BC Housing sues more buyers accused of breaking affordable home rules

BC Housing launched more lawsuits this week going after buyers who broke the rules of an affordable housing development in Victoria.

The defendants are accused of snapping up discounted units in the Vivid at the Yates building even though they already owned homes, didn’t qualify based on income, or didn’t plan on living there.

The building’s below-market apartments were supposed to go to first-time buyers who’d live in the building for a minimum of two years. Buyers also were supposed to make less than $150,000 per year at the time of purchase.

One man named in a lawsuit filed on March 6 is accused of having liquid assets totalling more than $661,000 at the time of purchase in 2018, enabling him to buy the below-market unit without needing a mortgage.

The same year he signed on to purchase the affordable unit in Victoria, he became the owner of another condo in Langford assessed at $547,000. In 2021, he also became the owner of a vacant residential lot in Langford assessed at $753,000.

BC Housing stated in its lawsuit it does not know his current address.

Another man named in a different lawsuit filed this week also purchased his $481,000 subsidized unit in cash. In 2022, he was found to be living in China. He said this was due to COVID-19, but it broke the requirement for buyers to live in the building for at least two years after its 2021 completion.

A woman named in a separate lawsuit is accused of not living at the Vivid, undermining the project’s goal of putting affordable units in the hands of people who need them.

“The conduct of the defendant in applying for and receiving a subsidized housing unit, never using the unit for its intended purpose, and subsequently refusing to return the unit is egregious and reprehensible,” BC Housing wrote in the lawsuit.

Another woman also accused of not living in her subsidized unit is being asked to pay back all rental income from the apartment.

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Nine lawsuits have been filed this week, in addition to others filed earlier.

BC Housing is also going after realtor Janet Yu, who’s accused of helping a dozen buyers secure units in Vivid at the Yates by giving them incorrect advice about their obligations to qualify for the affordable housing project.

The rate of non-compliance among Yu’s clients was “significantly higher” than for the building overall, BC Housing said. It noted several of her clients already owned property, including at least one who possessed a detached house assessed at more than $1 million.

Yu made more than $52,000 in commission securing the affordable unit for her clients.

In response to BC Housing’s lawsuit, Yu claimed a language barrier prevented her from fully grasping the requirements to own in the building.

“The defendant does not speak English as her first or principal language, and has limitations with respect to her understanding of English,” her court filing reads.

All buyers at Vivid attended a presentation where they were made aware of their obligations, including the requirement not to already own property, to make less than $150,000 per year, and to live in the building for at least two years after completion.

The lawsuits are ongoing, and BC’s Ministry of Housing tells Daily Hive those found not in compliance could be ordered to sell back the property to BC Housing for the original purchase price.

The Vivid project predated BC Housing’s current parameters for qualifying for subsidized units. The Housing Ministry hopes the new requirements and stricter monitoring prevent this from happening again.

Vivid was completed in 2021 after the provincial government awarded Chard Development a $53 million low-interest loan. The building’s 135 units were sold at 8% below market value to buyers who were supposed to meet stringent requirements.

“It’s frustrating that people have been violating the terms of ownership,” the Ministry said in a statement.