Eligibility
Discover if you qualify for the Rental Protection Fund and secure your affordable housing today.
Eligibility overview
Who can apply
Applicants to the fund must be non-profit societies. This may include:
Non-Profit Societies
Incorporated under the BC Societies Act
Housing Cooperatives
Incorporated under the BC Cooperative Associations Act as Community Service/Non-Profit coops
Indigenous Housing Providers
Operating as non-profit societies
First Nations and Indigenous Housing Organizations
Incorporated under the Canadian Not-For-Profit Corporations Act
Organizational requirements
Compliance
Must be in compliance with all existing agreements, financial, audit and reporting obligations.
Declaration of any perceived conflicts of interested will be required.
Capacity
Must have experience of managing non-profit housing projects under an existing housing portfolio
Must demonstrate capacity to expand its operations to include the properties proposed for acquisition
Governance
A strong Governance structure is in place, organizationally and with regards to Acquisitions.
Board support for Application and Acquisitions Strategy.
Property eligibility
After being pre-qualified as an organization, applicants may submit a Property Pre-Qualification Application to the Rental Protection Fund to ensure prospective acquisitions meet the Fund's eligibility criteria.
This approach is intentionally designed to remain flexible, accommodating innovative acquisition strategies while ensuring the Fund fulfills its mandate to protect at-risk tenants, secure long-term affordability, and maximize value and social outcomes for each investment dollar.
To be eligible for Fund consideration, property applications must:
- Be freehold, and of a scale and geography that is operationally efficient and aligned with the capacity of the organization
- Not currently be owned by a government, federal, provincial or municipal entity
- Not currently be bound by Operating Agreements AND not reliant on Operating Subsidies/Agreements once acquired
- Support Housing Security, meaning existing tenants cannot be displaced
- Be primarily residential. Permitted commercial uses can not exceed a maximum of 25% of the building’s total floor space.
- Be for the acquisition of buildings not individual units
- Be for the acquisition of self-contained units and not SROs
- Be for the acquisition of existing properties and not new development
- Be at risk of a significant rent increase or redevelopment
- Have a minimum of 5 units, 4 in rural and remote municipalities
Property considerations
Affordable Rents
To be eligible under the Rental Protection Fund, rental buildings must have a significant number of rental units attainable to middle-income British Columbians.
If you have any questions about whether a property meets the affordability criteria of the Fund, please send the building’s rent roll to: info@rentalprotectionfund.ca.
Financing
There is an expectation that applicants obtain long-term, first-mortgage financing to support acquisition and/or renovation costs to the greatest extent possible.
Capacity
Acquisitions must be aligned with the Applicant’s current portfolio/experience, and operational and administrative expenses should reflect reasonable OpEx ratios considering the size, age, condition and operational history of the buildings.
Still have questions?
Find detailed answers about eligibility, funding, and how the Rental Protection Fund supports community housing.