Property reports · British Columbia

Know a place before you buy it.

Type a BC address, a PID (the lot's ID on the tax notice) or the lot and plan from a listing's legal description (“Lot 5, Plan KAP12345”). You'll see what the public records say about that lot, from zoning and hazards to water, services and crime, drawn on a plan of the land, with what each finding means for a buyer.

Each fact shows its source and date. No address yet? Browse the map of BC, down to every lot line.

Road access

No mapped road touches the parcel. The nearest public road is about 46 m from the lot line (Goldquartz Drive (local road, unpaved)).

Dashed roads are tracks, dotted roads are private. The measured line runs from the lot line to the nearest public road.

See the full report: a lot in Wells (PID 014-385-732) →

What a report covers

01What you can build (zoning): The zone and, where we've summarised the bylaw, the homes, uses, lot sizes and setbacks it allows. Data sources lists the places covered.
02Buildable area: How much of the lot is clear of steep slope and the 30 m strip along water, and how much is on designated floodplain, drawn on the plan.
03Winter sun: Hours of direct sun on the lot on the shortest day, the equinox and the longest day once the hills around it are counted, compared with open ground. Also what a south-facing solar panel there would make in a year, from Natural Resources Canada's sunshine map.
04Farmland reserve (ALR): Whether the lot is in the Agricultural Land Reserve, where farming comes first.
05Soil for farming: How the Province's agriculture capability maps rate the lot's soil, class 1 to 7, and what limits it.
06Floodplain: Whether the lot is on a designated floodplain map. Where we've read the local bylaw, the flood construction level and floodplain setback for the water near the lot. Dikes within 1 km and who maintains them, and dams within 1 km with their failure consequence class.
07Wildfire history: Every mapped fire on or within 2 km of the lot since 1917.
08Evacuation orders and alerts: Evacuation orders and alerts that covered the lot since the Province's record began in April 2017, for wildfire, flood and landslide, and any in effect now.
09Earthquake shaking: The building code's earthquake shaking values for the lot, compared with a few BC cities.
10Landslide records: Known landslides within 5 km, from Canada's national landslide database.
11Radon: The share of homes tested in the lot's health region that were at or above Canada's radon guideline.
12Federal contaminated sites: Federal contaminated sites within 2 km, flagged when an active or suspected one is within 500 m.
13Road access: Whether a mapped public road runs along the lot or how far the nearest one is, and who maintains it, including snow clearing. In towns that publish it, each street's snow-clearing priority.
14Water and streamside setbacks: Streams, lakes, wetlands and shoreline within 30 m, where building rules tighten.
15The lake: On or near a sampled lake: its clarity, phosphorus and algae readings over the years, compared with other BC lakes.
16Mineral and placer titles: Claims over the lot or nearby: in BC, owning the land doesn't include what's under it.
17Wildlife and habitat: Species and ecosystems at risk recorded on or near the lot, designated wildlife areas and federal critical habitat, sensitive ecosystems mapped on it, invasive plants, and the federal regulated areas for Japanese beetle and emerald ash borer.
18What's planned nearby: Within 1 km: logging applied for or approved, and Crown land applications. Crown tenures for quarries, industry, energy or towers within 500 m, oil and gas pipelines within 200 m, and gravel pits, quarries and mine permits within 2 km. Who owns the land beside the lot.
19Noise sources nearby: How far the nearest railway, highway or major road, and airport or airstrip are from the lot, up to 2 km away. How bright the area is at night, ranked against BC's homes.
20Water wells nearby: Whether the lot is in a community water service area, where the local government maps one, or in the protection zone around a community well or intake. The community watershed, how deep the neighbours' wells go and how much water they found, and the mapped aquifer under the lot.
21Septic: Whether the lot is in a community sewer area, where the local government maps one. Where a septic field could go: the room left after the Province's setbacks from wells, water and the lot line, and its slope limits.
22Services nearby: Straight-line distances to the nearest hospital, schools, grocery store, fire and ambulance stations, transfer station or landfill, post office and gas station. Drive times to the hospital, 24-hour emergency department, grocery store and schools. In Surrey, White Rock and North Vancouver, the school catchment.
23Internet: The best internet speeds reported available near the lot, over wired lines and fixed wireless.
24Climate: The nearest weather station's 30-year normals, such as days over 30 °C, the hottest day and degree days, and how its elevation compares with the lot's. The plant hardiness zone, climate projections for the 2050s, and how many days a year smoke or still air pushed fine particles past BC's air quality objective at the nearest monitor.
25Speculation and vacancy tax: Whether the lot is in the Province's speculation and vacancy tax area, the rates and who doesn't pay.
26Property tax: The lot's residential property tax rate and where each dollar goes, with a calculator for any price; in electoral areas, the part every home pays before local service areas.
27Crime: Police-reported crime for the local police force or RCMP detachment, and in cities that publish it, property crime within 500 m of the lot.

Three example reports

A town lot in LyttonBurned in the 2021 fire that destroyed most of the village.2 things to look into
A lot in WellsA placer claim covers it and Lowhee Creek runs within 30 m.6 things to look into
A farm in AbbotsfordIn the Agricultural Land Reserve, where farming comes first.2 things to look into

Compare BC places

Every municipality and electoral area, mapped: how much land is in the farmland reserve or has burned, mineral claims, well depths, climate and census facts. Browse the map of BC places, or see who has the most land burned since 1996 and the deepest wells.

One question about one lot? Is it in the ALR? · On a floodplain map? · Has it burned? · Is there a mineral claim? · Is there road access? · How close to the creek can I build? · Wells nearby? · Room for a septic field? · Earthquake shaking? · Radon? · Speculation and vacancy tax? · How many homes can I build? · Property taxes? · Species at risk? · All 407 questions, grouped

BC lakes

Clarity, phosphorus and algae readings for 906 lakes from the Province's monitoring records, year by year. Browse the lakes or see the clearest lakes.

BC aquifers

The 1,166 aquifers the Province has mapped, with what their productivity, vulnerability and demand ratings mean and how deep their wells go. Browse the aquifers or see the aquifers with the most wells.