YYJ Stratacare

Victoria, British Columbia · since 2007

Caretaking, cleaning and maintenance coordination for Victoria buildings.
With Otto, every request is tracked to done.

Since 2007, for strata councils, the managers they work with, and owners of rental buildings. Every report gets a number, every job carries a time-stamped photo, and council gets one report a month.

Book a walkthroughSee how a request runs

Serving Greater Victoria strata corporations since 2007 · YYJ Stratacare Ltd., successor to CBM Services Ltd.

Since 2007
Looking after Victoria buildings
30 minutes
Response on a staffed day
24 hours
Written incident report

What we do

Three services, one crew, one report. Every line below carries how often it happens, because a schedule is a commitment and a list is not.

On-site caretaking

Somebody from us in the building on a schedule, who knows every stack, valve and panel, and answers to you.

  • Scheduled on-site presence, four or eight hours a day, with cover for absences.Daily
  • Daily walk-around: parkade, perimeter, planters, waste rooms, lighting, roof after heavy rain.Daily
  • Access control and cameras checked, fobs and enterphone programmed, garage doors kept closing.Weekly
  • Monthly generator and fire-alarm tests, HVAC and service-room checks, pool and hot tub readings.Monthly
  • Snow and ice cleared by 10 a.m. per city bylaw; roadways through a snow contractor.As needed
  • Leak and flood first response, then the clean-up and the trades organised, with you copied on every step.Always
  • Incident reports in writing within twenty-four hours; police file numbers for thefts.Always
A worker walking a line of numbered stalls in an underground parkade
The parkade and perimeter walked on a schedule, not on request.

Common-area cleaning

Janitorial to a filmed standard, inspected and logged, so the building looks the way council was promised.

  • Hallways, lobbies, elevators, fitness and amenity rooms, change and steam rooms, rooftop terraces.Daily
  • Elevator deep-cleans done the way our own training videos show, tracks included.Weekly
  • Garbage and recycling rooms pulled, swept, hosed and relined on pickup day.Pickup day
  • Inspections logged so the standard is checked, not assumed.Every visit
A vacuum crevice tool drawn along the grooved threshold track of an elevator door
Elevator tracks vacuumed and wiped, every visit.

Maintenance coordination

The repairs we do ourselves, and the trades we scope, schedule, let in and check, so council signs one invoice and reads one report.

  • Painting, drywall, tile and grout, door closers, light fixtures, small carpentry.As needed
  • Trades scoped, quoted, scheduled and met on site; water shut-offs noticed to residents the way the bylaws require.Per job
  • After a flood: water off, restoration on site the same night, every affected unit accessed floor by floor, everything photographed for the insurer.Always
  • Bike racks installed in your own stall, planters and railings skate-proofed.On request
  • Owner-requested in-suite work, quoted and billed to the owner.On request
  • Carpet cleaning, pressure washing of parkades and flat surfaces, low-rise windows, junk removal, arranged and supervised.Scheduled
Gloved hands squeegeeing the inside of a tall glass lobby entrance door in morning light
Entrance glass and frames, inside and out, on the list every week.

Resident requests, handled by Otto

Everything a resident used to put in a note under the office door, now filed in one place with a number they can quote.

  • Fobs, remotes and enterphone changes, with the owner’s approval captured.In the app
  • Move-in, move-out and delivery elevator bookings that check the calendar and the building’s notice rules.In the app
  • Amenity room and rooftop bookings, storage lockers, bike lockers and parking waitlists with a monthly position notice.In the app
  • Fire-evacuation assistance registry and building notices by email or text, for residents who opt in.In the app
  • Your strata’s fee applies to fobs, moves and lockers; it is set by and paid to the strata.Set by the strata
A phone held up to photograph a maintenance issue in a building corridor
Reported with a photo, from wherever you are standing.

For councils, managers and owners

One report, one line to call, and a service level that fits what the building already has.

  • One monthly report per building: what came in, what got done, what is still open, with the pictures.Monthly
  • Notices posted in the building and sent digitally to residents who opted in.As needed
  • An after-hours line for emergencies, with the escalation path agreed in writing per building.24 hours
  • Three service levels per building: full, partial alongside your manager’s own portal, or notices-and-emergencies only.Per building
  • Counsel from someone who has been the main contact for Victoria buildings since 2007.Since 2007
A tidy condominium waste and recycling room with labelled totes on a freshly mopped floor
Waste rooms sorted, mopped, and hosed on pickup day.

