Do I need a permit to demolish a house in BC, and what comes first?

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Where the local government has a building bylaw, tearing down a house takes a demolition permit, and before it's issued most councils want a hazardous materials survey for an older house and the services cut off or capped. BC has no single demolition rule: each local government's building bylaw says when a demolition permit is needed and what it asks for, and many electoral areas have no building inspection at all. Provincial law adds the hazardous materials survey before workers start, the heritage protections a council can use to hold a permit back, and the notice a tenant must get. Look up the address or PID on PlaceDossier to see the record for that lot. The permit: Where a local government regulates building, its building bylaw sets when a demolition permit is needed and what comes with it, and the bylaws differ. Saanich asks for one to demolish any structure over 10 m², and Penticton for any building over 10 m², in whole or in part. A demolition that's part of a building permit for a new house is often covered by that permit (Nanaimo, Saanich). Where an electoral area has no building inspection, there may be no permit to get, but the rest of this page still applies (see building permits). What councils ask for: one example: The City of Nanaimo's demolition permit asks for a hazardous materials survey report for any building built before 1990, the water meter disconnected and the storm and sanitary sewers capped and inspected, a septic tank removed, pumped and filled with the plumbing inspector watching, and a refundable bond against damage to City property ($750 for a house or duplex; the permit itself is $40). It also points to its tree, soil removal, dust and street-works rules, and to archaeological sites. Saanich asks for a current title search, a site plan with any bylaw-protected trees, an archaeological response and, for a structure built before 1990, a limited hazardous materials report. Hazardous materials first: Before work begins on demolishing a building, every employer responsible for the work, and the owner, must have a qualified person inspect it and identify any hazardous materials, asbestos and lead among them (Occupational Health and Safety Regulation s. 20.112). Asbestos is removed by a licensed abatement contractor before the building comes down (see asbestos). Power, gas and water: Penticton releases a demolition permit only once the power and water are disconnected and the meters removed, and Nanaimo has the water cut off and the sewers capped and inspected. Ask the gas and phone companies to end their services too (our reading). Before digging, call BC One Call. An old well on the lot doesn't go with the house: one unused for 5 years must be deactivated or decommissioned (see drilling a new well). A heritage house: A council may, by bylaw, have its staff withhold a demolition permit for protected heritage property until a heritage alteration permit and the other approvals for the site are issued, and for a house on its community heritage register until a building permit for what replaces it is issued (Local Government Act s. 605). It may also order a property it considers heritage protected for up to 60 days (s. 606). A designated building can't be altered, moved or built over without a heritage alteration permit (s. 611 (3); see heritage property). An archaeological site: Digging into or building on a protected archaeological site needs a permit from the Province, whether or not the site is recorded, and taking out a basement or foundation digs into the ground (our reading; Heritage Conservation Act s. 12.1; see archaeological sites). Tenants: A landlord may end a tenancy to demolish the rental unit only once every permit and approval the law requires is in hand, with at least 4 months' notice in the approved form, which the tenant may dispute within 30 days (Residential Tenancy Act s. 49 (2), (6), (8)). The tenant is owed one month's rent, and 12 months' rent if the demolition isn't done within a reasonable time after the notice takes effect (s. 51). Some councils add their own tenant assistance rules: Nanaimo's bylaw may apply to a building with 4 or more rental units (see buying a home with tenants). What replaces it: A house older than its zone may stand where the zone no longer lets a new one go: its siting, size or use carries on as legal non-conforming only while the building does (Local Government Act ss. 528, 529). Once it's torn down, what's built in its place must meet today's zone (our reading; see legal non-conforming). On land that has had a specified industrial or commercial use, a building permit for work that will disturb the soil needs a site disclosure statement first (Environmental Management Act s. 40 (1)). What it means for a buyer: Buying a house to tear down costs more than the demolition contractor's quote: the survey, abatement, disconnections, permit fees and bonds, and the time a heritage review or tenant notice can take. Check the replacement against the zone, the setbacks and any covenant on title before you remove subjects (our reading).

Do I need a permit to demolish a house in BC, and what comes first?

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Before you buy: who to ask