The Complete Guide to Buying a Presale in BC
Most presale buyers are handed a brochure. This guide hands you the spreadsheet. If you’re buying new construction anywhere in Greater Vancouver, this is the plain-English walkthrough of how a presale actually works: the process, the contract, the deposits, the taxes, and the timeline. It’s written so you can make a clear decision instead of a hopeful one.
It’s long on purpose. Bookmark it, and jump to any section using the contents below.
What this guide covers
- What “presale” actually means in BC
- Why people buy presale, and the honest trade-offs
- The buying process, step by step
- The 7-day rescission period: your most important right
- The documents you’re signing
- Deposits: structure, schedule and protection
- The taxes: GST, the new GST rebate, PTT and exemptions
- The timeline: contract to orientation to completion
- Assignments: selling before completion
- Construction risk, delays and sunset clauses
- Who can buy: the foreign buyer ban
- Common mistakes presale buyers make
- Frequently asked questions
What “presale” actually means in BC
A presale (or “pre-construction”) purchase means you’re buying a home that doesn’t physically exist yet. You’re signing a contract to buy a specific unit in a development the builder intends to construct, based on floor plans, renderings, and a written disclosure of what they’re promising to deliver. You typically pay a deposit now and the balance at completion: the day the building is finished, registered, and ready to occupy, often two to four years later.
This is a fundamentally different transaction from buying a resale home. There’s no building to inspect, no current owner, and the price is set today for a home you’ll receive years from now. That gap between what’s promised on paper and what gets built is exactly where a knowledgeable buyer protects themselves.
BC is different from Ontario. If you’ve read about presales in Toronto, forget “interim occupancy.” That Ontario concept, where you move in and pay occupancy fees before the building registers, generally does not apply in BC. Here, you complete and take title at the same time. Don’t apply Ontario advice to a BC purchase.
Why people buy presale, and the honest trade-offs
The case for presale is real, but so are the trade-offs. A clear-eyed buyer weighs both.
The advantages: you lock today’s price on a home that completes years from now, so any appreciation during construction accrues to you. The deposit is staged over time rather than paid all at once, which is easier on cash flow. You get a brand-new home, often with the ability to choose a floor, an exposure, and finishes, under full new-home warranty. And in BC, new homes carry mandatory 2-5-10 home warranty coverage.
The trade-offs: your capital is tied up for years with no rental income and no ability to live in the home. Completion dates slip, because construction delays are normal rather than exceptional. The finished product can differ from the renderings within the limits the contract allows. And if the market falls during construction, you’re still committed to the contract price. Presale is not a guaranteed win. It’s a leveraged, time-delayed bet that rewards buyers who understand what they signed.
The buying process, step by step
Here’s the typical sequence for a Greater Vancouver presale:
- VIP / early access. The strongest pricing and best unit selection usually happen before the public launch, through agents with direct developer relationships. This is the single biggest reason to have representation in place before you start.
- Worksheet submission. You submit a “worksheet” ranking your preferred units. This is not a binding offer. It’s an expression of interest the developer uses to allocate units.
- Contract signing. If you’re allocated a unit, you sign the Contract of Purchase and Sale and receive the disclosure statement. You pay the initial deposit, usually held in trust.
- The 7-day rescission period. A legally protected window in which you can cancel for any reason and get your deposit back. Details are below, and this matters more than anything else on this list.
- Deposit schedule. You pay the remaining deposits on the dates set in your contract, often staged over the construction period.
- Construction. Two to four years, typically. You wait; the developer builds.
- Orientation / deficiency walkthrough. Near completion you tour the finished unit and document deficiencies for the builder to fix.
- Completion. You pay the balance (usually with a mortgage), take title, and get your keys.
The 7-day rescission period: your most important right
Under BC’s Real Estate Development Marketing Act (REDMA), a presale buyer has a 7-day right of rescission. Within those seven days you can cancel the contract for any reason, or no reason at all, simply by giving the developer written notice. Your deposit is returned in full, along with any interest earned on it, and exercising this right costs you nothing.
Two details people get wrong:
- When the clock starts. The seven days run from the later of two dates: the day you sign the purchase agreement, or the day you sign a written acknowledgement that you received and reviewed the disclosure statement. The period includes weekends and holidays.