Working with your strata manager and council

We are the contractor that keeps the building running. Your manager and council stay the decision-makers, and we are built to fit beside them rather than around them.

The manager stays the manager.
Fees, fobs, Form Ks, notices and approvals stay with your manager where they already work. We coordinate with them, adapt to their systems, and never handle strata money.
Behind their after-hours line, not competing with it.
Where the manager runs an emergency line, it takes the call and reaches us directly. A resident can use whichever number they know and the building is covered either way.
Possible contraventions are reported, never enforced.
Noise, smoking, pets: we document it and put it in front of the manager or council. The strata decides what happens next.
One named contact changes the scope, in writing.
A remark to the crew on site is not an instruction. Changes come from council or the manager, in writing, and the agreement is re-confirmed whenever either of them changes.

We work alongside Brown Bros., Cornerstone and Gateway, among others.

Meet Otto

Otto is the building assistant. He answers the building line by text and by phone, reads what the resident says, and files it with a number. Then he does the part people forget: he follows up until it is closed.

A resident texts the building line

No app to download, no password. This is the whole thing, as it happened.

Otto

The Corazon building line

Online

Hi, the light in the parkade stairwell on P2 has been out for a few days. Anything you can do?

Thanks for flagging it. Want me to file a maintenance request for the burnt-out stairwell light on P2, under unit 512?

Yes please, and it is pretty dark down there

Filed as urgent, reference #100010: P2 stairwell light out, area very dark. We'll follow up. YYJ Stratacare

Otto knew the unit because the number is on the building’s owner and tenant list. It asked once, then filed.

Answers at any hour, by text, phone or the building page.
No app to install and no password. The resident uses whichever they already have.
Knows who lives where.
He checks the building’s owner and tenant list, asks once which unit, then never again. Someone the list does not know is asked to check their details once their request is filed, and the office is told.
Checks the building’s rules and calendar before he books.
A move booked at a time the bylaws allow, with the notice period the building requires.
Answers residents himself. Money and records wait for the office.
A question gets its answer and a request its confirmation straight away. Anything that costs money or changes a record is drafted for the office and goes only when it says yes.
Follows up until it is closed.
He chases the crew, phones the trade, leaves a message and waits for the call back. A ticket is never dropped until it is done.
Watches for what is coming.
A drain that only floods in heavy rain gets a weather watch. The day before the rain, the people who need to check it are told.
Learns how each building wants things done.
The first time a situation comes up he asks. The answer is kept for that building, and offered the next time a similar one comes up.
Writes the monthly report.
The facts in date order, the solution, the photos, and what is still open at the bottom. Approved by Paul before it leaves.

Every monthly report comes across Paul’s desk before it reaches council.

The resident system

Every request gets a reference number, a status the resident can follow, and a close-out when it’s done. Residents can reach it however they like, whether that’s the phone, a text or the building page.

One number for the building, answered at any hour.

Residents call or text the building line. Otto answers day and night, files the request with a number to quote, and puts the caller through to a person when they ask for one. Our crew is in the building on every visit, and the line covers the hours in between. The building page is there for anyone who would rather tap than call.

The building page on a phone: report a problem, book the elevator, request a fob
The building page, on a phone. A resident can report a problem in three taps with a photo, book the elevator, or ask for a fob.
A resident’s unit page showing their open requests and their status
Their own requests. Each one has a number to quote and a status to watch, and they’re told when it’s done.
The office console: a monthly report waiting for approval before it goes to council
The office side, on the desk. This is a building’s monthly report, waiting for Paul’s approval before it goes to council. Anything that costs money or changes a record waits here first.

What a call to the building line sounds like

These are two real calls to the building line, recorded as they happened on our test building, with Otto answering exactly as he does on the phone. Press play and read along. The resident is played by an actor, but Otto is Otto.

