Lease Management & Rent Autopay

Pastrata unifies rental administration directly inside your strata community. Owner-landlords and property managers can create standardized leases, register tenants with mandatory Form K compliance, track security deposits, and collect monthly rent through automated bank debits. Tenants enjoy a dedicated "My Lease" portal with payment histories and digital renewal options.

Required Roles & Capabilities

Access to these features depends on your building role and assigned capabilities:

Quickstart (Getting Started)

1. Landlords: Navigate to Management > Leases and click New Lease.
2. Enter unit number, tenant contact details, lease term, and monthly rent amount.
3. Generate or attach the tenancy agreement along with the statutory Form K (Notice of Tenant’s Responsibilities).
4. Invite the tenant to electronically review and sign the agreement.
5. Tenants: Log in, view your lease terms in My Lease, and set up monthly rent autopay.

Step-by-Step Guides

How to Register a New Tenant & File Form K (Landlords & PMs)

Ensure compliance with strata bylaws by filing mandatory tenant disclosure forms.

1. Go to Management > Tenancies > New Tenancy.
2. Select your unit number and enter the incoming tenant’s legal name, email, and move-in date.
3. Select Generate Form K. Pastrata pre-fills building rules, bylaw summaries, and unit details.
4. Send the Form K invitation. The tenant will receive an email prompting them to sign the agreement.
5. Once signed, the tenant receives verified resident status and the strata corporation retains an audit copy.

Pro-Tip: In BC, failing to deliver a signed Form K within two weeks of move-in can result in strata bylaw fines.

How to Record a Tenant's Right to Vote or Stand for Council (Managers)

Under BC Strata Property Act s. 147 a landlord can assign a tenant the right to vote and the right to stand for council. A lease for a set term of 3 years or more assigns both for the term (s. 148). Requires the Manage tenancies capability (TENANCY_MANAGE).

1. Go to Management > Tenancies and open the tenancy.
2. Under Assigned rights, click Record an assignment and choose the named tenant.
3. Choose the basis: an assignment by the landlord, or a long term lease. In British Columbia these are named after the Strata Property Act sections that provide for them (s. 147 and s. 148). For an assignment by the landlord, tick the rights the landlord assigned and set the period. A long term lease assigns both rights for the tenancy's dates and needs a set term of 3 years or more.
4. Enter the day the strata corporation received the written notice. Nothing takes effect before that day.
5. While the assignment is In effect, the tenant votes for the lot instead of the owner, in council elections and on motions, counts the lot toward quorum, and can be nominated for council. The tenant is also listed with the owner in the meeting's Postal Delivery Manifest, because they are owed the notice too (s. 45(1)(c)). Click Revoke if the landlord withdraws it. Removing the tenant from the tenancy revokes it too.

Pro-Tip: A tenant under a section 148 long term lease can't vote a motion marked as affecting owners' property interests without the owner's consent (s. 148(6)). On those motions the owner votes the lot. A section 147 assignment isn't affected.

How to Set Up Rent Autopay (Tenants)

Automate monthly rent payments with no manual bank transfers or paper checks.

1. Navigate to My Lease > Rent & Payments.
2. Select Enable Rent Autopay.
3. Enter your bank details (Transit, Institution, Account number) or credit card.
4. Confirm the monthly debit schedule (e.g. 1st of each month).
5. Click Authorize Autopay. You will receive an email notification and receipt prior to each scheduled transfer.

How to Review Rent Ledgers & Deposit Holdings (Landlords & PMs) (Landlords & Property Managers)

Track rent payments, security deposits, and pet damage deposits in real time.

1. Navigate to Management > Leases and select the active unit lease.
2. Click Rent Ledger to review all scheduled, collected, and pending rent installments.
3. Click Deposits to view held security deposits and accrued statutory interest.
4. Download monthly rent disbursement statements or export ledger summaries to your accounting software.
5. On the go, managers can open More > Leases in the mobile app to browse the building's leases and see a lease's terms, deposits, and recent rent periods. Owner-landlords find the units they rent out under My Lease, marked You're the landlord.

How to Record Rent Payments, Confirm Reported Payments & Record Deposits (Landlords & PMs) (Landlords & Property Managers)

Record money you received outside Pastrata, and confirm or dispute payments your tenant reports. Managers need the rent-ledger or deposit-ledger management permission; owner-landlords can do this on the units they rent out.

1. Managers: open the lease from Management > Leases on the web, or More > Leases in the mobile app. Owner-landlords: open the unit under My Lease.
2. On a rent period, choose Record payment to add a payment you received (amount, date, method, and an optional reference), or Record adjustment to waive, write off, discount, or add a late fee.
3. When a tenant reports a payment, the period shows who reported it, the amount, the date, and the method, and you get a notification. Choose Confirm to record it, or Dispute and write a note your tenant will see. A disputed payment isn't recorded.
4. Under deposits, choose Record receipt, Record deduction, or Record return. A deduction needs a reason; a receipt or return needs a method.
5. If the unit changed owners and deposits still need to move to the new owner, choose Record deposit transfer once they have.
6. If your tenant disputes a deduction, it shows as Disputed with their reason. To accept the dispute, choose Remove line item and confirm: the deducted amount goes back onto the deposit balance and the dispute closes. You can't undo this.

Pro-Tip: Waiving or writing off a charge closes it, so enter the full amount owing.

