Interim Sales of Property On Separation in British Columbia are critical and can occur in both a rising or falling market. Lorne MacLean, KC, founder of our team of high net worth family property division lawyers, explains the two part rule for selling real estate before a family law trial together with the factors the Court considers in deciding Interim Sales of Property On Separation.
- Interim Sales of Property On Separation can be made on an interim basis before trial in Chambers using affidavit and expert evidence.
- Rule 15-8(1) authorizes the court to order the interim sale of property where it is necessary or expedient.
- If a sale is not necessary, it must be advantageous to both parties.
- Any doubt about the justice of an interim sale order should be resolved in favour of maintaining the status quo.
- The party seeking to change the status quo bears the onus of proof.
Vancouver Interim Sales of Property On Separation Lawyers Tel: 604 602 9000
As we will see below two key factors a court considers on an interim sale of property is whether the market is rising or dropping in value as well as the ability of the parties to maintain the property pending trial or settlement. Mortgage rates, incomes of the parties and the need to find housing for two family units not just one are all key issues to be addressed.
Vancouver Real Estate Market Weak Tel: 604 602 9000
Our high net worth family property division lawyers know that Vancouver home sales activity fell again in May as buyers continue sitting on the sidelines, the city’s real estate board says in a recent article.
Greater Vancouver Realtors says residential sales in the region totalled 2,228 last month, an 18.5 per cent decrease from the same month a year earlier. Sales levels are 30.5 per cent below the 10-year seasonal average.
There were 6,620 newly listed properties on the market in May, a 3.9 per cent increase from May 2024, but still 9.3 per cent above the 10-year seasonal average for the month.
Greater Vancouver Realtors director of economics and data analytics Andrew Lis says year-to-date sales rank among the slowest to start the year in the past decade.
- The board says total active listings rose 25.7 per cent year-over-year to 17,094.
- The composite benchmark price in May was $1,177,100, down 2.9 per cent from a year earlier and 0.6 per cent lower than April.
We hear rumours that there is so much inventory now that realtors are turning down listings at present.
Interim Sales of Property On Separation Lawyers
Rule 15-8 of the Supreme Court Family Rules allows a court to order the sale of property in a family law case where it is “necessary or expedient” to do so. (Tsui v Chow, 2025 BCSC 14 (CanLII) para 137; Vyskovska v Vyskovsky, 2024 BCSC 1725 (CanLII) para 22) and the following extract from this case provides a tidy summary to help you understand how Interim Sales of Property On Separation works:
The Law – Immediate Family Property Sale Applications
[22] The Court’s general authority to force co-owners to sell real estate is found at s. 2 of the Partition of Property Act, R.S.B.C. 1996, c. 347. The Court’s specific authority to issue an interim order forcing the sale of family property prior to trial is provided for at s. 216 of the Family Law Act, S.B.C. 2011, c. 25 [FLA] and Rule 15-8 of the Supreme Court Family Rules, B.C. Reg. 169/2019. Rule 15-8(1) states:
15-8(1) If in a family law case it appears necessary or expedient that property be sold, the court may order the sale and may order a person in possession of the property or in receipt of the rents, profits or income from it to join in the sale and transfer of the property and deliver up the possession or receipt to the purchaser or person designated by the court.
[23] The decision of this Court in Morrison v. Greenwood, 2020 BCSC 1356 at paras. 25 to 31 sets out the legal principles that apply to immediate sale applications. They can be summarized as follows.
[24] Rule 15-8(1) authorizes the court to order the interim sale of property where it is necessary or expedient. If there is no necessity, the court still has the discretion to order a sale if it would be expedient to do so. However, consideration of whether the sale would be “expedient” differs from the “necessity” analysis, in that a finding of expediency involves a balancing of the interests of both parties and requires that the sale be advantageous to both.
[25] Most importantly, the onus on a Rule 15-8(1) application is on the spouse seeking to change the status quo pending trial. Any doubts about the justice of an order for sale on an interim application should be resolved in favour of the status quo.
[26] There is no exhaustive list of factors that must be considered on an immediate sale application. Some of the factors that have been considered in other cases include:
(a) the needs of the children;
(b) the availability of alternative accommodation (if the property is or may be used as a residence for a party and/or the children);
(c) the emotional condition of the spouses;
(d) external economic factors;
(e) wasting of the asset;
(f) the capacity of both parties to maintain the asset;
(g) whether the sale will promote early settlement;
(h) whether the sale will defeat a spouse’s claim for reapportionment;
(i) whether the sale is inevitable; and
(j) whether a spouse might be able to retain the property on a division of assets.
[27] Furthermore, potential prejudice to a party is always a factor in determining an interim application of this nature that irrevocably alters the status quo.
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