Booking the elevator for a delivery0:55
OttoHi Margaret, it's Otto at YYJ Stratacare. How can I help?
Margaret, 402Hi Otto, it's Margaret in 402. I need to book the elevator for a couch delivery.
Margaret, 402Saturday at 2 o'clock.
OttoOne moment while I
Ottocheck if the elevator is free on Saturday at 2 pm.The elevator is free on Saturday, October 24. The available slots include 2 pm to 5 pm. Would you like me to book it for your delivery from 2 pm to 5 pm?
Margaret, 402Yes, please book it.
OttoBooking the elevator for your delivery on Saturday
Ottoat 2 pm.The elevator is booked for your delivery on Saturday, October 24, from 2 pm to 5 pm. You’ll get a confirmation by email and text, plus reminders the day before and the morning of. The caretaker will be notified as well. Is there anything else I can help you with?
Margaret, 402Lovely, that's all I needed. Thank you, Otto.
OttoThanks for calling, Margaret. Have a great night!
A light out, and a stain on the carpet1:09
OttoHi Margaret, it's Otto at YYJ Stratacare. How can I help?
Margaret, 402Hi Otto, it's Margaret in 402. There's a light out in the hallway on my floor, the 4th floor. just outside the elevator, and there's a coffee stain on the carpet right in front of the elevator as well.
Margaret, 402Neither one's urgent. It's just dark by the elevator at night.
OttoNoting the light out for
Ottothe caretaker.
OttoNoting the coffee
Ottostain for cleaning.Both are noted for the caretaker: the light out and the coffee stain in front of the elevator on the 4th floor. Is there anything else I can help you with?
Margaret, 402Yes, both of them please. And will I get told when somebody's been sent to look at it? And again when it's actually been cleaned up and the light's been fixed?
OttoThe office will follow up once the caretaker has looked at it or when it’s fixed. You won’t get a message right when someone is sent, but you’ll hear back when the work is done. Anything else I can help with tonight?
Margaret, 402That's perfect. Thank you, Otto.
OttoThanks for calling, Margaret. Bye for now.

In the first call, Otto knows the building’s three-hour elevator block, and the booking, the confirmation and the reminders all happen without anyone sitting at a desk. In the second, both problems are filed for the visit in one call, and when Margaret asks whether she’ll hear back, the answer is yes: she’s told when the work is done, because every request stays open until it is.

Maintenance and issue reportsA resident reports a problem in a common area with a photo, it’s routed to the visit or to a trade, and the resident is told when it’s fixed.
Moves and the elevatorMove-in, move-out and delivery bookings are made against a live calendar, with the building’s rules as the terms and the pads arranged.
Enterphone and Form KsDirectory changes are requested online and done on the next visit, and new tenants are picked up from the Form K the strata manager provides.
Meeting room bookingsResidents book through the building page with the rules attached, or wherever council would prefer the bookings to live.
Notices by email and text, at any hourWater shut-offs, pool closures, a fire-alarm test or an emergency on a Sunday night go out to residents who opt in, with their consent recorded, and get posted in the building as always.
Fire-evacuation assistance registryWe record the residents who’ll need help in an evacuation, for the Fire Safety Plan binder.
Photo-stamped work logsEvery task on the visit carries a photo stamped with the date, the time and the building before it’s marked done.
Monthly report to councilIt covers what came in, what got done and what’s still open, with the pictures. Paul approves it before it’s sent, and it’s ready for the minutes.
Alongside the strata manager. Where the manager already runs a portal for fees, Form Ks or approvals, ours links to it instead of duplicating it. Council decides which functions live where, and residents get one place to start.

Who gets what

Strata councils and their managers

  • One report a month per building, minutes-ready, with the pictures.
  • The open requests, the notices sent, the documents, and who to call, always current.
  • A line that is answered at any hour, with the escalation agreed in writing.

Residents

  • Their building’s page: report a problem in three taps with a photo.
  • A reference number they can quote, and a status they can watch.
  • Told when it is done. Not left to wonder.

Apartment owners and rental managers

  • One system across every building you own, with your own number and your own name on it.
  • Tenants text the building line; you approve what goes out; the record is yours.
  • A monthly report per building that reads the same whether you have one or twenty.

When it goes wrong at night

Three calls we have taken. No building named, no figure quoted; this is what the after-hours line is for.

  1. A tub diverter fails on the eleventh floor

    Water came down the stack to the sixth. The building’s water was off within about twenty-five minutes, the restoration company was on site the same night, and access was coordinated across two stacks for drying, asbestos testing and the adjuster’s walk-through. The failed part was kept and the plumber’s report put in writing for the insurer.

