Land Titles for Condos – Interim Solution

Overview 

Following weeks of collaboration, we are pleased to announce that Service Alberta has accepted BILD Alberta’s proposed temporary and interim solution of expediting condominium registrations in the land titles system. This involves a number of procedural changes that are not anticipated to impact timelines for non-condo registrations. While firm timelines are not yet known, the relatively low number of condominium registrations suggests the reduction will be significant (potentially within a week). 

Guidance for Members

• The interim solution goes into effect immediately and applies only to new condominium registrations. 
• Service Alberta’s Briefing outlines the process and provides the forms required to request expedited registrations. 
• If you have registrations presently in the queue, you must re-submit them along with the additional forms highlighted in Service Alberta’s above briefing. 
• Requests will be processed in the order in which they are received (regardless of whether they were previously submitted or not). This is the only way Service Alberta can administratively deal with them. 
• As Service Alberta begins receiving requests, they will have a better understanding of the timeline for condo registrations. 

Longer-Term Changes to the Land Titles System

• Minister Nate Glubish has committed to a complete review and assessment of the current Land Titles system and associated processes.  
• The Alberta Digital Innovation Office has already initiated work with the intent of using technology and digitization to significantly streamline these processes. 

Why was an Interim Solution for Condos Required? 

Delays in Land Title Registrations are currently at 12+ weeks. The delay is largely due to a 95% increase in transaction volumes this year. While Service Alberta has increased staffing and undertaken a number of other measures, the backlog is significant and will take time to work through. While non-condo transactions have access to tools providing alternatives to lessen the impact of delayed registrations (gap title insurance and Western Law Societies’ Conveyancing Protocol), these cannot be used for condominium sales due to unique provisions in the Condominium Property Act. As a result, developers and builders of condo units have seen significant disruptions to cash flows and additional expenses of approximately $3,000 to $6,000 per condominium unit. BILD Alberta has been working with Service Alberta to identify solutions to address the disproportionate impact on condominium units. We continue to pursue legislative amendments to enable the use of gap title insurance for condominium units, but this will take a number of months to bring to fruition. The scale of impact on condo builders and developers necessitated an interim solution until longer-term changes are put in place.