Pubdate: Thu, 27 Sep 2012
Source: Province, The (CN BC)
Copyright: 2012 Postmedia Network Inc.
Contact: http://www2.canada.com/theprovince/letters.html
Website: http://www.theprovince.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/476
Author: Cassidy Olivier
Page: A6

FOLKS RILED HOMES GONE TO POT

Housing: Buyers learn too late their properties were once used as grow-ops

Victoria - The Surrey family was in the middle of unpacking when a
neighbour told them the truth about the home they had just sunk their
life savings into.

In a different city, not too far away, the elderly Delta couple was
enjoying another day inside their "nice, cute rancher" when they also
learned, from a neighbour, the real history of the house they had
planned to retire in.

Did you know, the neighbour said, that your house used to be a
grow-op?

"They were absolutely horrified," said kelvin Neufeld of the B.C. Real
Estate Association.

The stories were told Wednesday at the Union of B.C. Municipalities on
the topic of drug houses and the challenges buyers and renters face
when choosing a property.

According to the most recent statistics, there are 13,500 grow-ops in
B.C., which breaks down to about one in every 137 houses.

At present, there are no consistent tools that can be used to
determine if a property has been identified as a grow-op or whether it
has been remediated to a high standard of safety, said Neufeld.

And, as a consequence, many buyers/renters are unaware when they open
the door to their new home that they've just moved into a property
that had previously been used to grow and harvest B.C. bud.

Neufeld and other interested groups have for years tried to
standardize the system of piecemeal rules pertaining to grow-op
identification and remediation. Some progress has been made, but legal
issues have slowed the process, he said.

Dr. Joe Clare, a strategic planning analyst with the City of Surrey
Fire Services, said the dangers of living in a former grow-op are 
three-fold:

Structural damage to the property (wiring, foundation,
ceiling);

Environment and public health concerns (mould/fungus, leftover
toxins);

Uninsurability. These dangers have been exacerbated, he noted, by the
size of the average grow-op, which has more than doubled since 2005.

And even if remedial work has been done, there is no guarantee that it
has been done to a standard that ensures there are no longer any
safety, health or financial risks to the homeowner, said Clare.

Neufeld called on the UBCM delegates to support a resolution that will
place the remediation of "inappropriately used buildings" in the hands
of the B.C. government.

Resolution B147, proposes to standardize the remediation process,
ensuring that properties come back onto the market up to code and
buyers aren't subject to health and or safety risks. The issue will be
debated Thursday or Friday.
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