The leaky condo crisis, or why you need a rainscreen.
You’ve probably heard about the leaky condo crisis (also called the rotten condo crisis, leaky condo syndrome or leaky condos) before, but if not, a brief recap will help us understand why we need rainscreens. From around the early 1980s until the early 2000s, the Lower Mainland experienced a building boom. Condos were thrown up everywhere, often with little consideration for Vancouver’s wet weather.
In a rush to complete structures, sometimes shoddy quality and fly-by-night developers cropped up. Meanwhile, Vancouver and neighbouring cities did not always require proof that designs met code and even after they did, enforcement was lax. Those codes were based on national building codes, which were concerned with cold, dry weather (understandable for the rest of Canada) and did not sufficiently consider the local, wet climate.
At the same time, drawing inspiration from Mediterranean and Californian architecture, these strata buildings were designed to handle long sunny days and hot weather. Their exterior walls were often stucco – but also other materials – applied directly to the structure and tightly sealed. This formed the building envelope. Basically, that’s the walls, roof, windows, doors and anything else that stands between you and the outdoors. What’s more, these styles usually did not feature overhanging eaves or other means to keep rainwater away from walls. While this may have worked in hot, sunny Los Angeles, it didn’t here.
Unsuitable architecture, faults in local building codes, lack of enforcement and poor construction quality created a perfect storm. Water found its way into walls and never left, known as catastrophic building envelope failure. It couldn’t dry out in Vancouver’s climate and it couldn’t leave because the envelope was sealed. So, wood-framed buildings rotted from the inside out. Some metal-stud and concrete buildings didn’t escape unscathed, either.
The result was a slew of rotten, mouldy condos, lawsuits, new building codes with stricter enforcement and many homeowners facing extreme financial hardship, even bankruptcy. Estimates found that 45% of all strata units built in BC between 1985 and 2000 leaked and that nearly 90% of three- and four-storey strata complexes built in Vancouver between 1980 and 1995 faced serious problems. Even detached homes, townhouses and public buildings, such as schools and hospitals, were not spared.
Buildings wrapped in tarps and scaffolding cropped up everywhere while undergoing repairs and strata boards sent out millions – if not billions – total in special levies to their residents.
We now understand that you can’t keep water out. It will always find a way in. Instead, we design buildings to drain away any water that does make it past the exterior finishing of a building. That’s what a rainscreen does.
Rainscreens save the day.
The hard-learned lesson of the leaky condo crisis is this: water can make its way into anything. Instead of trying to block it completely, which only ends up trapping it inside, we need to drain it away properly. It may seem counterintuitive to allow water past an exterior wall at all, but to understand why this works, we need to examine what rainscreens are.
While the condos built during the crisis assumed the best approach was tightly fitting layers of material with no gaps to form a building’s envelope, as mentioned this didn’t let anything drain or dry if water made its way in. That could be through a hole, design defect, construction errors or another cause. Though these may not be immediately visible, they exist. All buildings settle, crack and degrade over time. They must be built with water penetration in mind.
In contrast, a rainscreen introduces a cavity for water to drain away or evaporate. Basically, that is open space between one layer of a building’s envelope and the rest. Picture it like this, there’s a layer of cladding – like vinyl siding – a gap, a vapour barrier and another wall, followed by insulation and finally the interior wall and finishes. Look at the diagram below to see it all in action compared to a leaky condo’s wall.
Note that every so often as you go up a building, there will be purposeful breaks in the exterior cladding with flashing, which are thin strips of material that cover joints or gaps. These covered breaks are also part of the rainscreen, as they provide areas for water to drain away and air to enter.
The key in the entire setup is the gaps, both behind the cladding and every so often on the surface. Even if water does make it past all these defenses, it has the chance to drain away or evaporate. This is obviously better for coastal BC’s wet climate. Building codes have required rainscreens ever since 1997 in Vancouver and since at least 1998 in Richmond and New Westminster. Since 2006 they’ve been mandatory in all coastal areas according to the BC Building Code.
But if your building wasn't built with a rainscreen, retrofitting one is a costly, time-consuming process. That’s why it’s worth it to take the time to see if the condo you’re looking to buy has done so.
