A lot can look perfect from the sidewalk and still carry rules that change what you can build on it. Some of those rules sit on the land title. Others you only find by walking the lot, looking at the lane and checking public maps. In this post we walk you through the checks to make before you buy a lot in Vancouver for a new custom home or a multiplex: what a title shows and how to order it, the charges to read closely, the property disclosure statement, a land survey, BC Assessment's free lookup, and four things to check on the ground.
This post covers the land itself. How many homes the zoning allows, and how big they can be, is a separate question. Our guide to multiplex zoning and permits in Vancouver walks through that part.
Why You Check Before You Remove Subjects
An offer written with conditions, often called subjects, gives you time to check the property before the deal is final. That period is when every check in this post belongs, so ask your lawyer or notary how much time you need and write it into the offer.
Bring in help to read the legal documents. The LTSA, which runs BC's land title offices, says on its Hire a Professional page that lawyers, notaries public and land surveyors are experts in land title matters. LTSA staff can explain how to search the records. Reading what a title means for your plans is work for a legal professional. So plan for two people from the start: a lawyer or notary to read the title and its documents, and a BC land surveyor to measure the lot.
The Checks, Step by Step
- Find the PID. Get the lot's nine-digit Parcel Identifier. You need it for the title search.
- Order the Title. Read the owners, the legal description and the list of charges.
- Order Copies of the Charges. Each covenant, easement or right of way is its own document. Read each one.
- Ask for the Disclosure Statement. Make it a condition of your offer.
- Look Up BC Assessment. Check the lot size, the year the house was built and recent sales.
- Order a Survey. A BC land surveyor shows the true lines and what sits on them.
- Walk the Ground. Check the flood plain, the lane, the trees and what the land was used for before.
What a Land Title Shows
The LTSA's page on finding information on a title says a title lists the registered owners, the legal description of the parcel, the Parcel Identifier (PID), any charges, and legal notations. The legal description usually holds a lot number, other numbers and a plan number.
Charges are interests in the land held by someone other than the owner. The LTSA lists the common types: mortgages, statutory rights of way, easements, covenants, judgments, leases and claims of builders liens. Each one must be registered by the LTSA, which is why the title is the place to find them.
The title shows the land as it stands today. To trace who owned the lot before, the LTSA's title search page says you need a registry agent or a legal professional, because cancelled and historical titles cannot be searched in an LTSA Explorer account.
How to Order a Title Search
The LTSA says the best way to search is with the nine-digit PID. A street address cannot be used. If you do not know the PID, the LTSA points you to ParcelMap BC, to BC Assessment's search with the street address, or to a tax or assessment notice for the property.
The LTSA gives three ways to get a current title:
- Open an LTSA Explorer Account. It is a single-user account for people who order a small number of records each year.
- Order by Mail. Ask for a State of Title Certificate.
- Hire a Professional. A registry agent or another professional can order the title for you and help you read it.
Copies of the Charges
The title lists each charge by type and number only. To read its wording, order the document itself. The LTSA's page on ordering a document or plan says documents include title transfers, mortgages and easements, and that you order one with its number from the title. A plan is a drawing of a survey made by a BC land surveyor, and its number is often part of the legal description. The LTSA's own example is "Lot 1, District Lot 555, New Westminster District, Plan 12345". Older records kept on microfilm or paper must be ordered through a registry agent, at extra cost.
What It Costs
The LTSA's fee list as at April 1, 2026 sets these customer fees:
- Title search: $11.06
- Document or plan order: $17.78
- State of Title Certificate: $16.76
Searches ordered through an LTSA account also carry a service charge. The same page sets the standard electronic transaction fee at $3.55 per transaction, and GST is charged on it. A lot with five charges on its title means one search and five document orders, so add each one up before you start. The LTSA changes its fees from time to time, so check the page on the day you order.
The Charges to Read Closely
Two charges of the same type can say different things, so read every document. Here is what each one is, in plain words, and why it matters to a family planning to build.
Section 219 Covenants
A section 219 covenant is a promise registered on the title in favour of a government body: the Province, a Crown agency, a municipality such as the City of Vancouver, a regional district or the South Coast British Columbia Transportation Authority. Under section 219 of the Land Title Act, it can control the use of the land or of a building on it, say the land must be built on only in line with the covenant or not at all, limit or ban subdivision, and stop two parcels from being sold separately. It binds the person who signed it and every owner after them.
This matters most for a family who plans to build. A covenant signed decades ago by an owner you never met can still decide where your new home sits or what it can be used for. The LTSA's glossary explains that a section 219 covenant can impose positive duties (things you must do) as well as negative ones (things you must not do). An ordinary restrictive covenant between two lots can only restrict.
