Member Update June 19, 2020
BC government extends rental supplement and moratorium on rent increases, relaxes eviction ban
The BC government announced plans today to extend its rental supplement program and moratorium on rent increases, while relaxing some of the rules around the eviction ban.
Eviction rules relaxed
The province will allow evictions for reasons other than unpaid rent, starting later this month. This will include the ability to evict tenants when taking possession of a home, subject to a notice period that'll be worked out in the legislature next week.
These changes will also include relaxed guidelines on accessing occupied units for repairs, maintenance, and showings.
Both rule changes are in line with requests your Board and BCREA made when the eviction ban was first put in place.
These changes are not law yet, so please don’t act on these new provisions. We’ll provide more information as it becomes available.
Rent supplement
The rental supplement program will continue until the end of August. Applicants who are already approved for the supplement won’t have to re-apply.
Rent freeze
The province also stated the ban on rent increases will remain in effect. There’s no end date for the ban.
Watch our latest Innovation Series video with Mortgage Broker Angela Calla
We created our Innovation Series of videos to share diverse knowledge, tips and insights from people who can help you adapt and evolve your business.
Our latest video features Mortgage Broker Angela Calla. In part one of our conversation with Angela, she discusses how the COVID-19 pandemic is changing the mortgage market and gives you advice you can share with your clients today.
If you missed it, click here to watch our first Innovation Series video featuring the Ethics Guy® Kim Spencer. Get Kim’s five tips to help you position your business to thrive during and after the COVID-19 pandemic.
We’ll share more videos in our Innovation Series, featuring different guest speakers, in the weeks ahead!
Register for our virtual Strata Insurance Update event on June 23
Our next virtual event, Strata Insurance Update, takes place on Tuesday, June 23 at 9 a.m.
Hear from our expert panel about recent insurance pressures strata corporations face, learn more about the BC Financial Services Authority’s recent report on the strata insurance industry, and get advice you can share with your clients. Topics include:
- What's causing these issues.
- Implications for strata corporations and owners.
- Tactics for strata corporations to mitigate challenges.
- Canada-wide stats on insurance and general insurance info.
- The commercial insurance market.
- And much more.
Our expert panel includes:
- Frank Chong, VP and Deputy Superintendent, Regulation, BC Financial Services Authority
- Rob de Pruis, Director, Consumer and Industry Relations, Western Insurance Bureau of Canada
- Tony Gioventu, Executive Director, Condominium Home Owners Association
- Danielle Russell, Client Executive, Vice President and Partner, CapriCMW
This virtual event costs $20 plus tax to attend. You'll also receive self-directed PDP hours for attending the entire session. PDP hours will be automatically applied for those who qualify.
Share the latest news on this topic with your clients
To help keep your clients aware of the latest developments on efforts to address rising strata insurance premiums, we recently published this article on our public website, REBGV.org. Please share it with your clients and on your social media accounts.
Find the latest price changes in Paragon
In Paragon’s spreadsheet results view, you can see the latest price changes represented by an upward-facing green arrow for a price increase and a downward-facing red arrow for a price decrease.
Did you know that you can quickly find the percentage of the price change and the previous price by hovering your mouse over the arrow?
Click here to learn more.
ICYMI: REBGV, Council and others continue to strongly recommend no open houses
As we enter another weekend during the COVID-19 pandemic, it’s important to again reiterate the latest instruction to REALTORS® across the region and province related to hosting physical open houses.
The Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver (REBGV), along with the BC Real Estate Association, the Real Estate Council of BC (Council), and WorkSafeBC, continue to strongly recommend that Realtors not hold physical open houses at this time.
Watch the below video message from REBGV Chair Colette Gerber to learn more about the reasoning behind our position.
Your Board first made this recommendation in March when public health officials began to institute physical distancing requirements. Since then, other organizations have made similar statements.
“Ensuring public protection during these challenging times is RECBC’s highest priority” said Council’s CEO, Erin Seeley. “That’s why we’ve taken the position that during this crisis, no open houses should be held.”
While the province has now entered phase two of the BC Restart Plan, public health orders on physical distancing requirements remain in place. We’re continuing to disable the open house feature in Paragon in support of these measures.
Holding open houses exposes clients and colleagues to unnecessary risk and is contrary to advice from provincial health officials. WorkSafeBC’s re-opening guide, for example, states that Realtors should offer virtual viewings or virtual open houses where possible.
“We need to help our clients meet their housing needs in a responsible way,” said Colette Gerber, REBGV Chair. “We all have to step up and do our part to follow the advice of provincial health officials.”
Risk to reputation
Beyond the issue of public safety, the reputation of our profession could be affected by members acting contrary to the advice of public officials.
“We’re all judged by the actions of a few, as we learned to our dismay in 2016. Please, let’s not have a repeat performance,” said Ethics Guy® Kim Spencer.
We’ll update you with new recommendations as we move through the phases of the BC Restart Plan.