Selling a Tenanted Property in BC: Purchaser Use Notice Rules

The Sequence That Must Happen Before You Serve

Selling a tenanted property in BC triggers a strict sequence of events under the Residential Tenancy Act. You cannot serve a purchaser use notice until the sale contract is fully executed with all subject conditions removed. Getting this order wrong is one of the most common transactional failures in BC real estate.

Here's the required sequence:

1. Sign the purchase and sale agreement and remove all subject conditions (financing, inspection, title search)
2. Receive a written request from the purchaser asking you to serve the notice, explicitly declaring that the purchaser or their close family member intends to occupy the unit in good faith
3. Generate Form RTB-32P through the Landlord Use Web Portal using your Basic BCeID
4. Serve the notice on the tenant using an approved method
5. Complete Form RTB-34 (Proof of Service) immediately

Serving before subjects are removed, or without the purchaser's written request on file, voids the notice.

Three-Month Notice and the Closing Date Problem

The notice period is three months from deemed receipt, and the effective date must align with the rental payment cycle (typically the last day of a calendar month).

This creates a practical tension that catches many sellers: mortgage approvals are typically good for 90 days, but the tenant notice period — including deemed service delays — can easily push beyond that window.

Example: You remove subjects on March 5, generate RTB-32P, and serve by registered mail on March 7. Deemed receipt is March 12 (5 days later). Three months from March 12, aligning to the rental cycle, gives you a June 30 effective date. If the buyer's mortgage approval expires on June 5, you have a problem.

Sellers and their agents need to build the notice timeline into the contract from the start. A closing date set too close to the notice period is a recipe for collapsed deals.

Vacant Possession Clauses

Many purchase contracts include a vacant possession clause requiring the seller to deliver the property empty. In BC, this clause doesn't override the RTA. You still must follow the statutory notice process — you cannot simply tell the tenant to leave because you promised vacant possession to a buyer.

If you can't deliver vacant possession by the closing date because the notice period hasn't expired or the tenant has disputed, the buyer may have grounds to withdraw or renegotiate. This is why coordination between the sale timeline and the tenant notice timeline is critical.

A mutual agreement (Form RTB-8) with a cooperative tenant can be faster — no prescribed notice period, no dispute window. If the tenant is willing, this avoids the three-month wait entirely.

Compensation and the 12-Month Use Rule

The same compensation and occupancy rules that apply to landlord personal use notices apply here:

• One month's rent must be paid to the tenant on or before the effective date
• For notices given on or after April 3, 2024, the purchaser must use the unit for the stated purpose within a reasonable period (typically 15 days) and for at least 12 months. For notices given before April 3, 2024, the use period is six months.
• If the purchaser does not take steps to accomplish the stated purpose within a reasonable period, or the unit is not used for that purpose for the required period, section 51(2) requires additional compensation equal to 12 times the monthly rent, unless the RTB excuses payment because of extenuating circumstances.

The landlord or purchaser who asked the landlord to give the notice, as applicable under section 49, is responsible for this additional compensation. If the sale falls through after the tenant has already vacated, the purchaser who requested the notice may still be liable.

Who Can Occupy

The purchaser or their close family member must intend to occupy the unit. "Close family member" has the same strict definition as for landlord use:

• The purchaser or their spouse
• A child or parent of the purchaser or their spouse

The purchaser's sibling, grandchild, business partner, or corporate entity does not qualify.

If the Tenant Disputes

The tenant has 21 days from deemed receipt to file for dispute resolution. If they dispute, the notice is suspended until the RTB conducts a participatory hearing. Direct Request is not available for purchaser use notices — a hearing is required regardless.

At the hearing, you'll need to show:

• The sale contract with subjects removed
• The purchaser's written request to serve the notice
• The portal-generated RTB-32P with its unique Notice ID
• Form RTB-34 documenting how and when the notice was served

Planning the Sale Around the Notice

The smartest approach is to work the notice timeline backwards from your desired closing date. If you need vacant possession by September 30, and you're serving by registered mail, you need the notice generated and mailed no later than early June — allowing for deemed receipt delays, the three-month period, and month-end alignment.

For the complete purchaser use workflow including the Web Portal process, deemed service calculations, and the compensation and enforcement steps, see the Ending a Tenancy in British Columbia guide.

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