Governing Legislation and Resources for Landlord and Tenant Law (19:XIX)
A. Legislation and Regulations
Residential Tenancy Act, SBC 2002, c 78 [RTA].
Website: www.bclaws.ca/civix/document/id/complete/statreg/02078_01
Residential Tenancy Regulation, BC Reg 477/2003, [RTR].
Website: http://www.bclaws.ca/civix/document/id/complete/statreg/477_2003
• The RTA and RTR set out the law of residential tenancies in BC. They will often hold the ultimate answer to questions relating to disputes between landlords and tenants.
• For the current status of the RTA and RTR, refer to CCH British Columbia Real Estate Law Guide, Robert J. Maguire, Rose H. McConnell, loose-leaf (Toronto, ON: CCH, undated).
Manufactured Home Park Tenancy Act, SBC 2002, c 77 [MHPTA].
Website: www.bclaws.ca/civix/document/id/complete/statreg/02077_01
Manufactured Home Park Tenancy Regulation BC Reg 481/2003
Website: www.bclaws.ca/civix/document/id/complete/statreg/481_2003
The Residential Tenancy Act, SBC 2002, c 78 [RTA] and Residential Tenancy Regulation [RTR], BC Reg 477/2003 as well as the rules of procedure are amended occasionally; check the Residential Tenancy Branch (RTB) website (www.gov.bc.ca/landlordtenant) to get the most up to date information.
B. Resources and Policy Guidelines
TRAC Tenant Resource & Advisory Centre Website: www.tenants.bc.ca
Provides a variety of publications relating to tenant law, including the Tenant Survival Guide (also available online as a wikibook, via the Clicklaw website: wiki.clicklaw.bc.ca/index.php/Tenant_Survival_Guide)
Residential Tenancy Branch
Main Office
400 - 5021 Kingsway
Burnaby, B.C. V5H 4A5
Website: www.rto.gov.bc.ca
Office Hours: M-F 9:00 am - 4:00 pm
Information line:
Metro Vancouver 604-660-1020
Victoria 250-387-1602
Elsewhere in BC 1-800-665-8779
Fax: 604-660-2363
E-mail: HSRTO@gov.bc.ca
Downtown Eastside Satellite Office
Four Corners 390 Main Street (Entrance on Hastings) Vancouver, B.C. V6A 2T1
Office Hours: M-F 12:30 pm - 4:00pm
NOTE: The main office in Burnaby is a full-service office. The Downtown Eastside office is a satellite office and does not handle money. Dispute applications can only be filed there by low-income applicants who are eligible for a fee waiver. Those offices are staffed with information officers.
The RTB website (www.gov.bc.ca/landlordtenant) contains forms, legislation and RTB interpretation guidelines, and includes the following useful publications:
Residential Tenancy Branch Dispute Resolution Rules of Procedure
Website: https://www2.gov.bc.ca/assets/gov/housing-and-tenancy/residential-tenancies/rop.pdf
Residential Tenancy Information Sheets
Website: http://bit.ly/1KTmo6l
RTB Policy Guidelines: detailed information on common problem areas; drafted by RTB Arbitrators.
Website: http://bit.ly/1ei1NfH
RTB Calculators: Help in calculating rent increases, dates, deposits and more.
Website: https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/housing-tenancy/residential-tenancies/calculators-and-resources/calculators
B.C. Housing
Suite 101 - 4555 Kingsway Burnaby, B.C. V5H 4V8 Website: www.bchousing.org Toll-free: 1-800-257-7756
Information for tenants living in public, subsidized housing.
Landlord BC
Website: www.landlordbc.ca
E-mail: info@landlordbc.ca
Direct: 1-888-330-6707
Vancouver Office:
1210-1095 West Pender Street
Vancouver, British Columbia
V6E 2M6
Telephone: 604-733-9420 Fax: 604-733-9420
Victoria Office:
830B Pembroke Street
Victoria, British Columbia
V8T 1J9
Telephone: 250-382-6324 Fax Local: 250-382-6006 Fax Toll-Free: 1-877-382-6006
C. Books
Margaret Carter-Pyne, Residential Tenancy Law in British Columbia: Everything you need to know to prevent a disaster (Victoria, BC: Sunnymead Publishing, 2009).
• A useful resource for tenants in preparing for a hearing.
Allan Wotherspoon, Annotated British Columbia Residential Tenancy Act (Aurora, ON: Canada Law Book, 2005).
• This is a loose-leaf volume updated once or twice annually.
CCH British Columbia Real Estate Law Guide, Robert J. Maguire, Rose H. McConnell, loose-leaf (Toronto, ON: CCH, undated).
• A summary of the state of the RTA and RTR.
This information applies to British Columbia, Canada. Last reviewed for legal accuracy by the Law Students' Legal Advice Program on July 29, 2019. |
© Copyright 2023, The Greater Vancouver Law Students' Legal Advice Society. |