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Now, more owners of multi-family units stand to cash in after a fresh piece of legislation came into effect two weeks ago.

Just as with single-family homes that are prime fodder for land assemblies, some of these condo and townhome buildings are older and in need of repairs that could be costly for stratas. In some cases, special levies of between $50,000 to $100,000 per unit could be in store for major upgrades. But, if owners group together to sell an entire building to a developer looking to build a much higher-density project, they could see selling prices that are between one-and-a-half to three times their ordinary market value, said Gioventu.

“So a unit that might go for $325,000 could go for as much as $975,000.”

He said buildings in areas targeted for high-density development are the most obvious ones having these conversations. He named zones surrounding SkyTrain stations at Brentwood, Metrotown and Lougheed Mall in Burnaby. There are some in the Lonsdale Quay area, as well as near the SkyTrain station in New Westminster.

“The buildings are generally in a six-block radius of these stations,” he said.

For the hundreds of strata-titled buildings in B.C., a recent change in provincial legislation means that instead of needing 100-per-cent agreement among owners, councils will only need an 80-per-cent vote to disband.

It’s a change that puts B.C.’s rules about joint housing ownership more in line with other provinces, and might make it easier for stratas to push holdout owners into selling and deals to close more quickly.