Free PDF guide
Renovations and additions in Metro Vancouver
Whether to stay inside the existing footprint or extend beyond it, how renovation scope is discovered and why estimates move, what changes when the household stays in the house, and the approvals a renovation inside a strata needs.
27 pages, 5 parts, 5 sources. Written by Mark Van Ek. Figures re-verified 2026-09-23.
Free guide
Renovations and additions in Metro Vancouver
PDF, 27 pages
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What is inside
Overview
Renovations and additions in Metro Vancouver.
Part 1
Working inside the existing footprint, or extending beyond it
What changes when a project crosses the existing walls.
Part 2
How renovation scope is discovered, and why estimates move
What opening up reveals, and how to read a change in scope.
Part 3
Living in the house, or moving out
Occupied and vacant renovations, and how each one runs.
Part 4
Renovating inside a strata
Approvals, votes, and who carries the cost afterwards.
Key points from the guide
- Staying inside the footprint avoids the zoning questions an addition reopens.
- Richmond requires a permit to alter, renovate or repair an existing building, footprint change or not.
- Older houses often sit closer to the property line than current setbacks allow, so an addition may have to step in.
- Renovation scope behind finishes is established by opening up, after the contract is signed.
- An allowance covers a decision not yet made; a contingency covers a condition nobody could see.
- Envelope repair crossing 60 percent of a cladding surface and $10,000 requires a licensed renovator and warranty coverage.
- An occupied renovation costs more to build and takes longer, because trades follow the household.
- In a strata, altering common property needs written approval, and a significant change needs a three quarter vote.
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