The Property Disclosure Statement: What BC Sellers Disclose

After the listing itself, the Property Disclosure Statement is often the first thing a buyer reads about a home. Here is what the form asks, how it becomes part of your contract, why you can no longer simply cross it out, and what buyers should check besides it.

The short version

What the PDS is

BCFSA, the regulator, notes that there are no prescribed disclosure forms in BC and calls the PDS a voluntary form completed by the seller. BCREA publishes versions for houses, rural properties, strata homes, bare land strata lots and First Nations leasehold properties. Many local boards make a PDS a standard part of a brokerage's file, and buyers often ask for one as a condition of their offer.

What it asks

The residential form groups its questions under the land, services, the building and general matters, with room at the end for comments and explanations:

• The land. Encroachments, unregistered easements or rights of way, existing tenancies, past or present underground oil tanks, and local improvement levies.
• Services. The water supply and any problems with it, the sewer or septic connection, and maintenance records for septic systems.
• The building. Insulation, asbestos, pests, structural problems, alterations made without permits, moisture and water problems, the age of the roof and any leaks, electrical, gas and plumbing problems, unauthorized suites, and home warranty coverage.
• General. Whether the home was used to grow cannabis or make illegal drugs, any other latent defects the seller knows about, and heritage designation.

Newer versions also ask about radon and archaeological sites. The strata versions add questions about the strata corporation.

How sellers should answer

• Answer from what you actually know. The seller confirms that the information is true based on their current actual knowledge as of the date on the form.
• Use "Do Not Know" honestly. The form tells sellers to answer "Do Not Know" when they are uncertain, and not to answer "do not know" or "does not apply" when they do know the answer.
• Explain. If you answer yes to a question, use the comments section to say what happened, for example a leak that was repaired, and when.
• Update it. The seller agrees to tell the buyer about important changes before completion. Since July 2025 the form also notes that disclosures may not reflect current conditions.

How it becomes part of your contract

A PDS is usually attached to the Contract of Purchase and Sale with a clause saying it "is incorporated into and forms part of this contract." The standard contract then says the representations in an incorporated PDS survive the completion of the sale.

The answers are representations, not warranties. BC courts have said the seller must honestly disclose what they actually know, and that their knowledge doesn't have to be correct. In Nixon v. MacIver (2016), the sellers said the roof was six years old, but the house had been built around an older cabin whose roof had not been replaced. They honestly believed their answer, so they were not liable. A misrepresentation in a PDS, though, can support a claim against the seller.

Why you can't just cross it out

Sellers used to draw a line through the form or write "as is" on it. In Sewell v. Abadian (2025), a seller crossed out the PDS and wrote that the home was tenanted and he had never lived there, though he knew about an addition built without permits. The BC Court of Appeal held that, read with his comment and in the circumstances of that sale, the struck-through form told the buyer he had no knowledge of the items on it. Because he did know about the addition, that was a misrepresentation, and the buyer was entitled to recover the $300,000 deposit she had paid. In March 2026 the Supreme Court of Canada declined to hear an appeal.

BCREA responded in July 2025 with a Property No-Disclosure Statement, a short form in which the seller says they make no representations or warranties about the property. It doesn't excuse a seller from disclosing known latent defects. BCFSA tells buyers to treat a no-disclosure statement as a signal that there may be a defect, and to ask their lender whether it is enough for their financing. BCREA's examples of sellers who may not complete a PDS include estate sales, foreclosures and tenanted homes managed by a third party.

Latent and patent defects

"Buyer beware" still generally applies to home sales in BC. The law draws a line between two kinds of defects:

• Patent defects can be found through reasonable inspection and inquiry. A seller doesn't have to point them out, but can't actively hide them.
• Latent defects can't be found through a reasonable inspection. A seller must disclose latent defects they know about that make the home dangerous or unfit to live in. Courts treat a seller who is reckless about whether a defect exists the same as one who knows.