Section 219(9) says the covenant can be changed by the government body that holds it and the owner, or discharged by the holder in writing. If you hope to change one, talk to the holder before you buy, and plan your offer as if the covenant will stay.
Easements
The LTSA's glossary describes an easement as a limited right for the owner of one lot to use part of another owner's land. Its example is a driveway that crosses one lot to reach the lot behind it. If the lot you want carries an easement, a neighbour may use part of it under the easement's terms, so ask your lawyer what you may build on that part. If the lot benefits from an easement, that right may be how you reach it. Either way, compare the easement plan with your design ideas.
Statutory Rights of Way
A statutory right of way is created under section 218 of the Land Title Act. The LTSA's glossary says it lets a public body use part of a private property to put in and maintain the services it delivers. Section 218 lists who may hold one, including the Crown, a municipality, a public utility and others named by the minister. Section 218(3) says registration gives the holder the right to use the land in line with the terms of the document, and those terms bind later owners. Read the plan that goes with it, because it shows the strip of land the holder can use, and ask your lawyer what you may build on that strip.
Building Schemes
Under section 220 of the Land Title Act, an owner who sells two or more parcels can register a building scheme: a set of restrictions that binds every buyer and every later owner of those parcels. The Act's definitions describe it as a special local law for the defined land. A building scheme can limit the use of each lot, so if the title shows one, ask your lawyer whether it limits the number of homes or the type of building you plan.
Mortgages, Liens, Judgments and Court Cases
Ask your lawyer or notary how each mortgage, lien, judgment or court notice on the title will be cleared before completion. The LTSA's glossary says a claim of builders lien secures payment for labour or materials, and once filed it remains on the title for one year. A certificate of pending litigation gives notice of a court case in which someone claims an interest in the land. Our post on the builders lien holdback explains how liens are filed and removed.
Old Discriminating Covenants
Some older titles in BC carry covenants from the 1900s that restrict who may own or live on the land by race, nationality or similar grounds. The LTSA's page on discriminating covenants says section 222 of the Land Title Act made them void and unenforceable in 1978. They may still appear in the records. An owner can ask the Registrar to strike one through, at no fee.
When a Charge Can Be Changed by a Court
Section 35 of the Property Law Act lets a person with an interest in the land ask the Supreme Court to change or cancel an easement, a statutory right of way, a building scheme or a covenant. The court must be satisfied of one of a set of reasons, such as the charge being obsolete, or the charge blocking the reasonable use of the land without practical benefit to others. It may order the applicant to pay compensation. This is a court process with its own cost and time, so treat it as a last step and get legal advice before you count on it.
When the Lot Was Created
The legal description matters for a multiplex too. The City's R1-1 district schedule (June 2026 version, which we read in the Internet Archive copy saved on September 15, 2026, because vancouver.ca refused our requests) says in section 2.2.7 that a multiple dwelling is only permitted on a site that consists of a single lot on record in the Land Title Office before October 17, 2023, or a lot created by subdivision. Your lawyer or notary can confirm from the title and the plan that the lot you want meets this.
The Property Disclosure Statement
A property disclosure statement is a form in which the seller describes what they know about the property. The BC Financial Services Authority (BCFSA), which regulates real estate licensees, says in its advisory on disclosure that BC has no required form, and that the BC Real Estate Association provides the forms most transactions use. Sellers have a duty at common law to disclose latent defects, meaning defects that are hidden.
A seller can also hand you a Property No Disclosure Statement, which gives no answers at all. BCFSA says a buyer who receives that form should treat it as a sign that there is a defect that needs more checking, and that buyers are best protected by asking for the full statement as a condition of their offer. BCFSA also tells buyers to ask their lender whether the no-disclosure form is enough for their financing. BCFSA adds that the answers on the statement are accurate at the date they were given and may not reflect the lot today.
On a lot you plan to clear, ask the seller about the land as well as the house: past flooding, fill, buried tanks, shared driveways and any disagreement with neighbours over lines or trees.
A Land Survey From a BC Land Surveyor
Section 59 of the Land Surveyors Act says a person must not engage in the practice of land surveying unless they are a practising land surveyor or work through a land surveying company with a permit. Section 1 defines that practice to include measuring land to set out or re-set boundaries, and locating features on the land relative to a boundary. The Association of British Columbia Land Surveyors keeps its member list, and the LTSA links to it for anyone looking for a surveyor.
A survey shows where the lines are, where the house, garage and fences sit compared with them, and where the registered easements and rights of way fall on the ground. Ordering it before you remove subjects gives you these facts while you can still change or cancel your offer.
BC Assessment's Free Lookup
BC Assessment's search is free for private, personal use. Its FAQ lists what the property page shows: the legal description and PID, the total assessed value split into land and buildings, last year's values, the year built, the land size, floor areas, and the sales history for the last 3 full calendar years. The property page also has a tab with up to 10 recent sales of nearby properties.
