July 28, 2008

Homeowner Protection Office

More than 40,000 British Columbia condo units still need repairs: HPO report

JEAN SORENSEN

correspondent

A recently released report indicates that the leaky condo crisis in British Columbia is far from over.

It states that the construction industry can expect to continue bearing the cost with a $750 reconstruction levy on each new multi-family housing unit built in the coastal zone for the next decade and that more than 40,000 units still need repairs.

In addition, a retired B.C. engineer and outspoken critic of the condo boondoggle maintained that the current rainscreen and drain cavity technology is only creating another generation of buildings with future problems.

“We haven’t dealt with the fundamental issue,” said Ken Dextras.

He has authored a book on the condo crisis, lectured and lobbied, and developed an in-wall humidity control system to prevent dry rot from occurring.

The report, carried out by the consulting firm of McClanaghan and Associates, was released by the Homeowner Protection Office (HPO).

It looks at what progress has been made over the past nine years and what work still remains to be done.

Buildings built between 1982 and 1999 were identified as being problematic.

The HPO reconstruction program is funded by the $750 unit levy and the office pays the interest on Canada Housing and Mortgage Corporation (CHMC) loans to repair buildings.

The majority of the problem buildings have wooden frame, but the report states there are some concrete structures that are also showing signs of envelope failure and more could develop later.

The report states the number of strata apartments, which have undergone repair to date stands at 30,664.

It derived the figure from using a combination of HPO loan data and BC Assessment data.

It estimates that there are a total of 72,193 strata units with major envelope problems and by subtracting the 30,664 units already repaired.

An estimated 41,529 units presently require major repairs.

The report also estimates how the number of units translates into demand from the HPO Reconstruction Program.

The report concludes that from the period of 2008-2012, the range will be from 6,631 to 10,329 loans, worth between $445 million and $696 million.

The report estimates that in the next five years, about 17,595 to 27,408 units will be repaired (some without CHMC funding) and that 14,121 to 23,934 will still require repairs after 2012.

“This study confirms that the future demand for HPO loan assistance will likely remain high over the next five to 10 years,” the report states.

Dextras said the report just provides statistical information and does nothing to point the industry towards better construction practices.

He said the crisis stemmed from escalating oil prices in the 1970s and the move by the federal government to change the national building code to provide tighter envelopes mitigating heat loss.

However, escaping heat was a factor in ensuring that the envelopes stayed dry as well.

Instead, said Dextras, these new tighter envelopes drew in moisture from exterior leaks and condensation and it remained trapped within the envelope leading to dry rot in wood-frame buildings.

Dextras said that when the condo crisis started emerging, he studied older homes to determine how they had withstood the years.

In looking at homes built in New Westminster in the 1930s, he found that they “leaked like sieves” and the structural timbers had cracks, but the design withstood more than 70 years without rot.

“The buildings had been allowed to breathe,” he said, but added because of an enhanced building code, building to that standard is no longer possible.

Also, the current rainscreen design will only provide partial coverage, he maintained.

“Moisture will always find its way past that,” he said, adding that wood shrinks over the years and causes gaps to occur.

It can shrink almost an inch per storey, he said.

Dextras said the only real solution, as energy costs soar, is to have a forced air ventilation system in place that immediately recognizes when the walls are becoming damp and directs heat into the cavity to dry it out.

He’s designed such as system, but it would add about $3,000 to the cost of the unit.

But, Dextras didn’t stop there. He questioned the role of the HPO and five or 10 year warranties for problems that can take years to develop.

“The HPO should and could be eliminated,” he said.

Dextras added that developers should use professional engineers to design and guarantee a wood-frame within a multi-storey building with a 50-year warranty.

Then, the design of the drainage, ventilation, and other components are designed towards ensuring that standard.

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