Renovating a bathroom in a detached house is mostly about the house. Renovating one in a condo adds a second layer: the strata. Under BC’s Strata Property Act, your unit is yours, but the pipes in the walls, the structure, and the hallways you carry tile through are common property — and that means the strata council gets a say before demolition starts. We renovate condo bathrooms across Metro Vancouver every month, and the jobs that go smoothly are the ones where the paperwork was handled first. This guide covers strata approval for a bathroom renovation, the insurance documents stratas ask for, bathroom renovation permits, and how much a condo bathroom renovation costs in Vancouver, Surrey, Burnaby and the rest of Metro Vancouver. Here’s how it works.
Strata approval for a bathroom renovation: apply before you demolish
Almost every strata requires a written renovation application before bathroom work begins. Typically you describe the scope — new tile, a tub-to-shower conversion, a vanity swap — list your contractor, and agree to the building’s renovation rules. Council (or the property manager) reviews it at the next meeting or by email, and approval is usually straightforward for a like-for-like bathroom renovation. What gets applications held up is missing information: no contractor named, no insurance documents, or a scope that touches plumbing locations. Get the approval in writing before booking anything, because starting without it can mean fines or being ordered to stop mid-job.
Renovation hours are real, and neighbours enforce them
Strata bylaws set when noisy work can happen, and in most Metro Vancouver buildings that means weekday daytime hours — commonly something like 8 or 9 in the morning to 4 or 5 in the afternoon, with no renovation work on Sundays or holidays in stricter buildings. Demolition, tile cutting and drilling all count. A two-week bathroom renovation planned around a house schedule doesn’t fit a condo; the timeline has to be built around the building’s allowed hours from the start, and that’s something we confirm before quoting your completion date.
Elevators and hallways: book them and protect them
Everything — the old tub, bags of debris, new tile, the vanity — moves through common areas. Most buildings require the service or freight elevator to be reserved for material runs and debris removal, sometimes with a refundable deposit, and they expect hallway floors, elevator cabs and parkade routes protected with pads or board. Debris can’t sit in the garbage room unless the strata allows renovation waste there; on our jobs it leaves the building with us. These logistics aren’t difficult, but they have to be arranged with the concierge or manager ahead of time, not discovered on demolition morning.
The documents your strata will ask your contractor for
Expect the application to ask for the contractor’s business licence, liability insurance, and a WorkSafeBC clearance letter showing the contractor’s WCB account is in good standing. This is why hiring a licensed and insured bathroom contractor matters in a strata building — the strata will check the paperwork before anyone picks up a hammer. Stratas ask for these for a simple reason: if an uninsured worker is hurt in a common area, or a leak from your renovation damages the unit below, the building wants to know the contractor is covered and accountable. We send these documents as part of the approval package as a matter of routine — if a contractor can’t produce them, that’s a genuine red flag.
Two details are worth knowing. The insurance certificate shows the contractor’s legal company name and that the liability policy is current — check the dates, and don’t be surprised if your strata asks for the strata corporation to be named as an additional insured for the project; that’s a routine request a properly insured contractor can handle with one call to their broker. The WorkSafeBC clearance letter is different from insurance: it confirms the contractor’s WCB premiums are paid, which matters because an owner can be held responsible for an unregistered contractor’s unpaid assessments. It’s also worth a quick call to your own condo insurer before work starts — most unit policies cover the original build, and your upgraded finishes (the “betterments”) should be on your policy once the renovation is done.
Why your toilet and shower usually stay where they are
In a condo, the drain, waste and vent stacks are common property running vertically through every unit in the building. Moving a toilet or shower drain means cutting into that shared system, and stratas rarely allow it — both because of the risk to neighbouring units and because the work would need a plumbing permit for changes to common property. The practical result: condo bathrooms keep their fixture layout, and the design works within it. A tub becomes a walk-in shower on the same drain. The vanity and toilet stay on the same wall. Done well, that covers almost everything homeowners actually want to change.
Bathroom renovation permits in Metro Vancouver: when a city permit applies
Strata approval is not a permit, and a permit is not strata approval — they’re separate, and a condo bathroom job can need both. The good news: a like-for-like renovation (new tile, new fixtures in the same spots, a tub swapped for a shower on the same drain) usually needs no city permit. Permits enter the picture when the scope changes the systems: moving or adding a drain or water line calls for a plumbing permit from your city; changing structure calls for a building permit; and electrical work — a new circuit, heated floors, moved lighting — must be done by a licensed electrician under a Technical Safety BC permit. Because condo plumbing is common property, the rare request to move a fixture usually needs the strata’s written consent and a city plumbing permit. The practical move is to settle the permit question before the strata application goes in, so the package you submit describes the job exactly as it will be built.
How much does a condo bathroom renovation cost?
It depends on the scope, but condo numbers follow the same pattern as houses. A tub-to-shower conversion on the existing drain — the most common condo bathroom renovation we do — typically runs $5,000 to $10,000. A full condo bathroom renovation with new tile throughout, a new vanity, toilet and fixtures usually costs more, driven mainly by the finishes you pick and how much tile area the bathroom has. Strata costs are small but real: some buildings charge a refundable damage deposit or a move/elevator fee, and those belong in the budget from the start. The fastest way to a realistic range for your unit is our bathroom renovation cost calculator — it prices your actual selections, not a generic average.
How we handle it
Our process is simple: we help you put the strata package together — scope description, insurance, WorkSafeBC clearance letter, business licence — then confirm the building’s work hours, elevator booking and protection requirements before we set a start date. City permits for a like-for-like condo bathroom renovation are uncommon, but if the scope ever does touch plumbing relocation or structure, we flag it before the application goes in, not after. Planning it this way costs a few days up front and saves the job from stopping halfway.
Thinking about a condo bathroom renovation? Run your numbers through our bathroom renovation cost calculator for a first range, then call us at (778) 855-6606 to book a free site visit and a fixed condo bathroom renovation quote — we’ll look at the bathroom and your building’s rules together.