Use it to confirm the PID before you order the title, and to compare the land size with the survey. The FAQ says the values on the search reflect conditions as of July 1 of the year before, so treat them as a starting point for your own price research.
What to Check on the Ground
The Flood Plain
The City's open data page on the designated floodplain (read in the Internet Archive copy saved on August 5, 2025) describes it as the coastal floodplain and the Still Creek floodplain within the City, and defines a floodplain as a lowland area that can flood from a nearby watercourse, the ocean, a lake or another body of water.
For a multiplex, this check comes early. Section 2.2.7 of the R1-1 schedule says a multiple dwelling is only permitted on a site that is not located partially or fully within a designated flood plain. Under that rule, a lot with even a corner inside the flood plain cannot hold a multiplex. The schedule also names the City's Flood Plain Standards and Requirements among the policies the City considers. Ask the City to confirm the status of the exact lot before you remove subjects.
Lane Access for a Multiplex
The same section 2.2.7 says a multiple dwelling is only permitted on a site that provides vehicular access from the rear of the site. Walk the back of the lot. Check that a lane runs behind it, that a vehicle can reach the lot from that lane, and that the survey shows no right of way or easement that blocks the path. If the lot has no lane, the R1-1 rules do not allow a multiplex there, and a single home with a suite may be the plan instead.
Trees
Trees can shape where a new home sits. Section 2.2.1 of the R1-1 schedule says a new multiple dwelling, a duplex with a secondary suite, a single detached house with a secondary suite or a laneway house may only be permitted if front-yard trees are kept or planted. On a site less than 15.1 metres wide, that means keeping at least 1 existing front-yard tree or planting 1. On a site 15.1 metres wide or wider, it means keeping at least 2, or planting new trees where existing ones cannot be kept. A kept tree must measure 20 centimetres or more across its trunk, 1.4 metres above the ground. For a site with no lane access, the Director of Planning may vary these rules. Our post on trees and building covers tree permits, replacement trees and protection fencing in more detail.
What the Land Was Used For Before
A lot that once held a business may carry soil problems from that time. The Province's Site information page says the Site Registry, set up under section 43 of the Environmental Management Act, holds records on the identification, investigation and clean-up of sites in BC, both contaminated and clean. The page lists it as a resource for anyone interested in buying or developing property.
The Province gives the steps:
- Search the Map for Free. Add the Environmental Remediation Sites layer in iMapBC to find a Site ID.
- Search the Registry for Free. Use BC Registries and Online Services to search by PID, address or Site ID.
- Order a Report if a Site Shows Up. A Site Details Report costs $150, plus a service charge and GST.
The Province also warns that the registry's records cannot prove whether a site is or is not contaminated. Its page on identifying sites that may be contaminated says a Site Disclosure Statement is required when a site has had one of the commercial or industrial uses listed in Schedule 2 of the Contaminated Sites Regulation and the owner applies to a municipality for a permit, among other cases. It suggests reviewing historical aerial photos and land title records to find past uses. If the lot ever held a shop, a garage or any business, hire an environmental professional before you buy.
Practical Tips Before You Make an Offer
- Get the PID First. Take it from BC Assessment's search and order the title the same day.
- Order Every Charge. Order and read each covenant, easement and right of way listed on the title.
- Give Your Lawyer or Notary Time. Ask for a subject period long enough for them to read every document. You can find a BC lawyer through the Law Society of BC or choose a notary through the Society of Notaries Public of BC.
- Book the Surveyor Early. Ask for the lines, the buildings and every registered easement and right of way drawn on one plan.
- Ask the City. Louis Nguyen, Costar's Director of Sales, gave this first step in REW's December 2025 guide: "email the city and just ask about what we can do on this property."
- Walk the Lane. Stand behind the lot and picture a vehicle reaching the back of the site.
- Search the Site Registry. The map and the registry search are free.
How Our Team Helps Before You Buy
Costar's process page says that if you have not decided on a site for your home, our team can help with an inspection and offer advice on suitability. That inspection is a chance to look at the lot together: the lane, the slope, the trees and how a home or a multiplex would sit on it. Your lawyer or notary reads the title and your surveyor measures the lot, and the inspection looks at what their findings mean for the design and the build. Our Vancouver Dunbar Custom Home at 3360 West 30th Avenue is one of the single-family homes in Costar's project gallery, and our custom home and multiplex pages show what we build once the lot is right.
A lot is the one part of a home you cannot change later. Check it well, and the home your family builds on it can last for generations. Tell us about your project today.
Related on this site: Custom homes in Vancouver · Multiplex construction in Vancouver · Book a one-hour project consultation
