Released on October 10, 2007
The Government of Saskatchewan has approved changes to The Condominium Property Regulations to provide greater clarification regarding the intent of the legislation that deals with condominium conversion and to further protect tenants who reside in rental units.
Recent stories out of Saskatoon suggest that some landlords have evicted tenants with the minimum notice required under The Residential Tenancies Act prior to making an application to the City under The Condominium Property Act to have the premises converted to condominium status. By doing so, these landlords have attempted to circumvent the two year notice period required by the City for conversion of rental premises to condominiums, by advising the City that there were no tenants at the time that the application was made.
"The current strategy of some developers runs contrary to the efforts of the province and local authorities to protect tenants who lose their homes in these situations," Justice Minister Frank Quennell said. "They may be complying with the letter of the law, but these changes will ensure that they also comply with the spirit of the law."
The Condominium Property Amendment Regulations, 2007, include definitions for "conversion" and "division" to clarify that renovating a building or demolishing a building that involves evicting tenants falls under the intent of the legislation dealing with condominium conversions. This will permit local authorities to require developers to make applications earlier in the process before tenants have been evicted and it requires the local authority to apply its criteria about the effects a proposed conversion will have on the tenants in the building to the time of the proposed renovation rather than later when the proposed condominium plan comes to the city for approval.
The regulations also require that the local authority complete a form each time it approves a condominium plan, including a conversion. The form sets out the criteria in the Act and requires the local authority to indicate that each one of the requirements has been considered prior to approving the plan.
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For more information, contact:
Debi McEwen
Justice
Regina
Phone: 306-787-6043
Email: dmcewen@justice.gov.sk.ca