A condo owner from B.C.’s Lower Mainland who received $89,000 in strata fines after her unit was used as a short-term rental has managed to get the bulk of the penalties reversed. Yufeng Zhang denied violating her building’s bylaws—which prohibit properties from being rented out on platforms such as Airbnb—and fought the strata corporation’s fines through B.C.’s Civil Resolution Tribunal. In her July 27 decision, tribunal member Alissa Reynolds sided with the strata, finding there was sufficient evidence of a short-term rental operating in Zhang’s unit, while also disputing the corporation’s approach. “It did fine the wrong amounts,” Reynolds wrote. She determined the bulk of the penalties were either “unproven or overcharged,” reversing $86,000 and leaving Zhang owing $3,000. Evidence of temporary guests In making its case, the strata pointed to security camera images from the building’s lobby and elevator—some depicting people with luggage, others showing a cleaner with supplies—as well as key fob data connecting them to Zhang’s condo. Reynolds found it “more likely than not” that Zhang’s home was used on Airbnb or a similar service. “I find the luggage, cleaner, and key fob usage is consistent with a short-term rental accommodation,” she wrote. “Mrs. Zhang did not address this evidence, other than to say it is circumstantial.” The strata alleged the unit was rented out on five occasions between November 2023 and February 2024, but in two instances just provided security camera images, without corresponding fob data. Reynolds upheld the fines in the other three instances only. ‘Knew or ought to have known’ Zhang told the tribunal she had a long-term renter during the period in question—and while she acknowledged “some oversight in her tenant management,” done through a third-party agent, she maintained she was unaware the unit was being rented out for short-term use. Reynolds said the “numerous bylaw infraction notices” the strata sent to her email should have tipped her off about the misuse of her condo. Zhang said her email on file “I find Mrs. Zhang either knew or ought to have known,” Reynolds wrote. She also questioned some of the evidence Zhang provided, including a tenancy agreement said to have been signed on in November 2023, but which the condo owner later admitted had been backdated. The document raised “serious concerns about Mrs. Zhang’s credibility” that were not adequately addressed, Reynolds said. “I do not accept that Mrs. Zhang had a long-term renter in place,” she added. Notification process not followed For its part, the strata appears to have miscalculated Zhang’s fines. While the corporation tried penalizing the condo owner $1,000 per day for each short-term rental, Reynolds interpreted the building’s bylaws as only allowing daily fines after a contravention “continues without interruption” for longer than seven days. She found that permits the strata to apply a $1,000 fine for the first week, then $1,000 per day thereafter. Reynolds also determined the strata had failed to complete a two-step notification process—as required under B.C.’s Strata Property Act—before ramping up the fines, so it could only collect $1,000 per violation for three rentals spanning a combined 55 days. On top of the $3,000, Zhang was ordered to pay the corporation’s $125 in tribunal fees.
