BCBusiness

20 D a r c y S c h l e c h t l e i t n e r, S t o n e h a u s R e al t y C o r p . B C B U S I N E S S . C A S E P T E M B E R 2 0 2 5 apartment for $300,000 to $400,000 that would be $600,000 or more if it were a regular condo in the same area, size and condition. Launt admits that, because there is no strata council, "ideally, you have a benevo- lent dictator, but it's not a democracy." The problems arrive when you have a non-benevolent dictator. That's the case for leaseholders in certain build- ings in B.C. right now. Some lessees living in buildings under the control of Alberta- based Sheridan Investments even went public last year with complaints about their sky- rocketing maintenance bills. One former journalist, Gerald Rotering, has been advocating for basic tenant protections for long-term residential lessees in B.C.—with a focus on Westsea Construction, the lessor of his own building in Victoria—at his website, orchardhouselease holder.ca. There, he "advocates for provincial law to give all B.C. long-term residential lessees basic tenant protections, including the right to disclo- sure about the spending of their money and some limit on suite-fee and capital- expense billings." Many are hoping the province will step in, following MLA Spencer Chandra Herbert's hearings on the issue last year—prompted by an outcry of complaints. For one anonymous lessee who spoke to BCBusiness—a former TV producer who had to retire early because of a medical condition—waiting for the outcome of those hearings has been painful. She has lived in a Sheridan building in the West End since 2013 and eventually bought the unit in 2022 from the lessor. She knew she'd need to pay $8,500 for her share of repairs to the water pipes, which were leaking and needed fixing. However, she was recently also informed that she will owe about $35,000 more for window replacement. "There are so many of us who are living on a fixed income, including me," she said. On top of that, she adds, she noticed in the last annual report that part of the costs for the building, covered in maintenance fees, included $400,000 for lawyers. "I have no idea what that's for," she says. "It looks like if I write anything, I get a letter back from a lawyer and we pay for it." She hopes the government will simply buy the buildings, though that wish seems unlikely to be realized. The province has not yet disclosed its plans. When I reached out to Housing Minister Ravi Kahlon for a statement, the reply from his office read: "We've heard the concerns that have been raised and understand changes are needed to address situations like this. We're doing the work now to find the best path forward and make sure we get it right." So, stay tuned. In the meantime, at least one group of leaseholders scored a victory recently. Lawyer Mike Walker represented the leaseholders in the case, in which the owner of a 1970s conversion in Vancouver's west side was panicking about selling in a bad market, and so offered the lease purchasers a deal: at the end of the lease, the owner would pay out to each of the buyers their proportionate share of the value of the prop- erty. At some point, the lessor sold the building to an insur- ance company, which recently reviewed its holdings and wondered why it was bearing the risks of managing a build- ing that it would never own (despite receiving management fees to offset those costs). Two years ago, the current leaseholders got to buy out the insurance company's interest in the property for $1, just so the firm could get it off its books. Now that's a good deal. 138 EAST HASTINGS The Sequel, built as an experimental venture by a private developer and BC Housing, has affordable units in the Downtown Eastside.

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