Add a documented browser ballot to your BC strata meeting
Keep the chair, notice, communication, and proxy rules intact
Roster controls, configurable voting rights, approval-threshold tracking, and exportable records for BC strata corporations.
Section 49 authorizes electronic attendance and voting when its meeting conditions are met. vote.direct supplies the ballot and platform record; it does not replace those conditions or section 56 proxy rights. From $4.99/election.
§49
electronic attendance and voting conditions
1/3
default general-meeting quorum, subject to bylaws
$4.99
per election: flat-rate pricing
1 vote
per strata lot by default under §53
What a BC strata must resolve before using digital voting
The software can reduce ballot-administration work, but the meeting procedure still controls validity.
Quorum requires a complete meeting plan
Remote access can reduce travel friction, but the chair still needs a lawful meeting format, a correct eligible-voter list, and a defensible quorum count.
Proxies must remain in the workflow
Section 56 preserves proxy rights. A digital ballot does not automatically cancel a valid proxy, so direct votes and proxy authority must be reconciled before tabulation.
Voting rights are easy to misread
Section 53 defaults to one vote per strata lot. Different weights apply only when a prescribed Schedule of Voting Rights says so; unit entitlement is not automatically the ballot weight.
Every type of strata vote
From annual council elections to emergency special levies
Controls that support a BC strata voting procedure
Product functions mapped to common record and tabulation needs, with legal limits stated
Owner Roster Enforcement
Upload the eligible-voter roster and assign one credential per voting interest. The strata remains responsible for owners, assigned tenants, mortgagees, shared votes, and proxies.
Identity Verification
Email and SMS checks are included. Assisted government-ID checks are available when arranged; no check by itself proves the person has a legal right to vote.
Configurable Voting Rights
Use one vote per lot by default, or import the voting values from an applicable prescribed Schedule of Voting Rights.
Real-Time Quorum Tracking
Live progress meter shows votes cast vs. quorum threshold. Track both owner count and unit entitlement percentage simultaneously.
Secret Ballot
Anonymous mode withholds voter-to-ballot links from organizer views and exports (kept in restricted storage); Sealed ballot mode stores no link to the voter at all. Section 49 has a specific rule for electronic attendees.
Result & Audit Exports
Export a platform-issued PDF certificate, CSV results, verification summary, and hash-verifiable audit package for the strata record.
BC strata voting: what every council needs to know
The Strata Property Act and voting
British Columbia's Strata Property Act (SPA) governs strata general meetings and votes. Sections 45–58 address notice, quorum, electronic attendance, thresholds, voting rights, voters, proxies, and shared votes. Section 49 permits attendance and voting by electronic means only when the notice includes instructions, attendees can communicate with one another, and the chair can identify eligible voters.
Majority, 3/4, 80%, and unanimous votes use different statutory definitions and apply to different matters. Do not treat a 75% approval threshold as quorum or assume every resolution uses the same denominator. Read the current Act and the Province's strata voting guidance.
Unit entitlement and weighted voting
Section 53 starts with a simpler rule: each strata lot has one vote, unless different voting rights appear in a prescribed Schedule of Voting Rights. Unit entitlement appears in strata records, but it is not automatically the weight for a general-meeting ballot.
vote.direct can import a numeric vote weight when a valid schedule calls for one. The strata should retain that schedule with the election record and test the tally before launch. Software can calculate the configured values; it cannot decide which legal schedule applies.
Replacing Form F proxies
Section 56 allows a person entitled to vote to act in person or by proxy. The appointment must be written and signed, may be general or limited, and may be revoked. A proxy stands in the appointing person's place unless the document limits that authority.
A direct browser ballot may reduce how many people choose to appoint proxies, but it does not abolish the statutory right. The chair needs a documented process for accepting proxy documents, preventing a direct ballot and proxy from both being counted for the same voting interest, and resolving revocations.
The quorum problem
Subject to the bylaws, section 48 sets the default general-meeting quorum at eligible voters holding one third of the strata corporation's votes; a different default applies when there are fewer than four lots or owners. Section 49 treats a qualifying electronic attendee as present in person.
Remote access may reduce participation friction, but no platform can promise quorum. vote.direct tracks accepted ballots against the configured threshold and can show which credentials have participated. The chair must decide whether each person counts as present under the approved meeting procedure.
How it works
From a reviewed procedure to exportable results in four steps
Create Election
Set up ballot questions, verification level, voting window, and quorum threshold.
Upload Strata Roll
Import your owner list with unit entitlements. Only eligible owners can vote.
Run the Meeting Vote
Use the browser ballot within the notice, communication, identification, proxy, and chairing procedure you approved.
Close & Export
Finalize the tally and export the result, platform certificate, and audit package.
Product support, with the statutory roles preserved
Inside the platform
- One-vote-per-lot or configured schedule values
- Approval threshold and quorum tracking
- Roster credential and verification controls
- Anonymous or sealed ballots
Documentation & records
- Timestamped, hash-linked platform events
- Verification-method summary
- Result and audit exports for strata records
- No claim to replace the chair, notice, proxies, or legal review
Frequently asked questions
Common questions from BC strata councils about digital voting
Section 49 of the Strata Property Act permits attendance and voting by telephone or other electronic means at an annual or special general meeting when the notice gives electronic-attendance instructions, attendees can communicate with one another, and the chair can identify eligible voters. A standalone asynchronous ballot is not automatically the same procedure. Official Act: https://www.bclaws.gov.bc.ca/civix/document/id/complete/statreg/98043_04.
No. Section 53 says each strata lot has one vote unless a prescribed Schedule of Voting Rights sets different voting rights. Do not use unit entitlement as ballot weight merely because it appears on the strata roll. If a valid schedule applies, upload its voting values as the weight field. Official Act: https://www.bclaws.gov.bc.ca/civix/document/id/complete/statreg/98043_04.
Not automatically. Section 56 allows an eligible person to vote in person or by proxy. vote.direct can collect direct browser ballots and record platform proxy assignments, but the chair must reconcile those records with any valid proxy documents and the meeting procedure.
Upload your strata roll (owner names and emails) via CSV. The platform restricts voting to only people on that list. Email and SMS verification are included in flat-rate pricing (from $4.99/election). An assisted government-ID check ($3.00/voter add-on) is available for additional assurance.
The platform can calculate a 75% approval threshold using the voting rights in your roster. That is separate from quorum. Confirm that the matter requires a 3/4 vote and that the configured denominator, abstention treatment, and voting-right values match the Act and bylaws.
vote.direct publishes flat-rate elections from $4.99 with email and SMS verification included. Assisted government-ID checks are $3.00 per checked voter when arranged. Notice, live communication, chairing, proxies, counsel, and paper materials remain separate. All plans include quorum tracking and exportable result and audit records.
Resources
Related guides
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Modernize your strata's elections
Add a browser ballot and exportable platform record to a procedure reviewed against the Act and your bylaws. Flat-rate pricing from $4.99/election. Email and SMS verification included.