Leaky-condo owners cry foul over stalled repair loans

Some owners of leaking condos in Victoria say they are being left out in the rain by the very office that was set up to help them.

The Homeowner Protection Office was set up by the provincial government after the leaky condo crisis of the 1990s to provide interest-free loans to condo owners who couldn't raise money for the expensive repairs any other way. An investigation blamed the leaks on poor construction and inadequate building codes.

But now the HPO is ignoring the people it's supposed to help, according to a group of homeowners who claim their loan applications are going unprocessed while their buildings rot in the rain.

Owners at the Sovereign complex in Victoria say they initially breathed a sigh of relief last fall when representatives of the HPO promised to help them finance their condo repairs with the special interest-free loans.

Seventeen of the complex's 39 owners applied for the loans, according to Linda Soloshy, the president of the strata council, which manages the building on behalf of the owners.

"We all were very encouraged by the hope that there was light at the end of the tunnel," Soleshy told CBC News.

But since then, not one loan has been approved and the HPO is refusing to issue any explanation, despite repeated inquiries, according to Soloshy.

Inquiries unanswered

"Repeatedly we have phoned and emailed and so on.… Each owner has done this on their own, and largely they've gone unanswered." Soloshy said.

"I did address the whole issue with the CEO of HPO, who gave me a one-line answer: 'I'm sorry we are not able to give you any information on this file at this time,'" she said.

As a result, the strata council's plan to fix the leaky complex has been put on hold while the owners search for a way to raise the cash, estimated to be between $35,000 and $46,000 per unit.

"We cannot not fix the building.… We really don't know which way to turn. We don't want to go through another rainy season with the level of water ingress that we've already experienced," said Soloshy.

Delays will raise costs of repairs

Dave Ricketts, a principal with Vancouver's RDH Engineering, says three of the company's condo reconstruction projects are on hold because owners can't get HPO funding. 

"We were not aware of anything until probably March of this year, when some of our owners started giving us this feedback," said Ricketts.

But the delays could end up costing owners more, as the continuing water damage makes the problem worse.

"Once you know you have a problem, the damage associated with that problem is going to increase over time as it continues to get wet. So there is that risk, and the costs will go up," said Ricketts.

A provincial government media relations officer told CBC News the HPO loan program is funded by fees collected from new home construction and the recent construction slowdown has limited the office's ability to provide loans.

The organization is forecasting a deficit this year, but applications are still being accepted, said the official.