Offer / Contract of Purchase and Sale

The standard form used in BC residential transactions is the Contract of Purchase and Sale produced by the BC Real Estate Association (BCREA). This form is widely used across the province and is designed to capture all essential terms of a transaction, including purchase price, deposit, completion and possession dates, included and excluded items, and subject clauses. Licensed real estate professionals in BC are governed by the Real Estate Services Act (RESA) and regulated by the British Columbia Financial Services Authority (BCFSA), which oversees the conduct of licensees when preparing and presenting this document.

In British Columbia, a Contract of Purchase and Sale becomes a binding contract once both the buyer and the seller have signed the document and acceptance has been communicated back to the offering party within the time specified in the offer. At that point, the parties are bound by the terms set out in the contract, including any subject clauses that must be satisfied or waived before the transaction completes. Licensees operating under the Real Estate Services Act (RESA) have obligations to ensure clients understand the legal effect of signing.

Subject clauses are conditions written into the Contract of Purchase and Sale that must be satisfied or waived by a specified date before the contract becomes unconditional and the transaction proceeds. Common examples include subjects for financing approval, a satisfactory home inspection, or review of strata documents in the case of strata properties governed by the Strata Property Act (SBC 1998, c. 43). If a subject clause is not satisfied or waived by its deadline, the contract typically collapses and the deposit is returned to the buyer.

Under a BC Contract of Purchase and Sale, the deposit is typically paid by the buyer and held in trust by the listing brokerage or, in some cases, the buyer's brokerage, in accordance with the Real Estate Services Act (RESA) and its Rules administered by the BCFSA. Trust account requirements are strictly regulated — deposit funds must be kept separate from general brokerage funds and can only be released in specified circumstances, such as at completion, upon mutual written release, or pursuant to a court order. Mishandling of trust funds is a serious regulatory breach under RESA.

When a Contract of Purchase and Sale completes in British Columbia, the buyer is generally required to pay Property Transfer Tax (PTT) under the BC Property Transfer Tax Act, calculated at 1% on the first $200,000 of the fair market value, 2% on the portion between $200,000 and $3,000,000, 3% on the portion above $3,000,000, and an additional 2% on the residential portion above $3,000,000. Certain exemptions may apply, such as the First-Time Home Buyers' Program (full exemption for qualifying purchasers on properties up to $835,000) or the Newly Built Home Exemption (up to $1,100,000). Buyers should consult the BC Ministry of Finance for current eligibility criteria and thresholds.

When the property being purchased is a strata lot, the Contract of Purchase and Sale typically includes a subject clause allowing the buyer to review strata documents, which under the Strata Property Act (SBC 1998, c. 43) include the Form B Information Certificate, Form F Certificate of Payment, bylaws, rules, minutes, the depreciation report, and information about the contingency reserve fund. The Form B is issued by the strata corporation and discloses key financial and governance information that buyers are entitled to review before waiving subjects. Licensees under RESA have a duty to ensure buyers understand the significance of these strata-specific documents.

In British Columbia, if a seller makes changes to the buyer's offer before signing — such as altering the price, dates, or terms — this constitutes a counter-offer rather than an acceptance, and the original offer is extinguished. A counter-offer must then be accepted by the buyer, again by signature communicated within the time allowed, for a binding contract to be formed. This process of offer and counter-offer is governed by general contract law principles applicable in BC, and licensees regulated under the Real Estate Services Act (RESA) must present all offers and counter-offers promptly and accurately.

Under the Real Estate Services Act (RESA) and BCFSA Rules, a licensee must disclose their agency relationship — including whether they represent the buyer, the seller, or are acting as a dual agent or in a designated agency arrangement — before presenting or receiving a Contract of Purchase and Sale. Licensees must also disclose any known material latent defects about the property and any conflicts of interest that may affect their advice. Failure to make required disclosures is a contravention of RESA and may result in disciplinary action by the BCFSA.

If a seller dies after a binding Contract of Purchase and Sale has been formed but before completion, the contract generally remains enforceable against the seller's estate, as contractual obligations survive death in BC. The executor or administrator of the estate, appointed under the Wills, Estates and Succession Act (WESA), would typically be responsible for completing the transaction on behalf of the estate, subject to any probate requirements and the estate's legal authority to convey title. Parties in this situation should seek independent legal advice to navigate the intersection of WESA, probate, and the existing contract terms.

Yes — personal information collected from buyers and sellers in the course of a real estate transaction in BC, including information contained in or related to a Contract of Purchase and Sale, is subject to the Personal Information Protection Act (PIPA) of British Columbia. Under PIPA, licensees and brokerages must collect, use, and disclose personal information only for purposes a reasonable person would consider appropriate, and must obtain consent unless a specific exception applies. If a brokerage also sends commercial electronic messages, those communications must comply with Canada's Anti-Spam Legislation (CASL).