Building and Strata Statutes Amendment Act 2022

Bill 44 which proposed the following amendments to the Strata Property Act (the “Act”) was passed by the legislature on November 21, 2022. The Bill has made the Act more gender neutral and allowed electronic attendance of strata meetings.

Besides the obvious ease of attending and voting in the strata meetings, it provides the much-needed reprise to the owners of strata lots by doing away with rental restrictions.

The following changes have been made:

Pet Policy

~ The strata bylaws restricting pet ownership have been repealed if the pet in question is a retired or current guide dog or a retired or current service dog.

~ Additionally, if the owner, tenant, or occupant lived with a pet before this amendment without contravening any bylaws and continues to live with the pet, a new bylaw prohibiting pets does not apply to them.

Age Restrictions

~ The strata bylaws may restrict residency in a strata lot such that one or more persons residing in it may not be less than 55 years old. All other age restrictions are no longer permitted.

~ Additionally, a new age restriction would not be applicable to residents of the strata lot who are under the age as per the new restriction, have been living in the lot since before the restriction was introduced without violating any then-existing strata bylaws, and continue to reside in the lot after such a restriction is introduced.

~ An age restriction bylaw also would not apply to live-in caregivers who stay in the strata lot to provide care to a resident who is dependent on the caregiver’s assistance because of disability, illness, or frailty.

Rental Restrictions

~ The strata bylaws restricting rentals have been repealed unless they are restricting short-term rentals.

~ The strata corporation is no longer permitted to screen tenants, establish screening criteria, require approval of tenants, require the insertion of terms in tenancy agreements, or otherwise restrict rentals.

~ The strata corporation is no longer permitted to issue Rental Disclosure Statements or keep records of these Statements for inspection by the purchasers of the strata lot.

We don’t know exactly yet what the impacts of these amendments will be on BC housing affordability, but the revisions are intended to improve affordability. If you have any questions about the amendment, please don’t hesitate to contact us.

This article contains legal information, but cannot be relied upon as legal advice. If you or someone you know needs advice on the consequences of these amendments on your legal rights or obligations, please don’t hesitate to contact us at [email protected] or 604-900-7611.

Image by Nadine Shaabana, downloaded via www.unsplash.com. Nadine is available for hire!