Smoke Free Housing BC

If you are the owner or property manager of one or more buildings and want to convert them to smoke-free status, this section will provide you with some useful tips on how to make it happen.

Rest assured you won’t have any trouble attracting tenants to your smoke-free building due to the high demand for smoke-free housing in BC. Plus, you’ll reap the benefits of reduced complaints, costs, and fire risks of maintaining buildings where smoking is allowed.

Remember that existing tenants must be 'grandfathered'. You will need to ‘phase-in’ the no-smoking policy as existing tenants vacate the premises, and make all future tenancies smoke-free.

On this page you will find four easy steps to make and keep your buildings smoke-free!

Develop your policy

1. You will first need to decide whether you want to designate one or all of your buildings as smoke-free.

If you have several buildings, and aren’t sure which building to make smoke-free, consider conducting a survey of your residents. (This would also include owners that want to designate one section as smoke-free).
This will serve to:

Identify which building has the fewest number of smokers Provide you with an estimate of how long the conversion process may take
Identify smoking units so you can make informed decisions when re-renting vacant units in the designated smoke-free building. You can then alert new tenants you are transitioning to smoke-free status, but there are still smoking units in the area. This is especially important information for new tenants with chronic health conditions or sensitivities to second-hand smoke.
Identify how many tenants would prefer to live in a smoke-free building
Prepare tenants that you will be designating one of your buildings as smoke-free

Consider offering incentives to residents to move to another of your buildings. Example: If only two tenants in Building A smoke, offer incentives for them to move to Building B, so that Building A can become smoke free.

2. You will then need to decide the type of policy you want to implement.

Most attractive to non-smoking tenants, and easiest to enforce, is to make your entire property smoke-free, including inside rental units, on patios and balconies, and the grounds up to the property line. (Our landlord survey found that the most common sources of second-hand smoke transfer included patios, balconies and open windows).

If you choose to designate an outdoor smoking area to accommodate smoking tenants, ensure it is an appropriate distance (seven metres) from units, patios and entranceways.

See below for a sample no-smoking clause that can be included in your Tenancy Agreement. This wording is recommended by the Rental Owners and Managers Society of BC:

“It is a material term of this tenancy agreement that smoking of any combustible material in the rental unit or on the residential property is prohibited.”

Implement your policy

This is a simple process that requires no approvals from any government agency.

Choose an effective date and notify existing tenants and staff.

Set a date that the new policy will be implemented in the designated building(s)
Inform your existing tenants by letter (and post in common areas) that on the stated effective date, the building will begin converting to a smoke-free property. It’s important to communicate with existing tenants to explain the new policy and reassure them that they will be exempted from the policy. Refer to the following Tools: sample tenant notification letter.
While you cannot ban smoking in existing tenancies, you can offer all tenants the opportunity to sign an addendum to their current tenancy agreement, agreeing not to smoke on the property.
Inform existing resident managers/caretakers by letter. While existing resident managers are ‘grandfathered’ while off duty in their rental units (Provincial laws banning smoking in all indoor public places and workplaces continue to apply to resident managers while on duty), all new resident managers must abide by your no-smoking policy. You can refer to the following Tools: sample resident manager notification letter.

Amend your tenancy agreements for all new tenancies.

Incorporate the no-smoking policy into all new tenancy agreements; or
Add an Addendum to the tenancy agreement listing all the terms of the no-smoking policy and ensure both landlord and tenant sign it. (Landlords and tenants can agree to and include additional terms in a tenancy agreement, such as whether smoking is permitted on the premises)
Include a clause that the building is transitioning to smoke-free status, and that until the transition has been completed, smoking will still be allowed in the ‘grandfathered’ units of the building

The Residential Tenancy Branch provides a sample Residential Tenancy Agreement. Landlords can customize their tenancy agreements, as long it complies with all laws and rules. Visit the Residential Tenancy Branch website for access to forms on-line.

Read our legal opinion highlights section for more information concerning your legal rights and the rights of tenants

Promote your policy

Post “no-smoking” signage in appropriate locations on the property. Download official no-smoking signage) free of charge, which complies with the amended BC Tobacco Control Act banning smoking in common areas of apartments and three metres from entrances.)
Advertise your smoke-free units in directories or websites where your building is listed. Going smoke-free is a marketing advantage.
Register your smoke-free building on our online Smoke-Free Housing Directory.
Ensure that new tenants understand that you are transitioning to a smoke-free building before they sign the tenancy agreement. Inform potential tenants that:
- There are still grandfathered tenants that smoke in the building and you can’t guarantee a 100% smoke-free environment until the transition is complete.
- Explain that while smoking is permitted in grandfathered units, complaints of second-hand smoke will still be addressed if it is found that significant smoke is infiltrating their homes. Refer to section on: Quiet Enjoyment and addressing complaints of second-hand smoke
View our Smoke-Free Housing Directory for a list of landlords that have smoke-free policies for some or all of their buildings. You can also check out our Success Stories for more inspiring accounts of going smoke-free.

Enforce your policy

If a tenancy agreement includes a no-smoking clause, such clauses have been accepted as a material term of the tenancy agreement, giving the landlord the right to end the tenancy for continued violation. Use the same warning/enforcement methods for the no-smoking policy that you use for any other violation of a material term of a tenancy agreement.

Steps for enforcing a no-smoking policy included in a Tenancy Agreement:

1. If there is evidence that a tenant is smoking in violation of the no-smoking policy, issue a “breach letter” or “Caution Notice” advising the tenant that:

a. They have breached a material term of the tenancy agreement (give specific examples of the breach);
b. Make a specific statement regarding the compliance required, such as “cease smoking anywhere on the residential property” or “confine your smoking to the designated area of the property”; and
c. Clearly state that failure to comply could result in the tenancy ending (eviction).

2. Be sure to document any and all violations, and if possible, get witnesses who would be able to testify to incidents of smoking by tenant.

3. If the tenant fails to comply with the Caution Notice, issue a one-month Notice to End Tenancy for Cause using the appropriate Residential Tenancy Branch form. Be sure the notice is served on the tenant.

4. If the tenant disputes the notice to End Tenancy, the landlord must provide evidence to prove the reasons for ending the tenancy.

5. Go to Quiet Enjoyment section for steps on how to address complaints of second-hand smoke migrating from ‘grandfathered’ units where smoking is allowed, into non-smoking units.