As an owner, am I entitled to examine our strata’s bank statements and cancelled cheques?
Yes, Section 35(2) of the Strata Property Act requires the strata corporation to retain bank statements, cancelled cheques, and certificates of deposit. Section 36(1) of the Act requires the strata corporation to make those records available for inspection by, and provide copies to an owner on request. Section 36 also requires that certain other persons have access to those records. While the Strata Property Act does not allow individual owners to be charged for access to strata documents under Section 36, a management company may charge the strata corporation for the cost if this is provided in the service contract. In spite of Section 36, bank statements may not be available to owners when the strata corporation has a manager. Some management companies pay bills from a pooled chequing account containing funds from many stratas. The management companies then provide each strata corporation with a breakdown of the funds showing what has been paid on their behalf. This makes it difficul
