Ensuring compliance with the Homeowner Protection Act and Regulations helps us protect B.C. homebuyers.
The following case studies are real-life stories about people who have (knowingly or unknowingly) contravened the Act in some way, as well as the compliance actions that we took against them. While some names and details have been changed to protect the privacy of those involved, the essential facts and compliance actions are real.
We encourage consumers, owner builders, real estate professionals, legal professionals, residential builders, renovators, developers and others who want to remain in compliance with the Act to use these studies as a learning tool.
- Case Study 1: Owner-built Home Sold Illegally – Learn the offences a Vancouver couple committed under the Homeowner Protection Act and its Regulations by selling their new home within a few months of completion.
- Case Study 2: Renovation Project Becomes New Home – This case study looks at a home reconstruction project that was misclassified as a home renovation and how far more was paid in penalties than it would have cost to comply with the Act and Regulations.
- Case Study 3: False Owner Builder Authorization Proves Unsuccessful – A homeowner’s involvement in the construction of their new home doesn’t eliminate a builder’s obligation to provide home warranty insurance.
- Case Study 4: Foreclosed Homes Must Still Comply with Act – A court order does not supersede the Act's requirement for new homes to have home warranty insurance in order to be sold or offered for sale. Find out how one B.C. mortgage company paid a significant monetary penalty while learning this lesson.