This page explains the dates, how property transfer tax is worked out, and the first things to do as a new owner in a multiplex strata.
The short version
- The completion date is when ownership transfers. The possession date is when you can move in. BCFSA notes they are not always the same day.
- BC's general property transfer tax is 1% up to $200,000, 2% from $200,000 to $2,000,000, and 3% above that, with a further 2% on residential value over $3,000,000. On $1,100,000 it is $20,000.
- The first time home buyers' program exempts the first $500,000 of the price on a home with a fair market value of $835,000 or less, with a partial exemption up to $860,000.
- Under Standard Bylaw 4, you must tell the strata your name, strata lot number and mailing address within 2 weeks of becoming an owner.
- Insure the home from the completion date, with deductible cover that matches the strata's policy.
Completion, possession and adjustment
Three dates in the contract decide completion week. The completion date is the day, as BCFSA puts it, that legal ownership transfers from the previous owner to you in exchange for the purchase price. The possession date is the day you can move in. The adjustment date is the day from which you, rather than the seller, pay the property's running costs, such as property tax and strata fees.
BCFSA notes that completion and possession are not necessarily on the same day. Some contracts set possession a day after completion, which gives the lawyers or notaries time to register the transfer and move the money before the keys change hands. Ask your agent what suits the home you are buying.
Plan your move around the possession date, not the completion date. If your current lease ends on the completion date, ask your landlord for a few extra days or book storage.
Property transfer tax
Property transfer tax is a provincial tax on the fair market value of the property, paid when the transfer is registered at the land title office. The Province sets the general rate at 1% of the value up to and including $200,000, 2% from $200,000 to $2,000,000, and 3% above $2,000,000, with a further 2% on residential property over $3,000,000. You or your legal professional file the return.
Worked out on those rates, a $800,000 home pays $14,000, a $1,000,000 home pays $18,000, and a $1,400,000 home pays $26,000, before any exemption. The Province's own example of a $650,000 home comes to $11,000, the same method.
Two exemptions can reduce it. The first time home buyers' program exempts the first $500,000 of the price when the fair market value is $835,000 or less, with a partial exemption up to $860,000, and if only some buyers qualify, only their share is exempt. The newly built home exemption, for a new home that is your principal residence, applies up to $1,100,000, with a partial exemption up to $1,150,000.
| Fair market value | Property transfer tax |
|---|---|
| $800,000 | $14,000 |
| $900,000 | $16,000 |
| $1,000,000 | $18,000 |
| $1,100,000 | $20,000 |
| $1,200,000 | $22,000 |
| $1,400,000 | $26,000 |
| $1,600,000 | $30,000 |
Computed from the Province of BC's general rate (1% to $200,000, 2% to $2,000,000), read 23 October 2026. Exemptions not applied.
On the day
Most of completion day happens without you. Your lawyer or notary has your signed documents and your funds. On the completion date they register the transfer and your mortgage at the land title office, pay the seller's side, and confirm that the seller's mortgage will be discharged. BCFSA's description of the end of the process is simple: you have signed the documents, delivered your funds, and received the keys.
Keys are often handed over through the agents on the possession date. Before you hand over your old keys or end your lease, confirm with your agent that the transaction has completed.
Who qualifies for the first time home buyers' exemption
The first time home buyers' program has conditions on the buyer as well as the home, and the Province checks them at the time the property is registered. The buyer must be a Canadian citizen or permanent resident; must have lived in BC for at least a year immediately before registration, or filed at least 2 income tax returns as a BC resident in the last 6 tax years; must never have owned a registered interest in a principal residence anywhere in the world; and must never have received a first time home buyers' exemption or refund.
The home must be used only as the buyer's principal residence, have a fair market value of $835,000 or less for the full exemption, be 0.5 hectares or smaller, and contain only residential improvements. The exemption is on the first $500,000 of the price, and the Province's page lists further requirements after you apply.
Your lawyer or notary claims the exemption on the property transfer tax return. Tell them early if you think you qualify, so the statement of adjustments shows the right amount.
