Why Your Strata Council Should Stop Re-Keying Locks and Switch to Digital Access Control

Why repeated re-keying is the wrong system for shared doors

Re-keying is still appropriate when a cylinder fails or a mechanical key is genuinely required. It becomes an expensive cycle when it is the building’s only response to lost common-area access. One missing key can lead to a service call, new pinning or cylinders, replacement key cutting, labelling, distribution and record updates for dozens or hundreds of residents.

The security problem continues until the locks are changed because the missing key remains valid. After the re-key is complete, the strata is back in the same position: every new key can be copied, loaned, misplaced or kept after a move-out. Shared lobby, parkade, amenity and service doors need a system that can change one person’s permission without resetting the whole property.

What a digital access-control system actually includes

Digital access control is more than a fob reader. A complete system connects the credential reader to a controller, approved electric locking hardware, door contact, request-to-exit device, power supply, backup strategy, cabling and management software. Each component must match the door, frame, traffic level and required operation.

Residents present an approved credential—such as a fob, card, NFC or Bluetooth credential, mobile app, compatible phone wallet or PIN—depending on the selected platform. The controller checks that person’s permission and unlocks only the approved door or function. Management can then add, change or remove individual access through the system instead of changing the physical lock for everyone.

The biggest benefit: cancel one lost credential, not every key

When a metal key is lost, the building cannot switch off only that key. With a properly managed access-control system, an authorized administrator can identify the missing fob or mobile credential, disable it and issue a replacement while every other resident continues using the system normally.

That capability is why digital access is so valuable for occupied strata buildings. It turns a property-wide hardware problem into a controlled resident-management task.

1. Verify the resident, unit or authorized credential holder reporting the loss.
2. Locate and disable only the missing credential in the management system.
3. Issue a replacement with the correct entrances, amenities and schedules.
4. Test the replacement and confirm that the disabled credential no longer works.
5. Record the change so the building’s active-credential inventory stays accurate.

Give property managers control of the building—not another pile of keys

The strongest access-control upgrade is one the property team can manage confidently. Through the approved software or property-manager portal, authorized staff may be able to enrol residents, remove move-outs, assign access levels, create door schedules, manage contractors and review relevant access events. Available functions depend on the selected system and the roles approved by the strata.

This replaces informal key lists with an organized database. A cleaner can receive access only to the doors and hours required. A contractor can receive temporary access. A resident can be assigned to the correct building, parkade, elevator and amenities. When responsibilities change, permissions can change with them.

• Add and remove residents through a documented move-in and move-out process
• Create separate permission groups for residents, staff, cleaners and contractors
• Apply time schedules to selected credentials or doors where supported
• Manage common entrances, parkades, amenities and service areas from one plan
• Review access records only for an approved security or operational purpose
• Train more than one authorized administrator so the system remains manageable

Residents can use fobs, phones or other approved credentials

Going digital does not mean forcing every resident to use a smartphone. A modern strata access-control system can support familiar fobs alongside mobile credentials, NFC, Bluetooth, cards or compatible wallet credentials when the chosen readers and platform allow them.

The best resident plan offers practical choices. A resident who prefers a fob can keep a physical credential. Another resident may use a phone. Approved accessible alternatives and mechanical fallback can remain where required. The system should fit the community instead of expecting the entire community to fit one device.

• Key fobs or cards for familiar tap-to-enter access
• Bluetooth or mobile-app credentials on supported smartphones
• NFC or compatible mobile-wallet credentials where the platform supports them
• PIN or temporary credentials for controlled use cases where approved
• Mechanical keys for suites, overrides or selected fallback requirements

Where strata buildings use digital access control

A property does not have to digitize every opening at once. Many Vancouver and Lower Mainland strata corporations begin with the common doors that create the most security risk, resident frustration or management work, then plan capacity for future expansion.

• Main lobby and secondary resident entrances
• Parkade-to-building and bicycle-room doors
• Vehicle gates and long-range resident entry
• Elevator floor permissions when the approved interface supports them
• Gyms, lounges, pools and other shared amenities
• Storage, mail, mechanical and service areas
• Management offices, staff rooms and contractor entrances

Connect doors, gates, elevators and intercoms into one access plan

Strata access rarely stops at one lobby door. Residents may need the front entrance, parkade gate, parkade-to-lobby door, elevator, storage room and amenities. A coordinated design assigns the right permissions across those areas instead of creating separate databases and confusing workflows for each system.

Access control can also be planned alongside the video intercom so visitor entry and resident credentials support the same building workflow. Where approved integrations are available, access events can help authorized teams locate relevant CCTV footage without turning normal resident movement into unnecessary surveillance.

Can an older Vancouver strata building be upgraded?

Often, yes. Digital access control is a practical retrofit for many occupied low-rise, high-rise and multi-building properties. The right approach starts by testing what is already installed: doors, frames, closers, strikes or maglocks, readers, controllers, power supplies, cabling, network connections and existing fob technology.

Usable infrastructure can sometimes remain. Unsupported controllers, insecure credentials, damaged door hardware or unreliable cabling may need replacement. A retrofit-first assessment helps the council understand what can be reused, what must change and how resident access will continue during the transition.

Digital access must still be safe, private and dependable

An access-control system manages entry; it must never compromise required exit. Doors may be locked against entry but generally must allow required egress, subject to the building and fire-code conditions that apply. The design should document door latching, request-to-exit operation, fire-alarm interfaces where required, emergency access and backup power.

Credential and access-event information can also be personal information. The strata should define why records are collected, who can review them, how long they are retained and how administrator activity is controlled. Good security includes protecting the access-control database itself.

The council should also understand outage behaviour. Ask which credentials work locally if internet service is unavailable, how long backup power is intended to support the system, what happens after a controller failure and which approved manual procedure keeps the property operating.

What should a strata council compare before approving a system?

Do not compare access-control proposals by reader price alone. The door hardware, controller capacity, software ownership, credential security, resident onboarding and support model determine whether the building receives a manageable long-term system or another technology problem.

1. Map the doors, gates, elevators and amenities included in the access plan.
2. Inventory current keys, fobs, readers, panels, databases, cabling and door hardware.
3. Define credential choices for residents, staff, cleaners and contractors.
4. Confirm who can add users, remove access, change schedules and review events.
5. Document power, internet, controller-failure and emergency-access operation.
6. Review privacy purpose, administrator roles and access-record retention.
7. Compare five-year ownership, including licences, hosting, credentials, training and service.
8. Require a resident communication, enrolment, cutover and post-installation support plan.

Why Vancouver and Lower Mainland strata buildings choose WeTech

WeTech Security Solutions specializes in upgrading existing strata and multi-residential properties across Vancouver, Surrey, Burnaby, Richmond, New Westminster, Coquitlam, Langley, Delta, White Rock and the surrounding Lower Mainland. We start with the building’s current doors, cabling, fobs and management workflow before recommending what should remain and what should change.

Our completed access-control work includes large multi-building communities, high-rise and low-rise properties, parkade gates, elevator controls and occupied-building credential transitions. Chelsea Gardens demonstrates centralized management across a large Surrey community. Hawthorne combines 23 controlled doors, two gates and two elevator controls. Tiffany Shores documents a four-building New Westminster retrofit.

The goal is not to sell a reader and disappear. It is to deliver a system residents can use, property managers can control and the strata can support after installation.