GROW-OPS MUST NOW BE DISCLOSED

Selling a home that's been used as a drug lab or marijuana growing operation
will now be a lot more difficult thanks to changes made last week by the
B.C. Real Estate Association.

On Friday, the association announced it will change its property disclosure
statement - which is part of all real estate transactions - to include two
questions (one for residential properties, the other for strata titles) that
will identify if the home has been used to grow or manufacture illegal
drugs.

Police believe the move will encourage property owners to keep a closer tab
on their properties because a drug manufacturing history will likely hurt
the property value. It will also create another headache for criminals, some
of whom actually build their own houses with the intent to grow drugs and
then sell the property.

David Herman, president of the B.C. Real Estate Association, said realtors
want safe communities and this initiative is a step in the right direction.

"Hopefully this will help (police) with their work on this front."

Herman said there are an estimated 15,000 to 20,000 marijuana grow ops in
the province.

Marijuana grow ops and drug labs can cause extensive damage to a home and
expose it to toxic chemicals.

Since the disclosure statement is part of the legal contract of sale, this
could provide an avenue for buyers who make a discovery after the sale has
completed to sue the previous owner, Herman said.

"We had a lot of positive feedback about this step not just from our real
estate boards, but from the public."

B.C. Solicitor General Rich Coleman, who heads up the province's residential
tenancy branch, said he's prepared to make changes to ensure tenants are
protected too.

"I think it's fair ball that that should be disclosed. I'm prepared to add
that to the standard form tenancy agreement. I'll be asking my staff to look
at how to do that."

Before making any changes and to ensure it's done right, Coleman said he'll
also be consulting the Tenants Rights Action Coalition and the B.C. Owners
and Managers Association

Coleman said a recent series of changes were made to the Residential Tenancy
Act.

However, the issue of protecting tenants didn't come up, he said. Herman
cautioned that homebuyers should still perform an independent inspection of
properties they are considering.