Condo Security in BC: What a Security Guard Does for Your Strata
Condo Security in BC: What a Security Guard Does for Your Strata
Written by Paul Thandi, Operations Manager, On Guard Security Ltd. — 10+ years in BC security · Updated September 2026
Most strata councils start talking about condo security after something specific happens: a string of parkade break-ins, bikes gone from the storage room, parcels missing from the lobby, or strangers found sleeping in a stairwell. The question that follows is always the same. Would a security guard actually fix this, and what kind? This guide is written for strata councils and property managers in Surrey, Vancouver and across the Lower Mainland. It covers the common problems in BC condo buildings, what a condo security guard does day to day, how concierge, mobile patrol and hybrid coverage compare, where cameras fit, and how a council can reach a decision owners will support.
Key takeaways
Condo security problems are usually specific and repeatable: parkade theft, tailgating through doors and gates, storage room theft, parcel theft and after-hours trespass.
A condo security guard's core job is controlling access, patrolling common property, responding to residents and alarms, and documenting everything.
Concierge security suits busy towers with a staffed lobby; mobile patrol suits smaller or lower-risk buildings; many stratas combine the two.
Cameras and access fobs complement guards but don't replace them: a camera records a problem, a guard can interrupt it.
A council gets the best result by logging incidents first, defining what it wants solved, and comparing quotes on the same scope.
Condo buildings share a design problem: lots of people have legitimate access, doors and gates open and close all day, and large common areas such as parkades, bike rooms and stairwells are empty most of the time. That makes a handful of issues very common.
Parkade break-ins and vehicle theft. Underground parkades are quiet, often poorly watched, and the overhead gate stays open long enough for someone to walk in behind a car.
Tailgating. Someone follows a resident through the front door, a side door or the parkade gate. Residents often hold doors to be polite, which is exactly how it happens.
Bike rooms and storage lockers. Once someone is inside, these rooms are private and full of valuable items.
Parcel theft. Deliveries left in the lobby or mailroom disappear, especially in buildings without a staffed front desk.
After-hours trespass. People looking for shelter in stairwells, garbage rooms or the parkade, sometimes leaving damage or safety hazards behind.
Misuse of amenities and move-ins. Unbooked moves, guests in the gym or pool after hours, and elevators left propped open.
Most buildings have two or three of these, not all six. Naming the specific problem is the first step, because it decides which kind of condo security is worth paying for.
A condo security guard's responsibilities are set out in the post orders the strata and security company agree together. On a typical assignment they include:
Access control. Watching the entrances, speaking to people the guard doesn't recognise, and checking that doors and the parkade gate close fully behind vehicles.
Patrols of common property. Walking the parkade levels, stairwells, bike and storage rooms, garbage rooms, amenity spaces and the perimeter on a set schedule.
Visitor and contractor management. Signing in trades, letting in booked moves, and confirming visitors with residents where the building's rules require it.
Parcel handling, where the strata wants it: receiving deliveries at the desk and logging them for residents.
Responding to residents. Noise complaints, lockouts, suspicious activity and requests for help, handled calmly and reported to the property manager.
Alarms and emergencies. Checking fire panel and door alarms, calling 911 when needed, meeting responders at the door and helping with evacuation.
Hazard spotting. Water leaks, broken lights, wedged fire doors and damaged gates, reported before they become bigger problems.
Documentation. Daily activity logs and incident reports that the council can actually use.
What a condo guard is not is a police officer. Guards have no police powers and act on the strata's behalf. BC's Security Services Regulation also lets the registrar hold licensed guards to a code of conduct that includes respecting privacy, treating everyone equally and not using unnecessary force. That matters in a building where the guard will see residents every day.
Key insight: the value of a condo guard comes from routine, not heroics. A closed gate, a challenged tailgater and a leak reported at 2 a.m. prevent more loss than any single dramatic intervention.
There are three common ways to staff condo security, and the right one depends on the building's size, layout and problems.
Model
How it works
Best suited to
Limits
Concierge security
A licensed guard staffs the lobby desk for set hours, controlling access, managing visitors and parcels, and patrolling at intervals
Busy towers, buildings with lots of deliveries and visitors, residents who value a staffed front desk
The highest cost; the desk can't be watched while the guard is patrolling unless two guards are on
Mobile patrol
A patrol officer visits several times a night at varied times, checks doors, parkade and common areas, and responds to alarms
Smaller or low-rise buildings, townhouse complexes, buildings where the problem is mostly after hours
No one on site between visits
Hybrid
Concierge coverage during busy hours plus mobile patrol overnight, or a static guard only on problem nights
Mid-size buildings with a specific overnight problem, stratas balancing cost and coverage
Needs clear handover and reporting between the two services
Our condominium concierge security service covers the staffed-desk model, and our GPS-tracked mobile patrol covers scheduled overnight visits. Many stratas start with patrol, review the incident logs after a few months, and then decide whether a staffed desk is justified. For multi-building and townhouse communities, the same thinking applies to gated community security.