How to Tell Your Landlord You Paid Rent (Tenants) (Tenants)

If you pay rent outside Pastrata (e-Transfer, cheque, cash), report it so your landlord can confirm it.

1. Open My Lease, choose your lease, and go to Rent.
2. On the charge you paid, choose I paid this.
3. Enter the amount, the date you paid, the method, and any reference (such as your e-Transfer reference), then choose Send to landlord.
4. The charge shows Awaiting confirmation until your landlord confirms it. You'll get a notification either way. If they dispute it, you'll see their note and can report it again.

Pro-Tip: If your building collects rent through Pastrata, payments are recorded automatically and I paid this doesn't appear.

How to Run a Move-in or Move-out Inspection (Managers & Concierge) (Property Managers, Council & Concierge)

Walk the unit with your phone or on the web: resolve the key and fob checklist, photograph each room, record move-out damage, and get the condition report signed.

1. On the web, open the lease and choose Schedule move-in or Schedule move-out under Move events. In the mobile app, open More > Move-ins & move-outs (or the tile on the concierge hub) to see scheduled and in-progress move events.
2. Open the move event and tap Start move-in (or Start move-out) when the inspection begins.
3. For each key, fob, or remote on the checklist, mark it Collected, Missing, Damaged, or Waived.
4. Under Condition photos, name the room, take or choose photos, and upload them. A photo that fails to upload stays queued so you can retry without retaking it.
5. On a move-out, add Damage entries with a description, an estimated deduction, and supporting photos. If you can manage deposits, send an entry to the deposit ledger as a deduction.
6. Under Sign-off, send the condition report for signature. The landlord and every named tenant sign it.
7. When every checklist item is resolved and the report is fully signed, tap Complete move event. Anything still blocking completion is listed above the button.

How to Offer and Accept Lease Renewals

Process lease term extensions without drafting new paperwork from scratch.

1. Sixty to ninety days prior to lease expiry, landlords receive an automated renewal alert.
2. Managers with the lease-renewal permission: open the lease from Management > Leases on the web and choose the Renewals tab, or open it from More > Leases in the mobile app. Owner-landlords: open the unit under My Lease and choose Renewals.
3. Choose Offer renewal on the web or Offer a renewal in the app, then enter the new term, the monthly rent, and any escalation. A rent increase above your province's rent-increase cap is refused.
4. Send the offer. The tenant is notified in their My Lease portal and has 14 days to respond. A renewal that was proposed but not sent yet shows Send offer.
5. To take back an offer the tenant hasn't answered, choose Withdraw.
6. The tenant reviews the offer and chooses Accept or Decline.
7. The agreement updates automatically, maintaining continuous tenancy records.

How to Manage Leases, Renewals, Move-ins and Tenancies with eConcierge

eConcierge can draft, send and withdraw renewal offers, schedule and close move-ins and move-outs, and keep tenancy records current for you. Nothing is sent or changed until you confirm.

1. Owner-landlords: open eConcierge and ask, for example "Offer my tenant a one-year renewal at $2,080 a month from January 1", "Send the renewal offer" or "Withdraw the renewal offer". Tenants can ask "When does my lease end?".
2. Managers: ask, for example "Schedule the move-in for unit 402 next Tuesday at 10am", "Start the move-out inspection for 1105", "Cancel the move-out for 1105", "Record that the tenancy in unit 210 ends November 30", "Fix the start date on the tenancy for 305" or "Scrap the draft lease for unit 515".
3. eConcierge finds the lease, renewal, move-in or move-out, or tenancy you mean and shows a confirmation card naming the unit and the people, with the rent, dates and terms that will be set. A renewal card shows the new rent next to the current rent.
4. Confirm to go ahead. It is done as you, exactly as if you had used Management > Leases or My Lease yourself.

Pro-Tip: Only the lease's landlord or a manager who can manage renewals can draft, send or withdraw a renewal offer. A rent increase above your province's cap is still refused. A renewal offer is not a notice of rent increase: where your province prescribes one (the RTB-7 in British Columbia, Form N1 in Ontario), the card reminds you that the higher rent is lawful only once that notice is served.

Pro-Tip: These stay in the app: drafting, uploading or sending a lease for signature, accepting or declining a renewal offer, the inspection checklist, photos and damage, sending the condition report for signature, deposit deductions and transfers, changing who is named on a tenancy, recording a tenant's right to vote or stand for council, bulk lease imports, and the landlord-of-record repair. eConcierge links you to the right screen.

Key Concepts & Building Policies

Form K Strata Bylaw Acknowledgement

A Form K is a legally binding undertaking signed by a tenant confirming they have received and agreed to comply with the strata corporation’s bylaws and rules. Under strata property legislation, landlords are responsible for any fines incurred by tenants who violate bylaws.

Security & Pet Deposit Trust Accounting

Pastrata tracks security deposits in a designated ledger and, when the lease ends, calculates any interest that your province’s residential tenancy law sets on them.

Frequently Asked Questions & Troubleshooting

What happens if a tenant moves out early?

Managers can initiate the Move-Out Workflow, which schedules elevator bookings for moving day, generates the move-out condition report, and calculates deposit refunds.

Can building council view private rent amounts between a landlord and tenant?

No. Financial terms of private tenancy agreements are strictly restricted to the unit owner, tenant, and authorized property management company.

Related Guides

• Tenants & Residents Hub
• Owners & Landlords Hub
• Property Managers Hub