- What it’s actually for. This is your window to have a lawyer and your agent review the full contract and disclosure statement, and, critically, to confirm your financing. Treat the seven days as a deadline to do real diligence, not as a formality.
Don’t confuse two different rules. The 7-day presale rescission under REDMA is not the same as BC’s 3-business-day “Home Buyer Rescission Period,” which applies to most resale homes. Presale buyers get the longer 7-day REDMA right; resale buyers get the shorter cooling-off period. They are separate laws.
The documents you’re signing
A presale purchase isn’t one document. It’s a stack, and it can run well past 200 pages. The three you must understand:
1. The Disclosure Statement
REDMA requires the developer to give you a disclosure statement before they can sell you a unit. It’s the developer’s formal description of what they’re selling: the development, the strata, the building, estimated completion, the budget and bylaws, and your right to rescind. If a material fact changes after it’s filed, whether the completion timeline, the strata plan, or the budget, the developer must file an amendment. Read every amendment; they’re where the changes hide.
2. The Contract of Purchase and Sale (CPS)
This is the binding agreement: the price, the unit, the deposit schedule, the completion mechanics, and the developer’s rights. Unlike a resale negotiation, most presale contracts are presented on the developer’s standard terms with little room to change them. That doesn’t mean you sign blind. It means you read carefully so you know exactly what you’ve agreed to.
3. Addendums
Addendums are attachments that modify or add to the main contract, covering things like finishes, parking and storage, assignment rights, the developer’s right to make changes, and deposit terms. They carry the same legal weight as the body of the contract, and they’re often where the terms that actually affect you live.
Deposits: structure, schedule and protection
Presale deposits are typically 15-20% of the purchase price, staged over the construction period. A common structure is 5% on signing, another 5% a few months later, and so on. Some developments offer lower deposits (10%) or require extended deposits (25%+); the structure is set in your contract.
Two things to confirm before you commit:
- Where your money is held. Deposits on BC presales are generally required to be held in trust (for example, in the developer’s lawyer’s or brokerage’s trust account) rather than spent by the developer, which protects you if the deal doesn’t complete. Confirm the trust arrangement in your contract.
- The schedule. Every deposit date is a hard deadline. Map them against your cash flow before you sign, not after.
The taxes: GST, the new GST rebate, PTT and exemptions
New homes are taxed differently than resale homes, and 2025-2026 brought a major change worth real money. (Figures below were current as of June 2026; tax rules change with each budget, so confirm the current numbers with your lawyer or accountant.)
GST, and the new First-Time Home Buyer rebate
New construction is subject to 5% GST (resale homes generally are not). The big news: the federal government introduced a First-Time Home Buyers’ GST Rebate. For eligible first-time buyers, it eliminates the GST on a new home priced up to $1 million (a saving of up to $50,000) and phases the rebate down between $1 million and $1.5 million, disappearing above $1.5 million.
The timing rules matter for presale buyers specifically. The purchase agreement generally must be signed with the builder on or after May 27, 2025 (and before 2031), with construction beginning before 2031. The CRA began accepting applications in March 2026. If you signed before May 27, 2025, you generally don’t qualify, which is why the contract date can be worth tens of thousands of dollars.
Property Transfer Tax (PTT) and its exemptions
BC charges Property Transfer Tax at completion (1% on the first $200,000, 2% to $2 million, 3% above that, plus a further 2% on residential value above $3 million). Two exemptions matter to presale buyers:
- Newly Built Home Exemption: a full PTT exemption on a qualifying new home with a fair market value up to $1,100,000, partially phased out to $1,150,000. You must be a Canadian citizen or permanent resident and use it as your principal residence.
- First-Time Home Buyers’ Exemption: a full exemption on qualifying homes up to $835,000 fair market value (the first $500,000 fully exempt), phasing out to $860,000.
You generally claim the exemption that benefits you most. Getting this right, and confirming you qualify, can save thousands at completion.
The timeline: contract to orientation to completion
Two dates confuse almost every first-time presale buyer: the orientation and the completion.