Councils often ask what the best security system for a condo is. The honest answer is that there isn't one product that solves it. The buildings that do best use layers: fob access that can be switched off when a fob is lost, good lighting in the parkade and at entrances, cameras on the doors and gates, clear signage, and people who act on what they see.
Cameras are excellent for evidence after the fact and for discouraging casual theft. What they can't do is close a gate that's stuck open, speak to a tailgater, or notice a flood at 3 a.m. That's the gap a guard fills. On Guard doesn't sell camera systems, so we're comfortable saying so: if your building has good cameras but no one watching them or acting on them, adding a guard or patrol is usually the missing layer, not more cameras.
Under BC's Trespass Act, an "occupier" includes a person with responsibility for and control over premises or control over who may enter them. On a condo's common property, that is usually the strata corporation acting through its council and property manager. The occupier can authorize a security guard to act for it.
An authorized guard can give notice that entry is prohibited, orally, in writing or by signs at the ordinary points of access; direct someone to leave; and ask for their name and address if there are reasonable grounds to believe they are trespassing. Arrest for trespass is a power the Act gives to peace officers, so if someone won't leave, the guard documents it and calls police. People found sheltering in a stairwell or parkade are treated with respect: asked to leave, pointed toward local services where appropriate, and never confronted aggressively. This is general information, not legal advice.
Key insight: clear "no trespassing" signs at every entrance to the parkade and building do real legal work. They give notice under the Trespass Act before a guard ever has to speak to anyone.
Security is a spending decision, so it goes through the strata's normal budget process. How it's approved depends on your bylaws and how the cost is funded, so check the process with your strata manager. In our experience, the councils that get owner support follow a similar path:
Log the problem. Keep a simple record of incidents for a few weeks: dates, times, what happened, where. It turns "things feel unsafe" into something owners can weigh.
Define the goal. "Stop parkade break-ins overnight" leads to a different answer than "a staffed lobby for parcels and visitors".
Get comparable quotes. Give every company the same scope: hours, patrol frequency, areas covered and reporting expected.
Check licensing and insurance. Confirm each company's licence with the province's licence verification tool. The Regulation requires security businesses to carry at least $1,000,000 in general liability insurance, so ask for the certificate and a WorkSafeBC clearance letter.
Start with a review date. Agree to look at the reports after a set period and adjust hours or switch models if needed.
Condo security is typically billed hourly per guard for concierge or static coverage, and per visit for mobile patrol. The hours of coverage, overnight and holiday shifts, and the number of buildings or entrances drive the total.
Reports are how a council knows its condo security budget is working. Good reporting includes a daily activity log showing patrol times and areas checked, incident reports with the time, location, what happened and what was done, and a regular summary the property manager can take to council. Over a few months those reports show patterns, such as which door is propped open most, which nights parkade problems cluster, or whether the bike room needs a better lock. That lets the strata adjust coverage instead of paying for hours that aren't needed.
On Guard Security Ltd. is a locally owned security company based in Surrey, with more than 10 years of experience protecting residential and commercial properties in BC. We provide condo security across Surrey, Vancouver, Richmond, Burnaby, Langley, Abbotsford and the Fraser Valley. Every guard is BC-licensed and has completed Basic Security Training through JIBC, new officers spend a week in one-on-one training with a senior officer, and we are WorkSafeBC compliant and fully insured. Our operations line is staffed 24/7, and we also offer alarm response for buildings that want someone to attend after-hours alarms.
If your council is weighing concierge, patrol or a mix, we'll walk the building with you and give you an honest recommendation. Call 778-990-5070 or request a consultation.
No single product is best. Condos do best with layers: fob access that can be deactivated, good lighting, cameras at doors and gates, clear signage, and people who act on what they see. Cameras record problems; a guard or patrol can interrupt them, so the two work best together.
Do condos have security?
Some do and some don't. Many BC condos rely on fobs, locked doors and cameras only. Others add concierge security at the front desk, scheduled mobile patrols overnight, or a mix of the two. It's a strata decision, usually driven by the building's size and the problems it's experiencing.
What are the responsibilities of a condo security guard?
A condo security guard controls access, patrols common property such as parkades, stairwells and bike rooms, manages visitors, contractors and sometimes parcels, responds to residents and alarms, calls 911 in emergencies, reports hazards like leaks, and keeps daily logs and incident reports for the strata.
How much does condo security cost?
Concierge and static guard coverage is usually billed hourly per guard, and mobile patrol per visit. The total depends on the hours covered, overnight and holiday shifts, and the number of buildings and entrances. Give each company the same scope so quotes can be compared fairly.
Should our strata choose concierge security or mobile patrol?
Concierge security suits busy towers that want a staffed front desk for visitors and parcels. Mobile patrol suits smaller buildings or problems that happen mostly after hours. Many stratas combine them, with concierge during busy hours and patrol overnight, then adjust after reviewing the reports.
Can a condo security guard remove trespassers?
A guard authorized by the strata can tell a person they are not allowed on the property, direct them to leave and ask for their name and address under BC's Trespass Act. The Act gives the power to arrest for trespass to peace officers, so if someone refuses to leave, the guard documents it and calls police.
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