More than 1,000 rental homes in Surrey will be put at risk if the provincial government implements vacancy control measures tying rent control to the units and not tenants, the Urban Development Institute — Pacific Region is warning.
It says a survey of 30 leading rental unit builders indicates 12,631 rental homes are at risk of delay or cancellation in B.C. — with 1,030 in Surrey alone — if “restrictive new rental policies” are imposed.
The UDI says in a press release that survey respondents agreed that such policies, if adopted by government, would constitute the “single, most significant impediment” to the construction of current and future projects because rental projects would “inevitably become less financially viable” to build and maintain.
The institute notes that rental unit owners currently have the flexibility to change the rent between tenancies to account for upgrades, and increases in property taxes, insurance and utilities.
Vacancy controls would remove this ability, the UDI says, and if rent is tied to the unit, the incentive for a unit owner to upgrade aging buildings will be “severely compromised.”
Survey respondents, the press release states, “advised that more than two-third of the 19,972 rental units in the pipeline would be jeopardized if vacancy control is introduced by the provincial government.”
A Surrey NDP MLA could not be immediately reached for comment. Lindsay Byers, a media relations staffer for the ministry of municipal affairs and housing, told the Now-Leader the Rental Housing Task Force “is working on a report right now with recommendations on further ways we can improve policies and supports for renters and landlords.
“Their recommendations will be provided to government before the end of the year,” she noted. “As part of their work, the task force has been listening to renters, landlords and stakeholder organizations throughout the province, including UDI members.
Meantime, UDI president and CEO Anne McMullin said that with record low vacancy rates, British Columbians need new rental homes “but this proposal puts those in jeopardy.
“British Columbians desperately need more rental homes,” McMullin said. “This is not the time for new restrictions that could result in the cancellation of important rental home projects in communities across British Columbia.”
McMullin said the rental home builders indicate vacancy control “would be the death knell for rental home construction” and if the provincial government does this, it would be “going in the wrong direction, further exacerbating this housing crisis.
“If strict limits are placed on rent,” she said, “building owners simply won’t be able to afford upgraded elevators, new appliances or replaced carpets. Buildings will fall into disrepair and that’s not what British Columbians deserve.”
tom.zytaruk@surreynowleader.comLike us on Facebook Follow us on Instagram  and follow Tom on Twitter