The orientation (also called the deficiency walkthrough or pre-completion inspection) is your visit to the finished unit shortly before completion. You inspect the home and document deficiencies, such as scratches, defects, or anything not built to standard, on a list the builder is expected to address. It is not the day you get your keys.
The completion date is when the sale legally closes: you pay the balance (usually funded by your mortgage), title transfers to you, and you take possession. Your contract will typically reference an estimated completion date and an outside completion date (the latest the developer is contractually allowed to complete). Understand both. The estimate is a target; the outside date is the real limit.
Assignments: selling before completion
An assignment is selling your contract to a new buyer before the building completes. You transfer your rights and obligations, and they complete the purchase. It’s how some buyers exit (or profit) before taking title, but it comes with rules:
- Developer consent. Most contracts require the developer’s permission to assign, and may charge an assignment fee. Some prohibit assignment entirely until a certain stage.
- CSAIR reporting. BC requires assignments of presale contracts to be reported to the Condo and Strata Assignment Integrity Register (CSAIR), including the parties’ identities and the amounts paid. This information is shared with tax authorities.
- Tax on the profit. Profit on an assignment is generally taxable income, and GST may apply to the assignment depending on your original intent (living in it versus buying to flip). This is an area to get professional advice on before you assign.
Construction risk, delays and sunset clauses
Delays are the norm in presale. A completion date that slips by months is common; the question is what your contract says about it. The sunset clause (or outside completion date) is the long-stop date by which the development must complete. If it doesn’t, the contract can be terminated and deposits returned. Know that date, know who can trigger it, and know what happens to your deposit and any interest if the project is cancelled or significantly delayed.
Who can buy: the foreign buyer ban
Canada’s Prohibition on the Purchase of Residential Property by Non-Canadians Act currently restricts most non-citizens and non-permanent-residents from buying residential property, and has been extended through January 1, 2027. There are exceptions (certain work-permit holders, some students, and others), and the rules interact with presale timing in specific ways. If citizenship or residency status is a factor for you, get advice before you sign, because the penalties for getting it wrong are significant.
Common mistakes presale buyers make
- Treating the 7 days as a formality. It’s your window for legal review and financing confirmation. Use it fully.
- Not confirming financing early. Lenders won’t fund years in advance, but you should understand your borrowing position and the risk that rates and rules change before completion.
- Reading the brochure, not the contract. Renderings sell; the contract and disclosure statement govern. Where they conflict, the documents win.
- Ignoring the deposit schedule. Every date is a hard deadline. Missing one can put you in default.
- Assuming the completion date is fixed. It’s an estimate. Plan around the outside date.
- Going in without independent representation. The sales staff in the presentation centre work for the developer. You want someone on your side of the table.
Frequently asked questions
How much deposit do I need for a presale in BC?
Typically 15-20% of the purchase price, staged over the construction period, though some developments offer 10% or require 25%+. The exact schedule is set in your contract.
Can I back out of a presale contract?
Yes. Within the 7-day rescission period under REDMA you can cancel for any reason and get your deposit back. After that window, your ability to exit depends on the contract, and may require an assignment.
Do I pay GST on a presale?
New homes are subject to 5% GST. Eligible first-time buyers may now recover up to $50,000 through the federal First-Time Home Buyers’ GST Rebate on homes up to $1 million (phasing out to $1.5 million), for contracts signed on or after May 27, 2025.
What’s the difference between orientation and completion?
Orientation is your pre-completion walkthrough to document deficiencies. Completion is when you pay the balance, take title, and get your keys.
Can a non-Canadian buy a presale?
Generally restricted under the federal foreign-buyer ban currently in effect through January 1, 2027, with some exceptions. Get advice on your specific status before signing.
Buying a presale? Get the spreadsheet, not the brochure.
I work exclusively in Greater Vancouver presales: the deposit math, the construction risk, the assignment terms, and an honest answer on whether a given project is worth it. Representation is at no cost to you as a buyer, and most consultations start with a straightforward 30-minute call. Bilingual service in English, Cantonese, and Mandarin.
This guide is general information about buying presale property in British Columbia, not legal, tax, or financial advice. Laws, tax rates, and thresholds change, and figures here were current as of June 2026. Always confirm the details of your specific purchase with a licensed lawyer, accountant, and your real estate advisor before signing or relying on any of the above.