A new duplex, triplex or fourplex home can be owned in several legal forms. The form decides what the owner holds, what is shared with neighbours, who repairs the roof, and whether a monthly fee applies. For small-scale homes in Coquitlam and Port Coquitlam, the common forms are a fee simple lot, a bare land strata lot and a strata lot in a building. A fourth form, the air space parcel, divides land into three-dimensional parcels.
This chapter of the land and zoning guide explains each form from the Strata Property Act, the Land Title Act and the cities' pages, all checked on 30 September 2026. It is written for the buyer or owner of one of the new homes that the small-scale housing rules now permit.
Fee simple lots
Fee simple is ownership of a whole parcel of land with its own title. A new fee simple lot comes from a subdivision plan that the approving officer approves under Part 7 of the Land Title Act. Once the plan is registered, each lot has its own title, and the owner holds that lot without a strata corporation or common property.
A fee simple lot must meet the zone's minimum lot area and width, and the provincial frontage rule. Splitting one lot into several fee simple lots requires each new lot to meet those minimums on its own. The chapter on subdividing a lot covers the approval process and the Coquitlam minimums.
Strata lots and common property
A strata divides property into strata lots owned separately and common property owned together. The definitions are in Part 1 of the Strata Property Act. A strata lot is a lot shown on a strata plan. Common property is the part of the land and buildings on the plan that is not part of a strata lot, plus pipes, wires and similar services in certain locations. Limited common property is common property set aside for the exclusive use of one or more strata lots, such as a yard or a parking space.
Part 2 of the act says a strata corporation is established from the time the strata plan is deposited in a land title office. Every owner is a member. Part 5 sets how property is held. Section 66 says owners own the common property and common assets as tenants in common, each in a share equal to their lot's unit entitlement divided by the total. Section 67 treats each strata lot, with its share of common property, as a separate parcel for assessment and taxes. Section 72 says the strata corporation must repair and maintain common property and common assets, and it may pass a bylaw that makes an owner responsible for limited common property the owner uses.
Part 6 applies to every strata, whatever its size. Section 92 requires an operating fund for regular expenses and a contingency reserve fund for expenses that usually occur less than once a year, both paid through strata fees. A four-unit strata has the same duties as a large one, carried out by four owners.
Strata lots in a fourplex
Coquitlam's subdivision answers say each unit in a triplex or fourplex can be owned separately by creating a strata corporation and depositing a strata plan at the land title office after construction. A BC Land Surveyor and a legal adviser are needed. The answers state that the strata corporation and strata plan must be finalized before the buildings are occupied.
For a strata lot in a building, the boundary is usually the middle of the wall, floor or ceiling that separates it from another lot or from common property, as section 68 describes. Parts of the building and land outside the strata lots, such as the roof and the yard, are common property unless the strata plan includes them in a lot. Some of that common property may be designated limited common property for one owner's use. Read the strata plan, the bylaws and the schedule of unit entitlement before you buy.
Bare land strata lots
A bare land strata plan, under the Part 1 definition, sets the boundaries of strata lots on a horizontal plane by survey markers instead of by the walls and floors of a building. Each lot is a piece of land, and the shared parts are often a driveway or a private road. Part 14 of the Strata Property Act, in section 243, requires an approving officer to approve a bare land strata plan before it can be deposited.
Coquitlam's Zoning Bylaw Part 6 adds a local rule. Bare land strata subdivision is permitted only if a roadway gives vehicle access to each strata lot. It also limits parking on narrow private roadways: a two-way roadway under 8.5 metres wide, or a one-way roadway under 6 metres wide, cannot be used for parking.
Air space parcels
An air space parcel is a three-dimensional parcel of land. Part 9 of the Land Title Act defines it as a volumetric parcel shown in an air space plan, whether or not a building occupies it. Section 139 says air space is land. Section 141 lets an owner in fee simple create air space parcels by depositing an air space plan, and each parcel can be transferred, leased or mortgaged like other land. An air space parcel may itself be divided under the Strata Property Act.
Coquitlam's Fees and Charges Bylaw No. 5484, 2025 lists an air space parcel application at $6,833.20 for two parcels or less, and $410.20 for each additional parcel.
Which units can have their own title
Coquitlam's small-scale housing answers state that secondary suites and accessory dwelling units, such as garden cottages and carriage houses, cannot be stratified or subdivided. Duplexes, triplexes, fourplexes and multiplexes can be stratified and sold. Port Coquitlam's accessory dwelling unit page says its coach houses and garden suites cannot be strata subdivided and cannot be the principal home on a lot.
So a buyer of a home with a suite or backyard unit buys both on one title. A buyer of a fourplex unit buys a strata lot and a share of the common property. The chapter on carriage houses and suites sets out the rules for those units.
| Title form | What the owner holds | Shared parts | How it is created |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fee simple lot | A whole parcel | None | Subdivision plan approved by the approving officer |
| Strata lot in a building | A unit bounded by walls, floors and ceilings | Common property and common assets | Strata plan deposited after construction, with council approval if the building was occupied before |
| Bare land strata lot | A parcel marked by survey points | Common property such as a road | Plan approved by the approving officer |
| Air space parcel | A three-dimensional parcel | Set by the plan and any registered agreements | Air space plan deposited by the fee simple owner |
The first months of a new strata
A new strata starts under the control of the person who built it. Part 3 of the Strata Property Act calls that person the owner developer. Section 5 says the owner developer exercises the powers and duties of the strata council from the time the strata corporation is established until a council is elected at the first annual general meeting. Section 12 says that at the first sale of a strata lot, the owner developer must start the contingency reserve fund by paying in an amount set by the act and its regulations.
Each strata lot's share of costs and votes is set in a Schedule of Unit Entitlement filed with the strata plan. Section 246 of Part 14 says that for a residential strata lot in a building, the unit entitlement is the habitable area in square metres as measured by a BC Land Surveyor, a whole number that is the same for every residential lot, or a number approved by the Superintendent of Real Estate. In a fourplex with homes of different sizes, the method chosen changes each owner's share, so ask which one was used.
Converting an existing house
Coquitlam's guide to adding units says an owner can add units to an existing home and stratify them for sale through a strata title conversion application. Section 242 of the Strata Property Act says a strata plan that includes a previously occupied building must be submitted to the approving authority, which is the municipal council. Council must not approve it unless the building complies with the municipality's bylaws and the building regulations to the standard section 242 (5) sets. Its decision is final. Coquitlam's fee bylaw sets $4,856.70 for a conversion of two units or less and $6,799.30 for more than two.
Before you buy a new small-scale home
Ask which title form applies and whether the strata plan has been deposited. Read the strata plan, the bylaws, the budget and the contingency reserve fund, and find out which parts of the building and yard each owner must maintain. The journal article on buying a unit in a Coquitlam fourplex lists questions for a small new strata, and the article on strata fees explains how fees are set. The due diligence guide covers title searches and document review in more depth.
A lawyer or notary confirms the title and the documents for a specific home, and a BC Land Surveyor prepares the plans.