vancouver co-op rent shock: new members blindsided with 68% rent increase a week before move-in
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ashley mar housing co-operative in vancouver was recently re-opened after the old building, a 54-unit building built in the 1980s, was demolished to make way for this brand new one.
jason payne
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a vancouver housing co-operative is facing criticism after offering new members a place to live — only to raise their rent just a week before moving in by close to $1,000 per month, leaving the applicants stunned and questioning the co-op’s commitment to affordable housing.
in early october, the ashley mar housing co-operative unveiled three new highrises in south vancouver, replacing 54 aging townhouses with 125 co-op units and 524 market rentals. billed as canada’s largest co-op housing redevelopment, the project was built through a rare partnership between the non-profit co-operative and a private developer.
but weeks later, newly accepted members of the co-operative emailed postmedia, alleging the co-op’s board approved their applications at one housing rate, only to skyrocket their monthly rent just days before move-in.
one applicant, who requested anonymity to avoid jeopardizing their housing prospects, received an email in mid-october confirming their approval for a two-bedroom unit at $1,445.90 per month, according to emails reviewed by postmedia. the message, sent by the co-op’s membership coordinator, congratulated the applicant and requested that they confirm a move-in date so that paperwork could be prepared.
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“we appreciate your patience and understanding as we continue to build a strong and inclusive co-op community,” the email read.
the applicant says she was stunned when a subsequent email 11 days later informed her that rent for the co-op unit would be raised to $2,430. “we understand this may differ from the information previously provided, and we sincerely apologize for any confusion this may have caused,” the email read.
“we had a written offer, booked movers, arranged insurance and sold belongings based on the original agreement,” said the applicant.
another tenant who faced the same last-minute rental increase notice told postmedia via email that, “we felt like we won the lottery when we got our welcome email on oct. 17 confirming our acceptance.
“we replied immediately, asking when we could sign the agreements. the board told us paperwork would be finalized by oct. 27. we booked a move-in date for nov. 8 and even hired movers. then, at the end of the day on oct. 27, we received an email saying our housing charge had jumped nearly 70 per cent.”
the applicant said, “we feel taken advantage of and completely misled.”
firstservice residential, which manages ashley mar, confirmed by email that some applicants saw an increase in their monthly rental rate, ranging from eight to 22 per cent, to ensure compliance with canada mortgage and housing corp. program requirements.
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but those figures did not align with the 68 per cent increases reported by applicants.
when postmedia asked for further clarification, firstservice residential responded by saying that variations outside the stated range occurred “only in isolated cases where the initial unit selections did not match verified income.” it said after verification, “those applications were reclassified to the appropriate housing category, which affected the applicable housing charge calculation.”
however, applicants say they did not receive any reductions in their rental offers. both have found cheaper housing elsewhere.
robert patterson, a lawyer with the tenant resource and advisory centre, said co-ops are not governed by b.c.’s residential tenancy act. instead, they are collectively owned by members.
“there is nothing in the cooperative association act that mirrors the (residential tenancy act), saying you can only raise rents by a certain point per year,” patterson explained.
he noted that since co-ops are run by a board of members, housing charges are generally based on the cost of maintaining the housing building or buildings.
“what is meant to keep co-ops affordable, to keep their increases in line with what makes sense for their members, is that they are essentially being run democratically.”
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