The newly built home exemption on a finished new home
If the home you are buying is new and nobody has lived in it, the newly built home exemption may apply instead, and it reaches higher prices. The Province's page lists the conditions: the transfer must be the first registration of the property with a completed home on it; the buyer must be a Canadian citizen or permanent resident; the home must be used only as the buyer's principal residence; and it must have a fair market value of $1,100,000 or less for a full exemption, with a partial exemption up to $1,150,000, and be 0.5 hectares or smaller.
Foreign entities and taxable trustees cannot claim it. A buyer who is not yet a citizen or permanent resident but becomes one within 12 months of registration can apply for a refund. There are occupancy requirements after registration, so plan to move in.
Your first strata meeting
Under the Strata Property Act, the annual general meeting must be held no later than 2 months after the end of the strata's fiscal year, and owners must get at least 2 weeks' written notice of any general meeting, with the wording of any resolution that needs a 3/4, 80% or unanimous vote. Each strata lot has one vote.
Ask the other owners when the fiscal year ends, so you know when to expect the next meeting and the next budget. In a small multiplex, the first meeting after you buy is often the moment the owners agree on the year's repairs.
Your first weeks as a strata owner
Standard Bylaw 4 requires a new owner to tell the strata corporation, within 2 weeks of becoming an owner, their name, strata lot number and mailing address outside the strata plan, if any. If the strata has its own bylaws, they will have a similar rule. In a small multiplex, this usually means an email or a conversation with the other owners.
Insurance should start on the completion date. The strata's policy covers the building; your own policy covers your contents, your improvements, your liability, the cost of living elsewhere after a loss, and the strata deductible. Have the strata's insurance summary in front of you when you buy it.
Then set up the rest: utilities in your name from the adjustment date, the home owner grant on your property tax if you qualify, and your declaration for the speculation and vacancy tax by March 31 of the following year if the home is in a taxable area, which covers every city in Metro Vancouver.
In our view, the most useful thing a new multiplex owner can do in the first month is meet the other owners and read the last two years of minutes again, this time as a member of the council. In a strata of fewer than 4 homes, you are on the council from the day you become an owner.
- Tell the strata your name, lot number and mailing address within 2 weeks.
- Insure the home from completion, with deductible cover.
- Move utilities into your name from the adjustment date.
- Claim the home owner grant if you qualify.
- Note the speculation and vacancy tax declaration deadline of March 31.
Questions buyers ask
More in Making an Offer
Also worth reading
Where these numbers come from
Every figure on this page comes from the body that issues it. Rules and rates change, so each entry says when we checked it.
- Completing Your Purchase. BC Financial Services Authority (BCFSA). Current page, accessed 23 October 2026.
- Property transfer tax (general rate). Government of British Columbia. Last updated December 3, 2025, accessed 23 October 2026.
- Property transfer tax calculation examples. Government of British Columbia. Last updated November 26, 2024, accessed 23 October 2026.
- First time home buyers' program (property transfer tax). Government of British Columbia. Last updated June 20, 2025, accessed 23 October 2026.
- Strata Property Act, Schedule of Standard Bylaws (bylaw 4, informing the strata). BC Laws, King's Printer for British Columbia. Act current to 20 October 2026, accessed 23 October 2026.
- Strata Property Act, Part 4: Governance (sections 40, 45, 53 and 59). BC Laws, King's Printer for British Columbia. Act current to 20 October 2026, accessed 23 October 2026.
- Newly built home exemption (property transfer tax). Government of British Columbia. Last updated January 6, 2026, accessed 23 October 2026.
- Strata owner and tenant insurance. Government of British Columbia. Published 23 July 2025, accessed 23 October 2026.
- Taxable areas for the speculation and vacancy tax. Province of British Columbia. Last updated December 8, 2025, accessed 23 October 2026.
General information only. The property transfer tax amounts and exemption thresholds on this page are illustrative and based on the Province's rates as of the dates noted. They are not tax or legal advice, and not a guarantee that you qualify for any exemption. Tax rates and thresholds change. Always consult your lawyer or notary, or a tax professional, before completing a purchase.
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