Unanimous votes and 80% votes: the highest thresholds in strata law
Most strata votes count only the people who vote. Two thresholds count everyone, including owners who never open the notice. They are reserved for decisions that change what people own.
Last reviewed November 10, 2026, against the current Strata Property Act, Strata Property Regulation and Standard Bylaws on BC Laws.
The short answer
A unanimous vote means a vote in favour by all the votes of all the eligible voters, and an 80% vote means a vote in favour by at least 80% of the votes of all the eligible voters (Strata Property Act, section 1). Unlike a majority or 3/4 vote, absent owners and abstentions count against. Unanimous votes are needed for things like changing the fee formula or unit entitlement. The 80% vote is used to wind up the strata corporation.
The four thresholds side by side
| Threshold | Measured against | Abstentions and absences |
|---|---|---|
| Majority vote | Votes cast at the meeting | Not counted |
| 3/4 vote | Votes cast at the meeting | Not counted |
| 80% vote | All eligible voters of the strata | Count against |
| Unanimous vote | All eligible voters of the strata | Count against |
In a 50-lot strata, a 3/4 vote might pass with 15 people in favour at a thinly attended meeting. An 80% vote needs 40 votes in favour however many attend, and a unanimous vote needs all 50. Proxies count, which is why these resolutions are won or lost in the weeks before the meeting.
What needs a unanimous vote
- Changing the formula for sharing strata fees away from unit entitlement (section 100).
- A special levy divided other than by the usual formula (section 108).
- Amending the Schedule of Unit Entitlement (section 261).
- Certain strata plan amendments, such as designating limited common property by plan amendment, or adding, consolidating or dividing strata lots (sections 257 and 259), subject to the exceptions in section 260.
- Resolutions that would normally need a 3/4 vote, passed between the first conveyance and the first AGM in a new strata (section 11).
Section 260 relaxes the requirement in some cases, for example where the change affects only the owners who agree to it. Read it with legal advice before relying on it.
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What needs an 80% vote
The 80% vote is used for winding up a strata corporation: cancelling the strata plan so the owners become tenants in common, or appointing a liquidator (sections 272 and 277). If the strata plan has five or more strata lots, the strata must apply to the Supreme Court to confirm the resolution within 60 days. Notice of a meeting to consider a winding-up resolution is four weeks, not two (section 45). See winding up a strata.
When one owner holds out: section 52
A single refusal should not always be able to block a sensible change. Section 52 gives larger stratas a route to court. It applies only to strata corporations with 10 or more strata lots. If a resolution requiring a unanimous vote is supported by all the votes except:
- the vote for one strata lot, or
- the votes for more than one lot that together are less than 5% of the strata's votes,
the strata may, by a 3/4 vote at a general meeting, apply to the Supreme Court. The court may order that the vote proceed as if the dissenting voters had no vote, if satisfied that passing the resolution is in the best interests of the strata corporation and would not unfairly prejudice the dissenters. The court can also order compensation or a purchase of the dissenter's lot at fair market value.
Owners in arrears
A strata may have a bylaw providing that the vote for a strata lot may not be exercised if the strata is entitled to register a lien against that lot. That bylaw does not apply to matters requiring an 80% vote or a unanimous vote (section 53). Every lot votes on those.
Practical advice
- Canvass before you call the meeting. If one owner will say no, a unanimous resolution fails. Know the answer first.
- Collect proxies. Owners who support the change but will not attend must give a proxy or their vote counts against.
- Consider the written route. Small stratas can pass any resolution without a meeting if all eligible voters consent in writing (section 44).
- Record the count against the total. The minutes should state the number of eligible votes in the strata corporation, not only the number at the meeting.
Sample minute wording: Resolution 4 (unanimous vote): amendment to the Schedule of Unit Entitlement. The chair noted that the strata corporation has 24 eligible votes. In favour: 22 (14 in person, 8 by proxy). Opposed: 0. Not voting or absent: 2. The chair declared the resolution DEFEATED, a unanimous vote not having been obtained.
Questions councils and owners ask
What is a unanimous vote in a BC strata?
A vote in favour by all the votes of all the eligible voters in the strata corporation, not only those at the meeting.
Does an absent owner count against a unanimous vote?
Yes. An owner who is absent without a proxy, or who abstains, has not voted in favour, so the resolution fails.
What needs an 80% vote?
Winding up the strata corporation by cancelling the strata plan or appointing a liquidator.
Can a court override one owner who refuses?
In a strata of 10 or more lots, the strata may apply to the Supreme Court under section 52 if all but one lot, or all but lots holding under 5% of the votes, support the resolution.
Is "unanimous" at a council meeting the same thing?
No. At council, a decision supported by every member present is simply a majority decision. The defined term applies to general meeting resolutions.
Rare votes need careful records
When a resolution needs every vote, the minutes must show every vote. StrataMinutes sets out the count against total eligible voters so the record stands up.
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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
The 3/4 Vote
Voting Rules
Unit Entitlement
Winding Up a Strata
Vote Calculator
Waiving the AGM