What insurance should a strata ask a handyman for in BC?

Two documents: a commercial general liability certificate (most councils want $2 million in coverage) naming the strata as a certificate holder, and a WorkSafeBC clearance letter confirming the contractor is in good standing. Ask for both before anyone works on common property, and keep them on file. A legitimate contractor sends them the same day.

Can a handyman do strata common-area work without a contractor?

For maintenance and small repairs on common property, yes: railings, fencing, trim, drywall, tile, doors, and similar. Anything structural, anything needing a permit, or work touching gas, the main electrical, or new plumbing has to go to the proper licensed trade. A good handyman team tells the council which side a job falls on before quoting.

How do you schedule strata repairs around residents?

Give notice the council can post, work in the agreed common-area windows, and keep access clear for residents and emergency vehicles. For multi-unit jobs we sequence the work so the fewest units are disrupted at once, and we keep one point of contact for the council so nobody is chasing updates.

Strata Council's Guide to Hiring a Handyman in BC

What a BC strata council should check before hiring a handyman: insurance docs, scheduling around residents, and the quick-win repairs worth ordering early.

If you sit on a BC strata council, hiring a handyman is part risk management, part scheduling, and part knowing which repairs to order before they turn into bigger bills. Get the paperwork right first and the rest goes smoothly. Get it wrong and the strata can carry liability it never meant to.

This is a quick guide from a crew that does strata work across Metro Vancouver. No pricing, because every building is different. Just what to check and what to plan for.

Council needs a quote for a meeting? Call (604) 996-0969 or send photos and we will put a written scope together.

What should a strata check before hiring a handyman?

Confirm three things before anyone touches common property. First, a commercial general liability certificate, usually $2 million, with the strata named as a certificate holder. Second, a WorkSafeBC clearance letter showing the contractor is in good standing, so the strata is not exposed if a worker is hurt. Third, a written scope you can attach to the minutes. With those in hand, the council has done its due diligence. The rest is scheduling and picking the right repairs.

The insurance documents to ask for

This is where councils get exposed, so it is worth being firm.

Commercial general liability certificate. Most BC strata bylaws and property managers want $2 million in coverage. Ask for the certificate naming the strata as a holder, not just a verbal “yes, we’re insured.”
WorkSafeBC clearance letter. If an uninsured worker is injured on common property, the strata can end up liable. A clearance letter confirms the contractor’s account is in good standing. You can also verify it yourself on the WorkSafeBC site.

A real contractor hands both over the same day. We carry them and send them before we start, because strata and small-business work is a big part of what we do. If getting these documents is like pulling teeth, that tells you how the rest of the job will go.

Scheduling around residents

A strata job is not just the repair. It is the repair done without a flood of complaints to the council.

Good practice looks like this: notice the council can post ahead of time, work confined to agreed common-area windows, and access kept clear for residents and emergency vehicles. On a multi-unit job we sequence the work so the fewest units are disrupted at once, and we keep one point of contact for the council so nobody is chasing five different people for an update.

The same-crew model matters more for strata than for a one-off home repair. The crew that learns your building’s quirks in spring is the crew that comes back in fall, instead of a new face who needs the whole place explained again.

Quick-win repairs worth ordering early

Most strata repair budgets get eaten by things that were cheap to fix and got ignored. A few that are worth ordering before they grow:

Failed exterior trim and caulking. Open joints let water in. Water damage is the expensive version of a sealing job.
Loose or rotting railings and fence posts. A safety issue and a liability one. Cheaper to repair than to replace after a season of rot.
Drywall and paint in common hallways. Small patches now beat a full re-do later, and they keep the building looking maintained.
Tile and grout in shared entries and amenity rooms. Re-grouting stops water getting under tile, which is what turns a tile job into a subfloor job.
Door and hardware adjustments. Sticking common-area doors and worn closers are quick fixes that residents notice every single day.

None of these need a permit or a general contractor. They are exactly the kind of ongoing maintenance a handyman team handles, where a contractor would not bother.

How quotes work for a council

Councils need a number they can vote on. So we give a written scope and quote you can attach to the minutes and approve at a meeting, with the insurance documents included.

We quote after seeing the property, not over the phone. For a strata that means a walk-through of the common areas in question, then a written scope back to the council. No dollar figures published here, because a “fix the railings” job at one building is a different job at another once we see the rot, the access, and the materials.

Get your repair list scoped: call (604) 996-0969 or book a walk-through. We will send the insurance paperwork with the quote so it is ready for your next meeting.