  2. A fire panel reads GENERATOR FAIL at night

    The call came to the after-hours line. The fault was traced to the backup generator, the panel silenced and re-checked, and the incident written up for the manager and council within twenty-four hours.

  3. A full-time caretaker position ends

    When one building’s own caretaker position ended, we took over the coverage with scheduled visits and an on-call option. The schedule changed four times in a year, each time at council’s request and in writing, and the strata never carried an employee.

How we work, in writing

The same terms are in every agreement we sign, and they are agreed before the first visit.

Priced as separate lines
Scheduled visits, the after-hours line and call-outs by the hour are each their own line, so council can add or remove one without touching the others.
One invoice a month
Issued on the first, every line dated with what was done, payment due on receipt. A reissue says which number it replaces.
Our employees, not subcontractors
Site staff are YYJ employees: supervised, scheduled and covered by us. The strata never becomes the employer.
Insured and covered
Commercial general liability and WorkSafeBC, with WHMIS-compliant procedures. Any trade we coordinate shows us its own coverage before it works.
Changes in writing, from one named contact
Council or the manager names who can change the scope. A remark to the crew on site is not an instruction.
Thirty days, either party
A one-year term that renews, and thirty days’ written notice to end any part of it, from either side.

Questions council may have

Do you handle strata money?

No. Fees for fobs, moves and lockers are set by and paid to the strata, through your manager. We record that a fee applies and stop there. YYJ’s own invoices are for YYJ’s own work.

What happens at two in the morning?

The building line is answered by Otto at any hour. A leak, an alarm or an entrapment goes straight through to whoever is on call that night, who can reach the trades and get to the building. The escalation path is agreed in writing per building, and where your manager runs an emergency line we sit behind it.

We already have a manager’s portal. Do we have to change it?

No. There are three service levels per building: full, partial alongside your manager’s own portal, or notices-and-emergencies only. Fees, fobs and Form Ks stay where they already work.

What does it cost?

It depends on the days, the hours and whether council wants the after-hours line. After a walkthrough you get a written proposal within two days, priced as separate lines so you can see what each part is.

Our building has its own caretaker. Is this for us?

Often, yes: weekend and holiday cover, relief while they are away, or taking over the coverage when the position ends, with scheduled visits instead of an employee on the strata’s payroll.

Do residents need an app?

No. They text the building line, phone it, or open the building’s page. No download and no password. A resident who prefers a note under the door can still leave one; it gets a number too.

Built by the owner, not by a software company

Paul Cook, Owner, YYJ Stratacare Ltd.

Paul Cook

Owner, YYJ Stratacare Ltd.

Paul Cook started Cook Building Maintenance in 2007 from a Craigslist ad and one strata owner’s recommendation. He incorporated CBM Services Ltd. in 2016 and formed YYJ Stratacare Ltd. in 2024. Since 2007 his crews have cleaned, repaired and looked after the common property of condominium buildings, including the Sandpiper, the Sovereign, the Corazon and Heritage Green, for strata corporations and property managers such as Cornerstone and Gateway. He built Strata OS because the follow-up should not depend on anyone’s memory, including his.

The company has filmed its own training standard since 2019; the elevator-cleaning series alone has been watched more than forty thousand times.

  • CBM Services is contracted at numerous strata corporations that I manage and the consistent feedback from the strata councils is fantastic work, excellent employees and great customer service.

    Shannon, property manager · TrustedPros, 2017

  • I have worked with Paul Cook … for fifteen years. During this time he has consistently provided excellent service not limited to cleaning.

    Peter McPherson, strata member and resident · Google

  • Our apartment building is well maintained and response times to any tenant issues are very prompt.

    Keegan Varney · Google

Buildings we look after

Each one has its own page, its own line and its own report. Pick yours to see what you can report, book or request there.

Three ways to begin

Each one ends with a signed agreement and a start date.

Book a walkthrough

Paul walks the building with you: the parkade, the service rooms, the amenity floor, and what the residents have been asking for. You get a written proposal within two days.

Book a walkthrough

Call or text the line

Otto answers. Ask what we do, whether we take buildings in your area, or what a monthly report looks like. Anything he cannot settle goes to Paul.

Text the line

Email Paul

Send the building’s name and what you are looking for, and whether there is a date council is working to.

paul@yyjstratacare.com