Video from Oct 19, 2023
No Short-Term Rental For You!
In 2018, the use of Basement Suites & Laneway homes for STR was banned.
It appears we have a step backwards on that!
The new rules highlight that the Host’s Principal Dwelling Unit + 1, whether a secondary suite or an Accessory Dwelling Unit, is allowed.
BC Short Term Rentals Updates Info:
As of May 1, 2024, British Columbia has implemented strict, province-wide regulations limiting short-term rentals (STRs) to a host’s principal residence plus one secondary suite or accessory dwelling unit. Non-conforming, non-principal residence rentals (e.g., investment properties) are prohibited, and platforms must share data with the province to enforce compliance.
Key Aspects of B.C.’s Short-Term Rental Rules:
Principal Residence Requirement: You can host only in your main home and one additional unit (such as a garden suite or laneway home) on that property. This applies to communities with populations over 10,000.
No More “Grandfathering”: Previous legal non-conforming use protections are gone, meaning “grandfathered” STRs are no longer allowed.
Mandatory Licensing & Registration: Hosts must display a valid business license number on their listing. The province requires registration, and platforms like Airbnb and VRBO must remove listings that don’t comply.
Strict Enforcement: A provincial Compliance and Enforcement Unit audits listings, and local governments can request that platforms remove non-compliant listings.
Strata Rules: Strata corporations can ban STRs and impose fines up to $1,000 per day for non-compliance with bylaws.
Where This Applies:
These rules apply to over 60 B.C. communities. For specifics in your area, such as the Cowichan Valley Regional District (CVRD), check the zoning regulations. www.planyourcowichan.ca
Exemptions:
Some areas may be exempt, such as:
- Accommodations on Reserve lands or Treaty Lands.
- Stays over 90 consecutive days.
- Hotels, motels, and some seasonal, non-year-round accommodations.
REGIONAL DISTRICT “ METRO VANCOUVER (Langley & Maple Ridge all the way to Bowen Island“
Updating how short-term rentals are operated and enforced will help return thousands of homes to the market over the next few years. The once-hated investors are now being begged to help address the affordability crisis; there are too many investors and not enough houses. Landlords are bad. Why? cheap domestic money (gov fed), rampant immigration (gov fed), Free market to the world / foreign currency flow (gov fed), over taxation of housing, slowing building process and raising costs (gov fed/prov).
Housing crisis: “What to do?” Clamp down on the people who have bought and restrict their use so they hopefully become or sell to traditional landlords. Landlords are good; we need them. What has changed? Bigger government, more restrictions, and higher direct costs and taxes on the real estate market.
There were approximately 28,000 daily active short-term rental listings in B.C. More than 16,000 entire homes were used as short-term rentals for most of the year in B.C. Many local municipalities have taken action to regulate short-term rentals, but enforcement of bylaws is a challenge. So they have asked the province for more tools and resources.
PURPOSE OF NEW RULES:
– Give local gov stronger tools to enforce short-term rental bylaws.
– Return short-term rental units to the long-term rental market
– Establish a new Provincial role in the regulation of short-term rentals
NEW RULES APPLY TO ALL SHORT-TERM RENTALS BEING OFFERED TO THE PUBLIC:
– Through all platforms where people reserve & pay for rental services
– e.g., Airbnb, VRBO, Expedia, Flipkey, Facebook Marketplace, Kilili, Craigslist, Classified Ads in Newspapers.
NEW RULES DO NOT APPLY TO:
– Reserve Land unless the nation chooses to opt into all or part of the legislation.
– Hotels & Motels
RULES TAKING EFFECT :
– Increase maximum penalties
RULES TAKING EFFECT LATER:
– Provincial principal residence requirement
Registration System Strengthening Government Tools:
– Increase regional district fines
– Increased from $2,000 to $50,000. Increase municipal ticketing fines from local gov
– No fine amount noted. Displaying Business License
– The local governments that require a business license will require that the host display a valid business license number on their listings
– If not displayed, platforms MUST remove the listing at the request of local Gov.
– Platforms will be required to share info about STR listings with the Province & in turn, local governments.
Principal Res requirement for municipalities with 10k plus population in BC
– Rentals limited to ( Principal Residence / Secondary Suite / Accessory Dwelling Unit)
– Exempt Areas from Principal Rez: municipalities under $10k pop/mountain resort areas
—These include: Fernie, Golden, Harrison Hot Springs, Invermere, Kimberley, Osoyoos, Radium Hot Springs, Revelstoke, Rossland, Sun Peaks, Tofino, Ucluelet, Valemount, and the Resort Municipality of Whistler. But local gov can request to opt-in & opt-out.
PROVINCIAL REGISTRY:
– Provincial registry established to ensure hosts and platforms are following the rules & provide local gov. info needed to follow up if required. Hosts will be required to include a provincial registration number on their listing. They will also have to include their business license number if required by the local government. Platforms will be required to validate registration numbers on host listings against the Province registry data.
PROVINCIAL COMPLIANCE AND ENFORCEMENT UNIT:
The unit will:
– Track compliance
– Issue orders
– Administer penalties for violations.
