Half Duplex | Living in one
Buying a Half Duplex With a Suite
A suite changes the arithmetic of the purchase and it also changes what you are taking on. Both halves of that deserve attention before you rely on the rent.
The short answer
A suite can help you qualify for a larger mortgage and it makes you a landlord with the obligations that carries. The critical distinction is legal against unauthorized: a legal suite is permitted and inspected, an unauthorized one is not, and you inherit whatever that means at the address you buy.
Homes that state a suite
274 active listings
- Median list price
- $1,477,500
- Median price per sq ft
- $583
- Median size
- 2,445 sq ft
- Median strata fee
- $292
- Median annual property tax
- $4,985
typical range $1,108,630 to $2,289,700
typical range $412 to $1,054
typical range 1,769 sq ft to 3,542 sq ft
typical range $74 to $400
13 of 274 listings state one
typical range $2,708 to $9,750
107 of 274 listings state one
Measured across 274 active listings on .
Where these homes are
Click a pin for the photo, the price, and a Street View link.
257 of 274 homes plotted. 17 listings have no coordinates in the feed and cannot be placed. Click a pin for the photo, the price, and a Street View link. Zoom with the plus and minus buttons or by pinching.
Homes behind these numbers
$599,000B 2020 VIEWMOUNT COURT
FVREB Out of Town · 3 bed · 1,648 sq ft
$819,9002 8745 ASHWELL ROAD
Lower Landing · 4 bed · 2,417 sq ft
$859,900
Freehold
8576 DUNBAR WAY
Mission · 4 bed · 2,233 sq ft
$859,900
Freehold
8548 DUNBAR WAY
Mission · 4 bed · 2,233 sq ft
$879,9004 8745 ASHWELL ROAD
Lower Landing · 5 bed · 2,413 sq ft
$899,000
Freehold
1 46018 BONNY AVENUE
Chilliwack Proper East · 5 bed · 2,201 sq ft
$899,0006 6165 144 AVENUE
Sullivan Station · 4 bed · 2,005 sq ft
$899,0005 6165 144 AVENUE
Sullivan Station · 4 bed · 2,005 sq ft
$899,0008 14391 61A AVENUE
Sullivan Station · 4 bed · 2,128 sq ft
$899,000
Freehold
32529 HIGGINBOTTOM COURT
Mission · 6 bed · 3,149 sq ft
$899,000
Freehold
32531 HIGGINBOTTOM COURT
Mission · 6 bed · 3,145 sq ft
$919,9001 8745 ASHWELL ROAD
Lower Landing · 5 bed · 2,480 sq ft
262 more active listings are not shown here. Search every active listing . Prices are the list price. Most new homes have GST added on top.
Legal against unauthorized, and why it matters
A legal suite has been permitted and built to code as a separate dwelling unit. An unauthorized suite has not, whatever its condition and however long it has been rented.
You inherit the consequence either way. That can mean an order to remove it, an insurance position that differs from what you assumed, and a lender treating the rental income differently. None of that is theoretical and all of it is checkable before you buy.
What lenders do with the rent
Lenders will often count a portion of documented rental income toward qualifying, and how much varies by lender and by whether the suite is legal. It is not a simple addition to your income.
Get this from a broker on the specific property before you rely on it, because a suite that helps you qualify with one lender may not with another.
What you take on
Tenancies in BC are governed by the Residential Tenancy Act, which sets out notice, rent increase, and eviction rules that apply whether or not you thought of yourself as a landlord.
In a strata, bylaws may also restrict rentals. In a two-owner strata that restriction is a matter between you and one other household, which is simpler to change and easier to fall out over.
Is this right for you
Works well if
- ✓ The rent genuinely changes what you can afford, and you have checked with a broker
- ✓ You are comfortable being a landlord and understand the tenancy rules
- ✓ The suite is legal, or you have priced the risk of one that is not
Does not work if
- ✕ You need the rent to make the payment work and have not confirmed a lender will count it
- ✕ You want the space back later but a tenancy is in place
- ✕ The strata bylaws restrict rentals in a way you did not check
Check before you offer
- → Whether the suite is legal or unauthorized, from the municipality, not the listing
- → What a lender will actually count toward qualifying, on this specific property
- → The strata bylaws on rentals
- → Whether a tenancy is in place and on what terms, since you inherit it
Read next
Common questions
Does a suite help me qualify for a mortgage?
Often, and the amount counted varies by lender and by whether the suite is legal. It is not a straightforward addition to your income. Confirm it with a broker on the specific property before you build it into your budget.
What is the risk with an unauthorized suite?
You inherit it. That can mean an order to remove it, insurance that responds differently than you assumed, and lenders treating the income differently or not at all. Check the status with the municipality rather than relying on the listing description.
Can the strata stop me renting the suite?
Bylaws can restrict rentals, so read them. In a two-owner strata this is effectively an agreement with one other household, which cuts both ways: easier to change if you both want to, and harder to resolve if you do not.
Where these figures come from
- VanPlex active listings, MLS® data
Active townhouses, half duplexes, and row houses built in the last two years across Metro Vancouver and the Fraser Valley.
Checked
- BC Residential Tenancy Branch
Checked
See the half duplexes on the market
Every figure in this hub comes from listings you can open. Search the full set and filter by price, bedrooms, freehold or strata, pets, parking, and distance to a station.