Council Sets Policy; Management Implements Policy

As the elected body for a Strata Corporation, the Strata Council is charged with setting policy. As a management company, our role is to implement Council's policies and to ensure that Council looks good in the eyes of its electorate.

Keeping Council Well Informed

It is key that Council is well informed, so Strataco puts special emphasis on providing each Council member with a full agenda and supporting documentation in advance of each Council meeting. We research all issues that will come before council, so we can provide Council with the means to solve issues, not dwell on problems.

Providing a Basis for Community Consensus

We believe that it is our role to assist Council to adopt solutions that will be accepted by the community rather than create controversy within the community by pitting Council against owners or Council against Management.

Trust Between Council and Management

Similarly, we strive to create an environment that ensures that Council and Management work well with one another. We strive to build an atmosphere of mutual trust and respect, so that all problems are dealt with in a fair and objective manner. We want to ensure that the concerns and interests of all owners are well-represented in the decision-making process.

Communication Is Key

Communication between Council and Management and the owners of the Strata Corporation is fundamental. We place great emphasis on the information provided in Council minutes and all other communications with owners. Every letter received from an owner is answered, so that owners do not feel that their concerns are unimportant.

26 Years Providing Condominium Management Services

We’ve been in business since 1972. Over the past 26 years, we have evolved the management and client systems that ensure that we consistently deliver the highest possible management services to our customers.

Dedicated, Experienced Support Staff

Strataco is proud of the experienced and dedicated group of strata managers and support staff that round out the Strataco team. We hire the best and provide each with the training they need to provide the consistently high standard of service we deliver to each of our clients. We have the longest serving staff of any management company in our industry.

High Quality, Experienced Service Contractors

Strataco contracts with the leading independent contractors in our industry to provide the quality of service we are dedicated to delivering to our clients. Most of our contractors have been working with us for many years and understand our goals and expectations.

J.P. Daem, President: J.P.’s association with Strataco dates back to 1974, when he was hired as a strata Manager. Although condominiums were in their infancy, even then J.P. was becoming known as an advocate for condominium owners. Purchasing a condominium within Simon Fraser Hills I (a project which Strataco now manages), he was elected to the Strata Council and appointed as Chairperson. He was one of the founders (and first President) of the Strata Plan Owners Association (now known as the Condominium Home Owners Association). J.P. was also appointed as a consultant to the Ministry of Housing during the development of the Strata Titles Act (the precurser to the Condominium Act).

In the past 25 years, J.P. has been instrumental in furthering knowledge of the condominium concept, developing management systems, and training management personnel, in both Canada and the United States.

• he has received the Professional Community Association Manager (PCAM) designation from the Community Associations Institute (Washington, D.C.), and was the Dean of the Management Practices course of the Managers’ Training Program.
• he has served as a resource person to various governmental agencies in matters relating to the development of new legislation for strata properties
• he has lectured widely to both condominium owners and strata managers on the successful operation and management of strata corporations and common interest communities in Canada and the United States

J.P’s commitment to both the integrity of the condominium management industry and to those who have chosen the condominium lifestyle is paramount and the basis upon which Strataco operates.

Allan Grandy, Vice-President: Allan can date his tenure with Strataco back to the mid 70’s, when he was employed as a lifeguard during the summer while attending U.B.C. Allan was a lifeguard at Montecito Village, a group of Strata Corporations which Strataco still manages today, and for which Allan is now the Manager.

Upon receiving his B.Sc. from UBC and a Licentiate in Accounting, Allan accepted a job offer from J.P. to join Strataco as a Junior Manager in 1980.

Allan’s accounting and business background has served him well in his responsibilities as strata Manager for a select group of clients, all of whom appreciate his concern for their well being and the conscientious and even-handed way in which he represents their interests.

Summary
J.P. and Allan have made strata management their career and remain actively involved in the business today. They are committed to the industry and their combined experience in excess of 70 years ensures that the Strataco clients receive reasoned and competent professional guidance.

