Real Estate Law Blog

This blog post is further to our post on the B.C. government’s revised measures for residential landlords and tenants.

On July 16, 2020 the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing (the “Minister”) announced a framework for rent repayment once the ban on evictions for the non-payment of rent is lifted on September 1, 2020. A ministerial order implementing the repayment framework is expected to be issued later this summer and operate as follows:

• Tenants will be required to pay their monthly rent in full beginning in September 2020.
• Landlords are required to give tenants until July 2021 to repay any outstanding rent, as long as monthly instalments are paid.
• Landlords are to provide tenants with a repayment plan for any outstanding rent. Repayment plans will set out the total amount of rent still owed, the date the first payment is due, and the amount the tenant will be expected to pay in instalments each month.
• Tenants will be required to make their first payment no later than 30 days after they receive the repayment plan from their landlord. This will be October 1, 2020 for most tenants, if their landlord provides them with a repayment plan by August 31, 2020.
• The framework will allow flexible payment arrangements. For example, landlords and tenants may agree to begin with lower monthly instalment payments and increase the instalments over time. Landlords and tenants may also agree to extend the duration of the repayment process past July 2021.

In addition to the repayment framework, the Minister also announced that rent increases will continue to be prohibited until December 2020. Landlords will also continue to have the ability to restrict access to common spaces for health reasons related to COVID-19.

If you have any questions about these measures, please contact any member of our Real Estate Group.