Additional tips when purchasing a Condo

Some final points of advice when looking to purchase in a Multi-Family building


1) Like mentioned in the Vancouver Courier articles (Condo Pitfalls & Condo Nightmares) that inspired these blog entries, any lack of documentation is an automatic Red Flag! If the building is more than 4 years old, and does not have a extensive building envelope review completed in the last 5 years, you should think twice about continuing with the purchase.

Fortunately the lack of report should become a rarer situation going forward now that Bill 8 of the Strata Property Act has been enacted requiring all Strata’s in BC to commission a ’depreciation report’ within the next 2 years.

Note: On a side comment, it is important for Condo owners to realize that the implementation of these studies will most likely culminate in significant Strata Fee hikes as the full cost of maintaining a multi-family-building is better understood by Strata’s.

2) Never allow yourself to be pressured into a purchase. Subject removal dates are arbitrarily defined periods of time with no relation to a logical time period required to properly vet your purchase. They often can represent hype the agents impart into the process to make purchasers feel they need to ‘act fast’ or loose their buying opportunity. This is far too big of a decision, with far too large a potential liability, to be rushed into without due diligence. Take the time to due it right. If it falls through, it probably is for the best. Any vendor who is seriously interested in selling will ensure the buyer has ample time to vet the purchase as they do not want the buyer coming at them later. In markets where there is a buying frenzy, do not be pressured to buy without subjects, you are already buying at what is often the top of the market and can usually ill afford to take on the additional responsibility of unknown liability.

3) At the lower end of the liability scale is a fully rain-screened dwelling. In general, these buildings are more tolerable of faults in the design of the primary water shedding surface and will usually represent a much lower level of potential liability. At the upper end of the liability scale is a face-sealed stucco building without any significant overhangs and a complicated exterior design with lots of penetrations and architectural ‘features’. For a discussion on these two exterior styles see this HPO bulletin.

4) Remember that just because a building is not leaking now does not mean it will not leak down the road. There is a reason that a face sealed building is no longer allowed by code. It does not work! It is usually not a matter of if problems will develop but a matter of when. There is also the issue where many older buildings (pre-1990) are now looking at energy upgrades to the building to reduce the cost of heating bills as energy costs rise. This is often having a negative and unanticipated impact on the building’s health because as more and more of the interior heat is blocked from reaching the exterior sheathing and cladding, that wall assembly’s ability to survive infrequent wetting is substantially reduced. So as the general housing stock is updated to be more energy efficient, it will be increasing more important to ensure that the walls have a continuous water shedding capability.

I hope these entries have helped. I would be happy to discuss these issues further with you at any time. As some final guidance for you, when purchasing a Condo, I recommend you review this bulletin I send all my Condo clients as part of my inspection process.