On November 24, 2022, the BC Government passed amendments to the Strata Property Act which take immediate effect. There are two significant changes impacting REALTORS® dealing with strata properties, as well as their clients: all rental restriction bylaws are removed, except for bylaws restricting short-term rentals such as Airbnb or Vrbo, and all age restriction bylaws are removed, with the exception of “seniors only” (55-plus) rules. This means that a strata will no longer be allowed to have 19-plus age restrictions. BC’s real estate regulator, the BC Financial Services Authority, advises the following changes to licensees.
Strata management services licensees:advise your strata corporation clients that the Strata Property Act has been amended and the changes are currently in force, review the updated requirements in section 45(3) of the Strata Property Act if preparing a notice of an annual or special general meeting of a strata corporation, seek instructions from your clients in relation to amendments to the strata, and corporation’s bylaws are required to remove any unenforceable bylaws or any bylaws that contravene the Strata Property Act.
Trading services licensees: advise your buyer or seller, where relevant, that the Strata Property Act has been amended, review strata bylaws for re-sale strata lots and/or Property Disclosure Statements for presale strata lots and strata lots purchased from a developer. Advise your clients to seek legal advice if they contain restrictions that are no longer compliant with the Strata Property Act, if you are working with a potential buyer or seller that is under contract to purchase a rental or age-restricted property, advise them that the Strata Property Act has been amended and they may wish to seek legal advice.
Rental property management services licensees: advise your clients that the Strata Property Act has been amended, and ensure rental agreements that you manage on behalf of your clients comply with the amended legislation. In summary, REALTORS® are responsible for making their clients aware of the changes that are already in force. This means removing references to rental and age restrictions that are no longer allowable. In listed properties where the restrictions are no longer in effect, reviewing disclosure statements with clients to ensure they are updated to reflect the changes to the Strata Property Act, and obtaining advice regarding current contracts on properties with rental restrictions. REALTORS® need to ensure that their clients understand what these changes mean. Additional changes to strata within the legislation include: the requirement for an owner developer to file a rental disclosure statement (Form J) to explain strata rental rights is repealed, requirements for a notice of an annual or special general meeting of a strata corporation are expanded, requirements for an information certificate to include the number of rented strata lots in a strata plan is repealed, electronic meetings are now permanently permitted without the need for a bylaw, and secret ballots are not permitted at electronic meetings to ensure eligible voters and proxies are identified and calculated accurately.