Watch Adina Dragasanu at Oakwyn Realty discuss the impacts of the leaky condo crisis for Homeseekers in BC.
The costs and hassles of retrofitting a rainscreen.
In short, your building needs a rainscreen. Whether it’s been retrofitted or built that way from the ground up, foregoing this essential feature sets you up for all sorts of headaches.
Let’s start with the retrofitting process. If a strata board determines that their building needs a rainscreen retrofitted, they’ll likely get cost estimates and timelines from contractors. They’ll pass these on to residents, who will have to pay for the repairs.
Rainscreen retrofits can often cost upwards of millions of dollars and could take years, meaning each unit may have to pay $50,000 to $70,000 or more. Essentially, the old envelope needs to be torn off and a new one installed. If you’re already living in the building, that’s a lot to budget for.
And if you’re looking to buy a condo in that strata, you may end up having to pay for that new rainscreen soon after moving in. That’s a huge hit to your already depleted savings after having just bought your new home.
You may also find insurers unwilling to cover your condo and lenders reluctant to approve a mortgage in the first place if the building you are interested in urgently needs a rainscreen. On the other hand if you can get a mortgage, lenders may demand larger down payments or higher monthly incomes to qualify for a loan on a potentially leaky condo. Of course, this all lowers resale values, too. As a result, some strata units in non-retrofitted buildings may list for low prices, but you end up with hassles and much more money out of your pocket later if you purchase one.
So, be sure to find out if the building you are considering has a rainscreen. If it was built in a coastal area after the year 2006, it likely does, since the BC Building Code was updated to require them. But if it was built before then, do your due diligence.
Ask the listing agent, seller or your buyer’s agent to see the strata’s meeting minutes and records. These can get confusing, though. So, an engineering report or professional inspection of the building envelope may also be a good idea. You want to be sure a rainscreen was installed and paid for. Spending a small amount of money now will save you lots later.
If the seller seems cagey about it or you cannot confirm the building has a rainscreen, it’s best to steer clear. You don’t want to end up in a condo that needs expensive repairs.
How to ensure your building has a rainscreen.
As mentioned, one way to be sure your potential new condo building has a rainscreen installed is to look over meeting minutes, depreciation reports and maintenance documents. But there are other signs to look for, too.
Note that many strata buildings take a phased approach to installing a new rainscreen. It’s a big undertaking, after all. That often means a patchwork exterior with some sections having a rainscreen and others still waiting for one.
So, what are signs of a rainscreen in place? While there are exceptions, here are some general things to look for.
1. Cladding interrupted by flashing at regular intervals.
As you can see in the photo on the left a strata built in 1995 and since rainscreened, this building has cladding with strategically placed gaps and flashing to let water drain away and air enter. While it uses multiple types of cladding, all are part of the rainscreen and have the same features.
2. Balcony railings affixed to the side, not the top, of decks.
The BC code was updated to mandate balcony railings attach to the side of decks, not the top. This helps ensure most water doesn’t get into wood and cause rot, and any water that does happen to make it in can safely drain away. As part of an envelope retrofit, these often get updated, too. The example on the right, built in 1984 and since rainscreened, showcases this. But it isn’t always a reliable indication, because your property may have been rainscreened before the requirement was in place or not have balconies.
3. Brick or stone veneer.
Many brick or stone veneer walls already feature an air gap between the masonry and the rest of the building. This is not always the case, though, meaning it’s still important to make sure no units are leaky. The example on the left is a 2023 build, so it is properly rainscreened brick veneer with balcony railings attached to the sides of decks.
While these signs usually indicate a rainscreen is present, the only sure ways to know are looking through the documents of the strata you’re interested in, getting the envelope inspected by a professional or buying a condo in a newer building.
Final Thoughts
Clearly, rainscreens are essential in coastal BC’s climate. Always make sure the building you're looking to buy in has one equipped, whether that means a retrofit or it was built after 2006 in coastal BC. And remember that townhouses and other buildings can also suffer from leaky condo syndrome. If you’re unsure an older structure has been built to handle the weather, find out. With some due diligence, you can still land the home of your dreams and keep the rain out, too.
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