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Strata Exterior Camera Installation Requires Council Approval Under SPA Standard Bylaw 8 (Home Systems)

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Strata Exterior Camera Installation Requires Council Approval Under SPA Standard Bylaw 8

decision-rule

Claim: In a BC strata, mounting any camera on an exterior wall or in a common-area corridor is an “alteration” under the Strata Property Act Standard Bylaw 8, requiring written council approval before installation — and the BC Civil Resolution Tribunal has enforced this with removal orders.

Mechanism

The BC Strata Property Act’s Standard Bylaws (which apply unless a strata has registered its own bylaws superseding them) include:

Standard Bylaw 8 — Alterations to common property and strata lots: An owner must obtain written approval from the strata council before making an alteration to common property, limited common property, or the exterior of the owner’s strata lot.

The CRT has applied this provision directly to cameras:

  • Parnell v The Owners, Strata Plan VR 2451, 2018 BCCRT 7 — doorbell cameras found to constitute alterations requiring council approval.
  • Herr v The Owners, Strata Plan KAS 1824, 2020 BCCRT 496 — same conclusion; camera as modification to common property.
  • Hudson v Strata (2024) — tribunal found replacing a doorbell with a doorbell camera meets the definition of “alter” because a doorbell camera is materially different from a doorbell (it adds a surveillance function). Tribunal ordered: anyone wishing to keep their doorbell camera must apply in writing to the strata; anyone who does not apply or whose application is denied must remove the camera within 60 days.

Why mounting is the trigger: Strata exterior walls are typically common property (they appear as common property on the strata plan). Drilling into or attaching hardware to common property without approval is a bylaw violation regardless of whether the camera is in your strata lot’s airspace. Even no-drill mounts over a door frame may still require approval if they are visible from common areas.

What strata councils can legitimately consider:

  • Aesthetics and uniformity of the building exterior
  • Privacy of other residents (the camera’s field of view into hallways or adjacent units)
  • The strata corporation’s PIPA obligations if the camera captures common property
  • Structural concern (drilling into exterior cladding, water ingress risk)

What the approval request should include:

  • Camera model and dimensions
  • Proposed mounting location with a photograph or diagram
  • Camera angle and field of view — and how you will configure privacy zones to exclude neighbours’ doors and common hallways
  • Confirmation that no permanent damage will result, or description of the drilling plan
  • Statement that you will comply with BC PIPA requirements

If the strata refuses: The owner can apply to the CRT for a determination that the refusal was significantly unfair under SPA s. 164. This is not a guaranteed win — the CRT has upheld refusals based on legitimate privacy concerns of other residents.

Scope

This applies to:

  • Exterior wall-mounted cameras (regardless of where the power comes from)
  • Doorbell cameras replacing existing doorbells
  • Any camera whose field of view captures common hallways or corridors

This does not apply to:

  • Interior cameras inside your own unit aimed inward (no alteration, no common property capture)
  • The strata corporation’s own cameras on common property (the strata manages those under its own PIPA obligations)

Idea Compass

North: Where this comes from

  • SPA Standard Bylaw 8 — the legal basis for the alteration approval requirement
  • BC CRT decisions (Parnell 2018, Herr 2020, Hudson 2024) — the case law applying it to cameras
  • The Strata Insurance Circularity Problem — strata bylaws as the source of owner obligations with hard enforcement consequences

East: Tensions / failure

  • BC PIPA Caps Where a Home Security Camera May Point (Home Systems) — even an approved camera must comply with PIPA; the two obligations stack and a PIPA violation can lead to the strata revoking approval
  • The 60-day removal window from Hudson 2024 — an unapproved camera is not just a fine; it is a removal order with a hard deadline

South: Where this leads

West: What’s similar

Sources

Graph View

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