Critiques & Debates | Displacement Risk
Displacement Risk: The Tenant Question
Most SSMUH redevelopment happens on owner-occupied single-family lots. Some happens on older rental stock — duplexes, triplexes, character houses with suites — where existing tenants have to be evicted before construction. The displacement question is real, narrow, and bounded by BC's tenant-protection framework.
Key Takeaways
- ✓Bill 44 itself does not displace tenants — it permits more units.
- ✓RTA section 49 sets the floor: four months notice, one month compensation.
- ✓Vancouver and Burnaby layer additional tenant protections on top.
- ✓Auckland research found mixed effects — more housing produced, with localised displacement.
The Four Layers of Protection
Notice to end tenancy for landlord use
BC Residential Tenancy Act section 49 requires four months written notice when a landlord ends a tenancy to demolish, redevelop, or undertake major renovations. Tenants are entitled to one month's rent compensation and have 15 days to dispute the notice with the Residential Tenancy Branch.
Right of first refusal on return
Where a building is demolished and rebuilt, the original tenant has a right of first refusal to a unit in the new building at a defined rent. This right is enforced by the RTB and applies regardless of municipal policy.
Vancouver Tenant Relocation and Protection Policy
Vancouver requires developers redeveloping rental buildings to provide enhanced relocation assistance and right of first refusal at 20% below market rent. The policy applies to buildings with three or more rental units.
Burnaby Tenant Assistance Policy
Burnaby applies its own tenant assistance framework to rental redevelopment. The City's Housing page outlines the requirements.
Where SSMUH Displacement Actually Happens
The empirical pattern from Auckland\'s comparable upzoning suggests that displacement effects concentrate in specific submarkets — neighbourhoods where the existing affordable rental stock sits in the older buildings being targeted for redevelopment. In BC, that means character houses converted to four-unit rentals in East Vancouver, older duplexes in Burnaby Heights, and aging walk-up triplexes near transit corridors. These are the lots where SSMUH redevelopment economics work best and where tenant displacement risk is highest.
SSMUH on owner-occupied single-family lots — the dominant case — does not displace anyone. The case-mix matters more than the legislation in setting the displacement footprint.
What the Research Shows
Greenaway-Smith and Phillips at the University of Auckland documented Auckland\'s 2016 Unitary Plan upzoning. The plan substantially increased permitted density across most of the city. The research found a meaningful increase in total housing supply produced in upzoned neighbourhoods, but with localised displacement effects in submarkets where older affordable rentals were the redevelopment target. The net effect on housing affordability was positive citywide but uneven at neighbourhood scale.
See does it add units for the supply-side empirical case and how Auckland and Minneapolis fit into the pattern.
Best For
- ✓ Builders pursuing SSMUH on owner-occupied single-family lots — minimal displacement footprint.
- ✓ Cities and tenant advocates designing additional protections on top of the RTA floor.
- ✓ Researchers comparing BC's SSMUH displacement profile to Auckland and Minneapolis.
Usually Fails When
- ✕ Builders treating tenant compensation as discretionary — RTA obligations are binding.
- ✕ Owners assuming Vancouver's tenant policy adds no requirements above the RTA — it does.
- ✕ Generalised assertions that "upzoning displaces" without specifying which submarket.
What To Verify Before Spending Money
- → Whether existing tenants are present on a candidate lot — affects the redevelopment timeline materially.
- → Vancouver Tenant Relocation Policy applicability for buildings with three or more existing rental units.
- → The current Burnaby Tenant Assistance Policy details for any Burnaby lot with rental tenants.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Bill 44 cause displacement?
What does the BC research show?
How does the RTA protect against eviction for redevelopment?
What is "renoviction" and is it covered?
Are SROs and rooming houses covered?
Official Sources Referenced
Screen Your Lot for Missing Middle
Enter any BC address to see what Bill 44 SSMUH unit count, lot coverage, and FSR your parcel actually qualifies for.