Real Estate Lawyers Vancouver BC
Our real estate lawyers act on property transactions in Vancouver and across British Columbia, from a first-time buyer's condominium to residential and commercial developments. Buying or selling a home is time-consuming and often stressful, and our role is to make the legal side the part you do not have to worry about. For most conveyancing we can fix our fee, and we tell you at the outset what the transaction costs beyond it — Land Title Office charges, closing adjustments and Property Transfer Tax. We work directly with your realtor and mortgage broker to keep the transaction moving.
Our aim is to make the legal side of the purchase or sale of your property the least stressful part of your real estate transaction.
Buying, selling and refinancing in British Columbia
Most people meet a real estate lawyer at completion, but the earlier we are involved the more we can do. We review the contract of purchase and sale before subjects are removed, search title for charges, liens and encumbrances that would otherwise surface late, and confirm that what you are buying is what the title says you are buying.
On the financing side we act for lenders as well as buyers, register and discharge mortgages, and handle refinancing and transfers between family members. Where a Property Transfer Tax exemption may apply — first-time buyer, newly built home, or a related-party transfer — we will tell you before completion, not after.
Before you sign: the contract, and the time you have
The contract of purchase and sale is where a transaction is won or lost, and it is signed before most people think to call a lawyer. Subject clauses, the completion, possession and adjustment dates, what is included in the sale, and what happens if a date slips — all of it is easier to get right than to fix.
British Columbia also gives residential buyers a short rescission period after a contract is accepted, during which the buyer may back out on payment of a set amount. It is a genuine protection and it is not a substitute for reading the contract first. If you are buying, send us the contract your realtor has prepared before you sign it. There is no charge for that review.
Property often arrives with something else attached. If you are transferring a property as part of an estate, or dividing one on a separation, that is probate and family law work, and we will bring the right people in.
What you will pay beyond the purchase price
The purchase price is rarely the whole cost, and nobody enjoys learning that late. Property Transfer Tax is the largest item for most buyers, and there are exemptions — first-time buyer, newly built home, and certain transfers between family members — that we check before completion rather than after. Newly built property can attract GST where a resale home does not, and a first-time buyer may be able to recover it. There are Land Title Office registration charges, adjustments for property taxes and strata fees already paid or still owing, and, on a strata purchase, the cost of the documents the strata corporation has to produce.
We tell you what these come to at the outset. If a figure changes because the transaction changes, you hear it from us before completion day.
What happens between subject removal and completion
Once subjects are removed, most of the work is invisible to you, and that is the point. We search title to confirm what is registered against the property and what has to be cleared. We prepare and register the transfer and the mortgage at the Land Title Office. We deal with your lender, meet its conditions, and receive the mortgage funds. We prepare the statement of adjustments, which is the document that sets out exactly what you pay or receive on the completion date and why.
The part that surprises people is how much of a conveyance runs on undertakings — binding promises between the two lawyers that the money and the documents will change hands in the right order on the right day. It is why completion can look like nothing is happening until it all happens at once.
Why you will be asked for identification
Every client in a property transaction has to be identified and verified before we can act, and we are required to keep a record of it. It catches people off guard — you have come to buy a home and you are being asked for identification like a bank customer. The requirement exists because real estate is one of the routes money laundering takes, and the obligation sits on us, not on you.
What it means in practice: we will need to see government-issued identification, in person or through a verification process we will explain, and we will ask where the funds for the purchase are coming from. Doing it early keeps it from becoming a delay in the last week before completion, which is when it usually becomes one.
Contact Equity Law Group
Equity Law Group acts for individuals, businesses and institutions throughout the Greater Vancouver area. Alongside real estate we practise in probate and estates, wills and estate planning, family law, business law, business purchase and sale, litigation and notarization.
Reach out to us today at 604-259-2844 or email us at info@equitylawgroup.ca for further information.
Frequently asked questions
When should I contact a lawyer about buying a property?
Before you sign, or at the latest before you remove subjects. Until then there is still room to fix the terms; afterwards the contract is firm, and changing a date or a term needs the seller's agreement. If you are buying, send us the contract your realtor has prepared before you sign it: there is no charge for that review.
How much is Property Transfer Tax in British Columbia?
1% of the fair market value up to $200,000, 2% from $200,000 to $2 million and 3% above that, plus a further 2% on the residential portion above $3 million. A $900,000 home pays $16,000, due when the transfer is registered. Foreign nationals, foreign corporations and some trustees pay an additional 20% on residential property in Metro Vancouver and four other regions.
Am I exempt from Property Transfer Tax as a first-time buyer?
You may be. On a home worth up to $835,000 the exemption removes the tax on the first $500,000, a saving of up to $8,000, and a smaller exemption applies up to $860,000. You must be a Canadian citizen or permanent resident, meet a BC residence test and never have owned a principal residence anywhere, then move in within 92 days and live there for the first year.
Do I pay GST when I buy a home?
Not on a resale home. A newly built or substantially renovated home carries 5% GST, and the contract should say whether the price includes it. A first-time buyer buying new from a builder may recover the GST in full up to $1 million, and in part up to $1.5 million, and a new home worth up to $1.1 million can be exempt from Property Transfer Tax. Both have conditions.
Can I back out after my offer is accepted?
On most homes, for three business days after the offer is accepted, by written notice to the seller and on paying the seller 0.25% of the price. The right cannot be waived. It does not apply to leasehold property, auction or court-ordered sales, or pre-sales, which have their own seven-day right. After that, a buyer can withdraw only under a subject clause, in good faith, before subjects are removed.
What should I review before buying a strata property?
The Form B information certificate (strata fees, special levies, the contingency reserve fund, any lawsuits); the bylaws, including any on pets, age or short-term rentals; recent council and general meeting minutes, for repairs or disputes on the way; and the depreciation report, which strata corporations with five or more lots must now obtain every five years. A purchase can be made subject to reviewing them.
Can I buy a property through a company or hold it on trust?
Yes. We act on purchases by companies and for property held on trust, and we prepare the trust documents. When the transfer is registered, a transparency report naming the individuals who own or control the company or trust must be filed with the Land Owner Transparency Registry, which the public can search.