
Search the entire archive at once
Upload years of minutes, financials, bylaws, and reports, then ask a question and get an answer drawn from all of it — cited to the exact meeting and page.
Onboard new members instantly
Hand new council members a tool that explains past decisions, ongoing projects, and the building's track record, instead of a banker's box of PDFs.
Prepare meetings, answer owners
Pull the history behind a recurring repair, confirm what a past resolution actually said, and respond to owners with documented, defensible answers.
Context your minutes were never going to hold
Hazard exposure, nearby construction and infrastructure work all bear on capital planning and insurance conversations, and none of it is in your document archive. Location Insights scores nine areas around the building from public BC data, cites the dataset behind each number, and says plainly where coverage does not reach — so a council can bring sourced context to a depreciation report discussion instead of anecdote.
How Location Insights worksLocation score
- Coverage
- 88%
- Confidence
- 94%
- Addresses
- 4 of 4
Major project under construction within 500 m
0projects
100 / 100None found within 500 m.
Transit infrastructure project within 1.5 kmConcern
0projects
50 / 100None found within 1,500 m.
How it works
Upload the archive
Add years of minutes, financial statements, bylaws, contracts, and reports — hundreds of pages are handled in a single pass.
Ask across all of it
Ask a question and SearchStrata answers from the whole history, citing the exact meeting and page so the answer is defensible.
Share with the council
Use it to prep AGMs, settle “what did we decide” debates, and bring new members up to speed in minutes.
Common questions
- Can a council search the whole building's document history at once?
- Yes. Councils can upload years of minutes, financials, bylaws, contracts, and reports, then ask questions across the entire archive and get answers cited to the exact meeting and page.
- How does this help onboard new council members?
- Instead of handing a new member a box of PDFs, you give them a tool that can explain past decisions, ongoing projects, and the building's track record, so they're useful from their first meeting.
- Can we use it to prepare for AGMs and answer owner questions?
- Yes. You can pull the documented history behind a repair, a fee change, or a past resolution, which makes AGM preparation faster and lets you respond to owners with sourced, defensible answers.
- What is Location Insights, and is it included?
- Location Insights scores the area around a BC strata building from public data across nine areas — transit, schools, hazard, amenities, crime, infrastructure, development, demographics and change — with the records behind every figure and the gaps named rather than scored as zero. It is separate from the document analysis: your report reads the package you upload, while Location Insights measures what those documents never mention. It is included with Pro and Agent subscriptions, is in beta for BC corporations, and is reference only — not a valuation or an opinion of value.
- How much does SearchStrata cost?
- SearchStrata has a free tier that covers up to 3 properties with basic reports. Paid plans are Pro at $29 CAD per month for unlimited properties and detailed reports, and Agent at $79 CAD per month for white-label reports and team seats. No credit card is required to start.
- How accurate are the answers, and can I verify them?
- Every answer and red flag cites the exact page in your strata documents where the information appears, so you can open the source and confirm it yourself. SearchStrata reads the documents you upload rather than relying on general web knowledge.
- What documents can I upload?
- You can upload a strata or condo package as a PDF or ZIP up to 200MB and hundreds of pages, including meeting minutes, financial statements, bylaws and rules, the capital-planning report (a depreciation report in BC or a reserve fund study in Alberta), insurance certificates, and the information certificate (BC Form B or an Alberta estoppel certificate).
- Does SearchStrata work for BC strata and Alberta condo documents?
- Yes. SearchStrata is built for Canadian strata and condominium documents, supporting both BC strata packages and Alberta condo document packages. The instruments differ by province — BC's Form B and depreciation report correspond to Alberta's estoppel certificate and reserve fund study — and SearchStrata reads either.
Latest reading for strata councils
All articles
Responding Defensibly to Owner Requests for Strata Records: Council’s Role in Upholding Transparency
Strata council members face growing scrutiny around records access and privacy. Learn the essentials of responding to owner requests for strata records, from timing and scope to practical documentation tips, so your council stays compliant and defensible.
Approving Strata Contracts Defensibly: Council’s Role Before the Ink Dries
Before signing any contract, BC strata councils need to meet specific standards of diligence, transparency, and process. Here’s a defensible approach to contract approvals that council members and property managers can rely on.
How BC Strata Councils Can Enforce Bylaws Fairly and Defensibly
Bylaw enforcement is one of the toughest – and most scrutinized – duties for BC strata councils. This guide covers defensible processes, fair penalty practices, and tips for maintaining trust and compliance when enforcing your strata’s bylaws.
Writing Defensible Strata Council Minutes: Protecting Your Strata’s History and Decisions
Accurate, defensible minutes are a legal requirement and your strata’s memory. Learn practical best practices for council members and property managers to create minutes that stand up under scrutiny and serve your community for years.
Succession Planning for BC Strata Councils: Preserving Good Governance Beyond BC Day
BC Day is a reminder for strata councils and managers to build strong succession plans. Learn practical steps to preserve good governance and institutional memory in your strata, including onboarding, documentation, and handover best practices.
AGM and SGM Notice Packages: What Strata Councils Must Get Right to Avoid Disputes
Clear, compliant AGM and SGM notice packages are a council’s first line of defense against procedural challenges and owner frustration. Here’s how BC strata councils and property managers can build reliable packages and avoid common missteps.
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