Your REALTOR®'s own duty

Under section 59 of the Real Estate Services Rules, a licensee such as your REALTOR® who knows of a material latent defect must disclose it to prospective buyers promptly, and in any case before a contract is entered into. The rule's definition of a material latent defect is broader than the seller's duty. It covers a defect that cannot be found through a reasonable inspection and that:

• Makes the home dangerous or potentially dangerous, or unfit to live in
• Makes the home unfit for a purpose the buyer has told the licensee about
• Would cost a great deal to fix
• Is the subject of a notice from a local government saying it must or should be fixed
• Involves missing building or other permits

If a seller tells their agent about a material latent defect and instructs them not to disclose it, the agent has to stop acting for them on that sale. BCFSA has said an unauthorized suite is a material latent defect, and so is electrical or gas work done without permits and inspections.

Deaths, crimes and other stigmas

BCFSA treats a death on the property, a past crime or rumours that a house is haunted as stigmas, not material latent defects, because they don't affect the home's physical condition. Sellers don't have to volunteer them. If a buyer asks directly, the seller must not mislead them; BCREA says the seller can answer or decline to answer. The listing agent can share only what the seller has authorized, or say they have been instructed not to answer.

A former grow-op or drug lab is different. If it left a material latent defect, BCFSA says it must be disclosed.

Common issues in the Lower Mainland

• Unpermitted work and suites. The PDS asks about both. Pull the permit history before you list, so you can answer accurately.
• Water. Past leaks, a flooded basement or roof repairs, and what was done about them.
• Oil tanks. Many older homes were heated with oil. In Vancouver, for example, heating oil tanks that haven't been used for two years must be removed, or abandoned in place under a permit if the City agrees removal isn't practical.
• Asbestos. WorkSafeBC says homes built before 1990 are highly likely to have some materials containing asbestos, and they must be tested before renovation or demolition work begins.
• Strata matters. Special levies, bylaws and building repairs. For a strata, the buyer can also request a Form B Information Certificate and, through the seller, the strata's own records, such as minutes.

For buyers: what to check besides the PDS

• A home inspection. Home inspectors in BC must be licensed. An inspection is visual, so ask about anything the inspector couldn't see.
• The title. It shows charges, liens, easements, covenants and rights of way.
• Permits. Some cities have online tools: Abbotsford's Property Information Search lists building permits for a property, and Surrey's online development inquiry shows permit applications by address. Elsewhere, ask the building department.
• Strata documents. BCFSA suggests reviewing at least two years of strata meeting minutes. Read them along with the Form B, bylaws, budget and depreciation report. Stratas with five or more lots in Metro Vancouver and the Fraser Valley that had no depreciation report, or whose latest one was received before December 31, 2020, had to get one by July 1, 2026, so ask if it is missing.

Questions sellers often ask me

Do I have to fill out a Property Disclosure Statement in BC?

No. BC has no prescribed disclosure form and the PDS is voluntary. But buyers often ask for one, and with or without a PDS you must disclose known latent defects that make the home dangerous or unfit to live in.

Can I just cross out the PDS or write "as is"?

Not safely. In Sewell v. Abadian (2025), the BC Court of Appeal held that a seller's crossed-out PDS told the buyer he knew of no problems with the items on it. If you don't want to make representations about the property, BCREA's Property No-Disclosure Statement is the form designed for that, but it doesn't excuse you from disclosing known latent defects.

Is the PDS a guarantee of the home's condition?

No. It records what the seller actually knows on the date they sign. If it is part of the contract, its answers survive completion, and an answer that doesn't match what you actually knew can lead to a claim, even if the mistake was careless rather than deliberate.

Do I have to disclose that someone died in the home?

Generally no. BCFSA treats a death on the property as a stigma, not a material latent defect. If a buyer asks you directly, you can decline to answer, but you must not mislead them.

What happens if I find a problem after I sign the PDS?

Tell the buyer. The form says the seller will disclose important changes before completion, and the answers speak as of the date you signed.

Getting ready to list? See my seller's checklist and the BC selling process from listing to completion. Buying? Read what your home inspector checks and the strata documents to read first.

This article is general information, not legal advice. For questions about your own disclosure, speak with a lawyer. For BCFSA's guide, see material latent defects.