Nobody wants to be strata secretary. Here is what to do
The first council meeting after the AGM, the chair asks who will be secretary, and everyone studies the table. It is the least wanted job on council, mostly because of one task: the minutes.
Last reviewed November 10, 2026, against the current Strata Property Act, Strata Property Regulation and Standard Bylaws on BC Laws.
The short answer
Standard Bylaw 13 requires council to elect a president, vice president, secretary and treasurer from among its members after each AGM, and one person may hold more than one office (except president and vice president together). The secretary does not have to write the minutes personally. The duty to prepare minutes belongs to the strata corporation (section 35). Council can share the task, give it to the strata manager, or have the minutes prepared from notes by a service, as long as someone on council checks them and they reach owners within two weeks.
What the law requires
Two separate rules are often confused.
- Officers. Under Standard Bylaw 13, at the first council meeting after each annual general meeting, council must elect a president, a vice president, a secretary and a treasurer from among its members. A person may hold more than one office at a time, other than president and vice president. If your strata has amended its bylaws, check what yours say.
- Minutes. Under section 35 of the Strata Property Act, the strata corporation must prepare minutes of council meetings and general meetings, including the results of any votes. Standard Bylaw 19 requires council to inform owners of council minutes within two weeks of the meeting.
Neither rule says the secretary must hold the pen. The Standard Bylaws do not list duties for the secretary at all. The role is defined by custom: minutes, correspondence and records. See secretary duties.
Why nobody volunteers
The honest answer is time. A two-hour meeting produces three or four hours of writing if it is done from memory and scribbled notes, usually late in the evening and against a two-week deadline. The secretary is also the person blamed when an owner disputes what was said. Add the worry of getting the legal parts wrong, and the silence at the table makes sense. Solving the problem means shrinking the task, not finding a more willing volunteer.
StrataMinutes can take this off your plate. The job nobody wants is mostly one task. Send us the notes from your next meeting and receive the finished minutes. Your first month is free, so the new secretary can try it before agreeing to anything.
Five ways to cover the job
- Combine offices. The treasurer or vice president can also be secretary. This fills the office but does not reduce the work.
- Rotate the minute taking. A different council member takes notes each meeting, using a fixed template. Quality varies, but nobody carries it all year.
- Ask the strata manager. If the management contract includes attending meetings and preparing minutes, use it. Check what the contract charges for extra meetings and for AGMs. Council remains responsible for the content.
- Hire an attending minute taker. A professional attends and writes the minutes. This is the most expensive option and is usually charged by the hour with a minimum. See what minute-taking services cost.
- Have the minutes prepared from your notes. Someone at the meeting jots rough notes or records the audio, sends them in, and receives complete, formatted minutes back. This is what StrataMinutes does. The secretary's job becomes reading the draft and sending it to owners.
Splitting the role
The secretary's customary work breaks into pieces that different people can hold.
| Task | Who can do it |
|---|---|
| Notes at the meeting | Any council member, in rotation |
| Preparing the minutes | Secretary, manager, or a service |
| Reviewing the draft | President and one other member |
| Sending minutes to owners within two weeks | Secretary or manager |
| Correspondence in and out | Secretary, or a shared council email address |
| Keeping the records | Secretary or manager, in shared storage |
Record the arrangement by motion at the first council meeting so everyone knows who holds what. See the first council meeting after the AGM.
If truly nobody will serve
A council must still elect its officers. If the council is small, one person will hold two offices. If the difficulty is that nobody will stand for council at all, that is a larger problem: Standard Bylaw 9 requires at least three council members in most stratas, and a strata that cannot form a council may end up with a court-appointed administrator at the owners' expense. Making the roles lighter is the best protection against that. Our guide for self-managed stratas covers other ways to spread the load.
Having the strata pay
Minutes are the strata corporation's records, so the cost of preparing them is a common expense. It can be included in the annual budget, or approved by council within its authority for unapproved expenditures under section 98. Our free council approval kit has a draft motion and budget line.
Questions councils and owners ask
Does a strata council have to have a secretary?
Under Standard Bylaw 13, yes: council must elect a secretary from among its members. One person may hold more than one office, except president and vice president together.
Does the secretary have to take the minutes?
No. The strata corporation must prepare minutes, but the Act and Standard Bylaws do not say who writes them.
Can the strata manager be the secretary?
The officers must be council members. A manager can prepare minutes under the management contract without holding the office.
Can someone who is not on council take minutes?
Yes. Council may delegate tasks under Standard Bylaw 20, and anyone council invites may take notes.
Can the strata pay for a minute-taking service?
Yes. It is an ordinary operating expense when approved in the budget or within council's spending authority.
Make secretary the easy job on council
With StrataMinutes the secretary jots notes, sends them in, and receives complete minutes usually within minutes. At $29 a month the strata pays less than the cost of one hour of most professionals' time.
Free for 30 days, then $29 a month. Cancel anytime.
For a 30-lot strata, that is under $1 a lot each month. Have the strata pay: free council approval kit.
This page is general information for BC strata corporations, not legal advice. Your strata's own filed bylaws may differ from the Standard Bylaws. See the current text of the Strata Property Act and the Strata Property Regulation on BC Laws.
Related guides
Secretary Duties
Minute-Taking Service
Minute-Taking Guide
First Council Meeting After the AGM
Council Roles
Self-Managed Stratas