mihom · Buying guide
Buying a condo built 1982 to 2000 in BC
Plenty of good homes in BC were built in these years, and many of the buildings have since been rebuilt or carefully maintained. What sets this era apart is that the condition of the building matters as much as the condition of the unit, and the building's paperwork is where you find it. This guide covers what to ask for and what to look at. It applies to apartments and townhouses held as strata.
Why this era
Through the 1980s and 1990s, many wood frame buildings in coastal BC were designed with walls that couldn't dry out once rain got in. The problems surfaced in the mid 1990s and became known as the leaky condo crisis. The province responded with a commission in 1998, the Homeowner Protection Act and mandatory warranty insurance for new homes from 1999, and building code changes that made rainscreen walls the norm on the coast.
Buildings from this era fall into a few groups: ones that were never affected, ones rebuilt (often called "remediated" or "rainscreened") with the work documented, and ones where the question hasn't been fully answered yet. The documents below tell you which.
What to ask for
Your REALTOR® can request these from the strata or its property manager. Read them before your subjects come off.
- Depreciation report
- The engineer's 30 year plan for the building: what each part (roof, walls, windows, elevators, plumbing) has left and what replacing it will cost. Compare it with the contingency reserve fund balance.
- Form B information certificate
- The strata's one page snapshot: the fee for this unit, the reserve fund balance, any special levy approved or proposed, bylaw changes not yet filed, and any lawsuits.
- Council and AGM minutes, two years
- Where problems show up first: water leaks, engineering reports, owners pushing back on a levy, insurance renewals.
- Financial statements and this year's budget
- Is the reserve fund growing each year, or being drawn down to keep fees low?
- Bylaws and rules
- Pets, rentals, short term rentals, renovations, smoking, parking and storage.
- Insurance certificate
- Check the deductibles, especially for water damage. An owner can be charged up to the deductible when damage starts in their unit, so ask your insurer about covering it.
- Engineering or envelope reports
- If the building had an envelope assessment or was rebuilt, ask for the reports and any warranty that came with the work.
Questions worth asking
- Has the building envelope been assessed or rebuilt? When, by whom, and is there a warranty on the work?
- Are any special levies approved, being discussed, or likely in the depreciation report's next few years?
- When were the roof, windows, balconies and piping last replaced?
- What is the water damage deductible, and how many claims has the strata made in the last few years?
- What kind of pipes are in the building? Some buildings from about 1985 to 1997 used polybutylene (poly B) plumbing, which some insurers ask about.
- For older suites, were any renovations done with permits and strata approval?
Rules that changed in 2022 and 2024
- Since November 2022, strata bylaws can no longer ban or cap rentals (short term rentals can still be restricted), and age restrictions are limited to 55 and over. A listing that still says "rentals not allowed" may predate the change.
- Since July 2024, most stratas with five or more units must get a depreciation report every five years and can no longer vote to skip it. A building that waived its report for years may be getting its first one now.
Details on gov.bc.ca strata housing and from the Civil Resolution Tribunal.
Get the right inspection
A home inspection covers the unit. In an older building, ask the inspector to look for signs of past water entry around windows, doors and balconies, and read the inspector's report alongside the strata's engineering reports, not instead of them. Home inspectors in BC are licensed by Consumer Protection BC.
Reading the numbers
- Low strata fees can mean a well run building, or a reserve fund that isn't keeping up. The depreciation report shows which.
- Compare fees by the square foot, not per month. mihom search has a strata fee per sq ft filter.
- A recently rebuilt building may have higher fees or past levies already paid, which can mean less ahead for the next owner.
This guide is general information, not legal, financial or inspection advice. For a specific home, talk to your REALTOR®, a lawyer or notary, and a licensed inspector.