Conflicts of interest that compromise a management company’s ability to independently manage and service its portfolio are all too common in our industry. Strataco’s owners made the decision not to put itself in situations that would potentially create such conflicts of interest, so that the advice and recommendations that it gave were clearly motivated by one factor alone: what was in the best interest of our clients.

We're Independently Owned
The three active principals of the company independently own Strataco. Not being part of a larger company or an arm of a real estate firm means that we are responsive to the needs of our clients.

We Do Not Engage in "Sweetheart" Deals with Developers
Our clients are all self-managed stratas, where the effective control of the strata is in the hands of the owners who live in the complex. We do not contract with developers before or during the construction phase to provide management services. In this way, we retain our independence and are in a position to pursue a developer aggressively when deficiencies must be corrected.

We Do Not Sell Real Estate
We do not sell real estate. Selling units within projects, a strata management firm also services introduces conflicts that ultimately can compromise the ability of the firm to act in the best interests of the strata owners.

We Do Not Manage Individual Strata Properties
Strataco does manage individual properties within a strata for investor owners. The interests of non-resident owners are often at odds with those who live in a complex, so firms who provide such services compromise their ability to give independent recommendations on issues where the interests of the two ownership groups are not aligned.

We Do Not Own Service Companies
Strataco has no financial interest in any of the firms we employ to provide services our clients will use to maintain or upgrade their properties (landscapers, roofers, plumbers, road pavers, etc.). We retain the services of the best contractors and put work out to independent bids to ensure our clients are receiving competitive rates.

Our Independence Means Honest Advice and Fair Deals for Our Clients

Unique Systems Set Strataco Above Its Competition

At Strataco, we believe that providing superior service to our clients is a function of the quality of our management systems and our staff. This principle has guided us over the past 26 years, as we focussed on developing management systems to ensure that we consistently delivered the highest quality services to our customers. The success of this unique approach is reflected in the loyalty of our client base.

Investing in In-House Systems

Strataco has invested heavily in the implementation of industry-standard applications software linked to programs and databases that we have developed for our specific use. Our investment in building superior internal systems has allowed us to offer our clients superior reporting and communications tools.

Client Satisfaction is Constantly Monitored

As the saying goes "you must not only talk the talk, you must walk the talk." At Strataco, we're not only committed to providing superior service, we're constantly assessing our performance to this goal. Regular client surveys allow us to measure how we're doing and to seek suggestions from our customers on ways in which we can increase the value of the services we provide.

Our Management Processes Mean Consistent Service

Unfortunately, the service provided by most management firms to a client is largely dependent on the capabilities of the project’s strata manager. Weak or non-existent management systems put an overly heavy onus on the project manager to define service levels. At Strataco, however, we have embedded our standards in written policies and procedures that ensure consistently high quality service. When a manager changes in one of our managed stratas, the service we provide remains consistent

Financial Reporting Second to None

The financial reports provided by Strataco are informative, yet easy-to-read. They clearly and accurately present the overall picture of the financial health of the strata in a format that can be understood by all owners.

Cash Management That Benefits Our Clients

Each strata corporation within our portfolio has its own bank account to which its monies are directly deposited. We do not use a general clearing account, so the benefit of interest earned on deposits fully accrues to the benefit of each strata.

Budgeting Designed to Accurately Reflect Needs

Strataco prepares a recommended working budget for the Strata Council, showing projected receipts and expenditures, including contingency and reserve accounts for capital repairs and replacements. We take into account historical trends for each project and quotes received from contractors for services to be provided over the coming year. Our goal is to ensure that each strata has as accurate a projection as possible for its financial requirements over the coming year.

Reserve Studies for Proper Planning

Strataco also prepares a "reserve study analysis" that summarizes the capital expenditures to be incurred over a designated period of time and the monies that will have to be set aside each year to offset these projected costs. This is critical information for properly planning for the future and ensuring that owners are not faced with "surprises" and significant special assessments due to lack of proper planning

Individualized Correspondence

All correspondence to a strata’s owners/residents and to suppliers is sent out on the strata corporation's own letterhead. We build and maintain a consistent identity for each of our clients, rather than sending out their correspondence on our own letterhead.