Newsletter

September has seen a significant amount of activity from all levels of government with regard to housing affordability, here’s a quick roundup of the changes:

GST Removed on Purpose Built Apartment Buildings

GST will be removed from purpose built rental units. Effective immediately the 5% reduction given to developers is to create incentive. It significantly reduces cost and is applied to the sticker price of the entire development.

BC Building Code Updated

BC Building Code underwent some major revisions focusing in on accessibility, inclusivity and environmental considerations. This will require some noticeable changes to floorplans and footprints which will add to the developers cost of creating efficient plans.

Provincial Permitting Service Improvements

The Single Housing Application Service (SHAS) described to be the ‘one stop shop’ for permitting aims to create more of a mainstream approach to the permitting process in order to add more housing easier. The development application process is largely discussed as one of the most challenging components of a project build out.

Rental Increase Capped at 3.5%

The Provincial government has set a rental increase cap of 3.5% effective January 1, 2024. The response has been split with renters saying its too high and landlords saying its not enough. The purpose was to alleviate pressure on the landlords cashflow to support increased costs to living and maintain a rental property.

Secondary Suite Incentive Program

“The program will provide money to help homeowners create a new secondary suite on their property to be rented out for below market value.

Homeowners who qualify will receive up to 50% of the cost of renovations, up to a maximum of $40,000. The program will provide a rebate in the form of a forgivable loan—a loan that does not need to be repaid if the homeowner follows the terms of the program.” -BC Housing