Brieanna Charlebois

The home on Windsor Street in East Vancouver has admittedly seen better days.

Its yard is overgrown, the weathered shingles are barely hanging on in places, and the back stairs have completely disintegrated. 

But with an official BC Assessment valuation of more than $1.7 million, the house could represent a bargain when it goes up for sale at Vancouver’s annual tax auction at city hall on Wednesday with a reserve price of just $72,051.

The property is among 116 properties listed for auction by the City of Vancouver in this year’s tax sale, in which properties whose owners have not paid their taxes for three years are auctioned off, with the reserve, or upset price, set at the amount owed to the city.

If East Vancouver is not to your taste, then perhaps Point Grey Road? It’s one of the most exclusive addresses in Canada, where neighbours include Lululemon billionaire Chip Wilson, whose $73-million home is the most valuable in B.C.

A few blocks down the road from Wilson are two side-by-side houses valued around $5 million and $6 million. They are steps from Jericho Beach and the Royal Vancouver Yacht Club, and have upset prices of about $289,000 and $355,000 at the tax auction, around half the benchmark price for an apartment in the city, according to the Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver.

There is, of course, a catch.

After auction day, the current owners have a year to redeem their property by paying their taxes, resulting in a refund to the bidder, plus interest.

Ron Usher, a retired notary public, said tax auctions are “not for the faint of heart or the inexperienced.”

“I suspect some of these tax sales are more whoops than deliberate,” Usher said, citing situations such as inheritances.

“You can imagine the law is very much structured to give the maximum possible opportunity for the owner to sort out the problem,” Usher said. 

Sean Holden, a longtime Vancouver Realtor, called bidding at the auction “an exercise in futility.”

He said he often steers clients away from the auction. When asked if he has ever attended himself, his response is quick.

“I wouldn’t waste my time,” he said through a chuckle.

Holden points out that tax auction sales that go through to completion are very rare.

But they do happen, both in Vancouver and other B.C. municipalities that conduct their auctions every September on properties with two years of unpaid taxes.

Three properties have changed hands in the last five years in Burnaby, while the City of Vancouver said in a statement that there “were only three instances in the last 10 years where a property changed hands from a tax sale.”

“The property taxes on almost all properties have historically been paid within the one-year redemption period,” the statement said.

The city tells potential buyers not to trespass, but recommends people do their own research before bidding, noting in a posting last week that it is not responsible for the condition or quality of the homes.

“Prospective purchasers are urged to research the properties and make all necessary inquiries to municipal and other government departments to determine the existence of any bylaws, restriction, charges or other conditions which may affect the value or suitability of the properties,” it says.

Holden, who has been a Realtor in the city for about three decades, said that adds risk for the buyer.

“You don’t know what condition it will be, and (if) the sellers are forced out by the bank, whether they knock holes in the wall or do other strange things. You’re taking a huge risk,” he said.

The City of Vancouver would not provide the addresses or prices of any homes that had changed hands through the tax auction without a freedom of information request.

But the only two properties listed for sale in Burnaby last year both went through.

The minutes from the tax sale show three people attended, and the same person purchased both properties.

An empty 9,262-square-foot lot on Walker Avenue sold for the upset price of $845, while its assessed value is $37,700. 

The other property, which had an upset price of $269, was sold to the same buyer for $5,000. That may be less of a bargain — the property measures just 94 square feet and has a valuation of $3,600.

The City of Burnaby confirmed both properties were transferred after the one-year redemption period expired.

The City of Kelowna said it had an average of “about three to four properties” sold at its auction over the past six years, but added that “actual transfers of ownership through this process are very rare.”

“City staff recall the last transfer occurring around 2016/2017,” a spokeswoman said in a statement.

Abbotsford did not auction any properties this year or in 2024, but in 2025, it had two properties on the block. One sale went through on what the city called “a small undeveloped piece of land.”

After Wednesday’s Vancouver sale, which starts at 10 a.m., the highest bidders must pay the upset price by noon Thursday.

If the owner eventually pays the tax, the bidder is refunded the upset fee with interest of six per cent. But if it is not redeemed by its owner within the year, the bidder must pay the balance of their bid within 30 days. 

Holden said bidders need to be prepared for their money to be tied up for a while, noting that while a six per cent interest rate may be enticing, most owners end up paying their taxes.

“Certainly it’s a way to put pressure on people to pay those outstanding taxes, and that’s basically the function of it, for what it’s worth,” he said.

That seems to be the case for the property on Windsor Street, where a man who identified himself as the owner exited the house, causing the entire structure to rattle as he closed the door.

The resident, who declined to give his name, said he was aware his home was going on the auction block.

The property was, he said, his family home, while acknowledging that its ramshackle condition made living there “a challenge.” 

But he brushed off any concern about it being sold out from under him.

“I have a year to pay it,” he said of his tax bill.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 4, 2026.

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