Selling a home · Disclosure
BC is not a pure buyer-beware jurisdiction on residential real estate. Sellers have real disclosure obligations, particularly around latent defects and known material facts. The Property Disclosure Statement is the most common place the obligation gets recorded — and the most common evidence a buyer relies on if they end up in court after closing.
The framework
The starting point in Canadian real estate law is that buyers are expected to inspect, verify, and satisfy themselves about what they are buying. Sellers do not have a general duty to volunteer information about everything they know.
That starting point is heavily qualified by three exceptions where sellers do have a duty to disclose:
Each of these is well-litigated in BC. Cases turn on what the seller actually knew, what they said, and what (if anything) was on the Property Disclosure Statement.
The Property Disclosure Statement
The PDS is a standard BC form (different versions for residential, strata, rural, and water-front properties) where sellers answer a structured set of questions: water and moisture issues, additions and renovations, permits, drainage, plumbing, electrical, prior insurance claims, prior use, and so on. Each question is answered yes, no, or "do not know."
The PDS is not a warranty — it is a disclosure of what the seller knows. But because it is a written record signed by the seller, it carries weight in any post-closing dispute. A truthful "do not know" is generally fine. A "no" that turns out to be a "yes" the seller knew about is the kind of answer that ends in court.
Two practical points: (1) it is better to mark "do not know" honestly than to guess at a "no"; and (2) once you sign the PDS, you have a continuing obligation to update it if you learn something new before closing.
Common pitfalls
Frequently asked
Partially. The starting point in Canadian real estate law is caveat emptor — buyers are expected to inspect and verify what they are buying. The exceptions are well established and important: latent defects (defects not discoverable on reasonable inspection) the seller knows about, known material facts that affect value or use, and active concealment of defects. In all three cases, the seller has a duty to disclose, and silence can support a claim after closing.
A patent defect is one a buyer could reasonably discover with a normal inspection — a stained ceiling, a cracked tile, a sloping floor. Sellers are not required to point out patent defects. A latent defect is one not reasonably discoverable on inspection — water damage hidden behind a wall, an unpermitted addition, knob-and-tube wiring concealed by drywall, a previous grow operation. If the seller knows about a latent defect that would render the property uninhabitable, dangerous, or unfit for the buyer's intended use, the duty to disclose generally applies.
There is no legal requirement to provide a PDS, but in BC residential practice it is the standard form sellers use to record their answers to a structured set of questions about the property. Most listing agreements with a brokerage require it; on a private sale, you can decline, but skipping the PDS is itself sometimes treated as a red flag and can shift more risk to you. Where a PDS is provided, it must be honest — false answers create direct liability.
It depends on whether the defect is latent or patent, whether the seller knew about it, and what (if anything) the contract and PDS say. A buyer who discovers a latent defect the seller knew about can sue for damages, rescission of the sale, or in extreme cases set aside the closing. The litigation tends to focus on what the seller actually knew and what they did to disclose it. Documentation matters: any pre-closing communications, the PDS, and any inspection reports become critical.
Both are well-litigated examples of latent defects in BC. A seller who knows the property was previously used for cannabis cultivation or methamphetamine production is generally required to disclose, even if the property has since been remediated. Failure to disclose has been the basis of multiple successful claims. We always ask sellers about prior use during file intake.
Three things matter: complete the PDS honestly and carefully (do not guess; if you do not know, say so); keep records of any work done on the property, including permits, contractor invoices, and inspection reports; and if you suspect there may be a hidden issue, get an inspection before listing rather than after closing. We can also draft contract terms that reasonably limit post-closing recourse, though courts will not enforce blanket exclusions of seller liability for known undisclosed defects.
We can review the property history with you, walk you through the PDS, and flag the items most likely to come back as a claim later.