B.C. is easing rules on upfront costs for homebuilders to spur project construction

The Canadian Press

· Posted: Jul 02, 2025 4:16 PM EDT | Last Updated: 4 hours ago

The British Columbia government is loosening the rules for outgo of improvement fees successful a bid to jump-start location operation that has been hampered by upfront costs.

Housing Minister Ravi Kahlon says among the biggest changes volition beryllium much flexible and extended outgo timelines for homebuilders, truthful alternatively of paying improvement fees up front, they volition wage 25 per cent astatine licence support and 75 per cent erstwhile the gathering is occupied. 

Developers volition besides person 4 years, alternatively than two, to wage the charges, successful regularisation changes that Kahlon says are needed due to the fact that the existent marketplace conditions person stalled projects successful the province. 

While immoderate municipalities privation letters of recognition from a slope arsenic a committedness the enactment volition beryllium done, that tin restrict a developer's entree to credit, truthful the authorities volition besides alteration the regulations provincewide to let for the fiscal warrant of on-demand surety bonds. 

Kahlon says the regularisation changes could mean the quality betwixt immoderate lodging projects moving up oregon not happening astatine all, owed to precocious operation costs and involvement rates that make a fiscal load for builders. 

Anne McMullin, president of the Urban Development Institute, says the request to wage improvement fees upfront has go progressively onerous for builders, particularly arsenic fees emergence and entree to superior tightens. 

"By shifting outgo to occupancy, the provincial authorities is enabling much projects to determination forward," she told a quality league connected Wednesday. 

In June, Vancouver-based Wesgroup Properties president Beau Jarvis said successful a station connected societal media that the institution had to laic disconnected employees successful what was a reflection of the broader realities facing the industry, with lodging projects crossed the state being cancelled oregon delayed due to the fact that they are nary longer viable.

Jarvis said they were besides delivering homes that radical couldn't spend to purchase.

"I volition accidental it again — This is simply a cost-of-delivery crisis," helium said connected LinkedIn. 

Kahlon said those were precisely the benignant of concerns for homebuilding that the B.C. authorities is trying to address.

"It means lodging volition beryllium built faster and cheaper successful our communities," Kahlon said. "And these benignant of solutions dependable possibly not arsenic grand, but they are important successful the consciousness that they volition marque the quality betwixt projects happening and projects not happening."