Vancouver Lease Backgrounder: Summer 2025 Update – New Leases Approved!
30 July 2025 Four years ago, we highlighted the situation with leasehold co-ops in the City of Vancouver. Today, we wanted to provide a short update.
July 2021 was an important month for housing co-ops. After years of work (and lobbying) on the part of co-op members, CHF BC staff, and City of Vancouver staff, Vancouver’s City Council unanimously approved a new framework for lease renewals. It has taken longer than expected, but the first co-ops have now seen new leases approved.
We celebrate the security these new arrangements will bring and look forward to more co-ops coming to agreements with the City.
The background information and resources below are still relevant, and we hope they will be of use to other leasehold co-ops.
Primary Background
- City of Vancouver Lease Renewal Framework, CHF BC consolidation (July 2021)
- CHF BC’s History of the 30% of income measure (2021)
- Methodology for Co-op Housing Lease Renewals (June 14, 2021)
- Minutes to City Council Meeting (July 7 and 8, 2021)
- Co-op Housing Lease Discussion Paper (January 28, 2020)
- Housing Income Limits (2021)
- CMHC Rental Market Data (October 2020)
Noting a Previous Effort
(2017 Framework: Options for Sustaining Affordable Co-op Housing)
- City Administrative Report (2017)
- Minutes of Meeting (February 8, 2017)
Resources
- Key elements of the framework rely on income information from members.
- To help collecting data to comply with City income testing and income reporting requirements we offer the following: (1) introduction; (2a) PDF version of potential changes to the Occupancy Agreement; (2b) WORD version.
2025 Update
- A growing number of co-ops have been approved by City Council for new long-term leases. Other co-ops are exploring possible redevelopment with the City and are securing shorter-term agreements as they do so.
- In July 2025, Cedar Mill and Pacific Heights joined a handful of other co-ops in getting Council approval to move ahead with a new 40-year lease.
This note was originally posted on July 13, 2021. The most recent update was July 30, 2025.