The Strata Landscaping Contract Guide: What North Vancouver Councils Should Ask Before Signing
Strata councils get landscaping proposals that are almost impossible to compare. One is a single number. One is priced per door. One quotes hours. None of them line up, and the decision usually defaults to whoever is cheapest or whoever the property manager already knows.
This guide is what we would want a council to ask us. It sets out how strata landscaping contracts are actually structured on the North Shore, what the real 2026 numbers look like, and the specific clauses that decide who carries the risk when something goes wrong.
Why strata contracts are hard to compare
Residential landscaping is priced against a lawn. Strata grounds are priced against crew time, because the work is not uniform — beds, boulevards, entry features, common walkways and parkade surrounds all consume different amounts of labour on the same visit.
That is why a per-door figure tells you almost nothing. Two 40-unit properties can differ by a factor of three in grounds workload. The only comparison that holds is hours on site, by how many people, how often, for which months.
How our strata contracts are structured
Biweekly maintenance, two landscape professionals on site, March through November. You choose the crew hours per visit:
| Crew time on site | Monthly |
|---|---|
| 1 hour, 2 crew | $404.80 |
| 2 hours, 2 crew | $809.60 |
| 4 hours, 2 crew | $1,619.20 |
Each visit covers trimming and pruning of shrubs where seasonally appropriate, weeding and cultivation of beds, removal of dead perennial material, clearing fallen leaves and debris, blow-down of patios, driveways and walkways, and clean-up and disposal of green waste.
Seasonal lawn care packages sit on top: spring $281.99, summer $198.53, fall $256.93, winter $197.74. One-off large-scale cleanups are $770 for a half day and $1,540 for a full day.
Snow is a separate contract, and it is the one that carries risk
Strata and commercial snow clearing runs $600 to $1,500 and up per visit depending on site size and gradient. That range is wide because a flat 20-space lot and a stepped North Shore complex with a sloped ramp are different jobs.
The number matters less than three clauses:
- Trigger depth. Ours is 2 cm, and dispatch is automatic. Nobody on council phones anyone.
- Response window. Ask what it is in writing, and what happens when it snows overnight on a weekend.
- Documentation. Dispatch times and salting records are what turn a slip-and-fall claim from a problem into a defensible file.
Contracts are signed in October and November, ahead of the first real snowfall in late November. Councils that wait until after the first storm are choosing from whoever still has capacity.
What to ask every contractor before signing
- How many crews can you field, and what happens to our schedule in the two weeks after a storm?
- Is WorkSafeBC coverage current, and can we see the clearance letter?
- What is the liability limit on your insurance, and are we named?
- What is excluded from the contract price and billed separately?
- What notice period applies — to us, and to you?
- Who is our named contact, and who covers when they are away?
A contractor who answers all six without hesitation is telling you something useful about how they run. So is one who does not.
Why crew size is the underrated variable
Most strata disputes about landscaping are not about quality. They are about a schedule that slipped — the spring cleanup that arrived three weeks late, the snow visit that came after the morning commute.
That is a capacity problem, not a skill problem. Beyond runs 35+ full-time staff across the North Shore, which is what lets a schedule hold when every contractor in the region is oversubscribed at once. It is worth asking any bidder how they absorb a backlog, because every one of them will face one.
Getting a proposal your council can actually read
We provide council-ready proposals broken into line items, so they can be tabled at a meeting and compared against your current provider without anyone having to translate between pricing models. A site walk takes about half an hour and the proposal follows within 24 hours.
If you want the underlying numbers first, our Vancouver landscaping cost guide lists every published rate, and our strata services page covers scope in more detail.
Frequently asked questions about strata landscaping contracts
What should a strata landscaping contract include?
At minimum: the visit schedule and months of operation, exactly which tasks are included on each visit, what is excluded and billed separately, the snow trigger depth and response window, proof of WorkSafeBC coverage and liability insurance, the notice period on both sides, and a named contact. If any of those are missing from a proposal, they are negotiable at renewal — and expensive after a dispute.
How much does strata landscaping cost in North Vancouver?
It depends on grounds size and crew hours rather than a flat per-door rate. Our biweekly maintenance contracts are priced by crew time on site: two landscape professionals for one hour is $404.80 a month, two hours $809.60, four hours $1,619.20, running March through November. Snow is contracted separately at $600 to $1,500 and up per visit for strata and commercial properties.
What snow response time should a strata expect?
Ask for a trigger depth and a dispatch commitment in writing. We dispatch automatically at 2 cm of accumulation, so nobody on council has to phone during a storm. Contracts are signed in October and November — after the first snowfall you are competing with every other property that waited.
Who is liable if someone slips on strata common property?
Liability sits with the strata corporation, which is why the contract wording matters more than the price. A contract with a defined trigger depth, documented dispatch times and salting records gives council a defensible record. A handshake arrangement does not. Ask any contractor whether they log dispatch times, and ask to see the format.
Does crew size actually matter for a strata contract?
It matters most in the two weeks after a storm and during spring cleanup, when every contractor in the region is oversubscribed. A firm of 35+ staff can hold a schedule through a backlog; a two-truck operation cannot, regardless of how good they are. Ask how many crews the contractor can field and what happens to your schedule when demand spikes.
Can we get a proposal we can take to council?
Yes. We provide council-ready proposals broken into line items so they can be read at a meeting and compared against your current provider without translation. Free, and turned around within 24 hours of a site walk.
Related: Landscaping in North Vancouver
