Office of the Assisted Living Registrar

Developing An Assisted Living Residence

This section provides information about what's involved in developing publicly subsidized and private-pay assisted living residences in British Columbia.

The Office of the Assisted Living Registrar does not have a role in deciding the need for or choosing locations for new assisted living developments, or allotting publicly subsidized assisted living units. However, all assisted living operators are required to register their residences with the OALR and meet provincial health and safety standards. Therefore developers should read the entire Information for Operators & Developers section of this website.

Developing Private-Pay Assisted Living

Anyone can develop private-pay assisted living units provided the residence is registered with the OALR before it begins to operate. Please note that the Office of the Assisted Living Registrar does not have a role in deciding the need for or choosing locations for new assisted living developments.

Planning and Research

Assisted living can be created by new construction, renovation or conversion of an existing building, or enhancing existing services. Deciding whether to develop an assisted living residence is like entering into any other business venture. Developers must first:

  • identify the target market. Who will services be provided to — seniors, people with physical disabilities, people with substance use and/or mental disorders? (Remember that the assisted living legislation applies only to residences that provide services to adults.)
  • select a site for the residence.
  • develop a business plan, which includes a market analysis, a financial plan, a marketing plan and an operations plan.
  • consider the design of the building.

More resources for developers are available on the related links page.

Determining the Need for Services

The OALR does not provide advice about whether there is a need for assisted living services in particular communities. Developers need to gather their own information. Doing this research before proceeding swill decrease costs in the long run.

  • Get demographic information (e.g., census data about population density over the age of 65 if the target market is seniors) from Statistics Canada or the local library.
  • Consider the competition — whether there are other assisted living residence already operating or planned for the area, the number of registered units and whether the units are publicly subsidized or private-pay. This information is available on-line or from the OALR.
  • Distinguish between need and demand. There may be a need, but if people can't afford the service, there won’t be a corresponding demand.
  • Find out about the different types of housing and services (for-profit and non-profit) in the community by consulting a housing directory on-line, at the public library or at the local community centre.

Developing a Property or Converting an Existing Building

A developer who wants to build an assisted living residence on a piece of property, or to convert an existing building (e.g., supportive housing) to an assisted living residence, should consult local government officials — zoning, building, business licence, fire safety, environmental health — and the Health and Safety Standards to see what the requirements are and what is involved in meeting them.

Operators must comply with all applicable legislation, regulations, bylaws and codes. Design professionals and local governments can also assist in determining the requirements. See the list of applicable legislation here >

There are no specific building standards for assisted living residences. However, the registrar’s Health and Safety Standards require operators to ensure that their residences conform to the BC Building Code and all other applicable legislation, regulation, bylaws and codes. An assisted living residence may be built to a Group C (residential) or Group B (care or detention) occupancy under the BC Building Code. Local building inspectors will specify code requirements based on the occupancy classification of the residence. Building design must address the housing needs of the target resident population.

Buying an Existing Assisted Living Residence

A developer who wants to buy an existing assisted living residence can find out if it is registered by checking the OALR’s list of registered residences. A purchaser of a registered residence will have to apply for a new registration; the registration certificate is not transferable. Please note that the OALR does not give out information about whether a residence has previously received complaints about residents’ health and safety.

Funding for Development

There are no government grants or financing assistance available for private-sector operators to develop a residence or convert a building to an assisted living residence.

Marketing, Pricing Services and Staffing

For information on how to market and price private-pay assisted living services, and on staffing assisted living residences, consult the related section of the website here >.

Multiple Resident Populations

Developers must identify their target resident population(s) on the Application for Registration form. Assisted living residences may cater to more than one resident population whose service needs can be accommodated within the one or two prescribed services offered in the assisted living residence. For example, one residence may provide the activities of daily living and medication assistance at the prescribed services level to seniors and adults with disabilities. Another residence may provide the psychosocial rehabilitation and medication assistance at the prescribed services level to adults with mental disorders and substance use disorders.

If the plan is for a residence to cater to two assisted living resident populations that require different prescribed services, the two populations must be housed in distinct areas of the residence, which then must be registered separately. If the populations are receiving different prescribed services and living together in the same part of the residence, the operator must obtain a community care facilities licence as the residence would no longer meet the definition of assisted living.

Developing Publicly Subsidized Assisted Living

In publicly subsidized assisted living, non-profit societies and corporations develop assisted living units in partnership with regional health authorities and, for Independent Living BC projects, with BC Housing. Health authorities, often in partnership with BC Housing, award contracts through an advertised Request for Proposal (a publicly issued call for submissions) for the development and/or delivery of assisted living services to a certain number of publicly subsidized residents. Office of the Assisted Living Registrar does not have a role in allotting publicly subsidized assisted living units.

Role of the Independent Living BC (ILBC) Program

The Province of British Columbia launched the Independent Living BC Program (ILBC) to create affordable assisted living units across B.C. BC Housing, a provincial Crown agency, administers the ILBC program in partnership with regional health authorities. ILBC units were allocated among the five regional health authorities in proportion to population.

Although a variety of forms of housing can be assisted living, projects built under the ILBC program have specific design requirements. For example, ILBC assisted living units must have kitchen facilities to enable residents to cook some meals. Contact BC Housing to learn more about the design requirements for ILBC projects.

Role of the Developer

The developer:

  • prepares a proposal that meets the health authority’s and BC Housing’s (for ILBC projects) need for a specified number of assisted living units, within budgetary limits.
  • collaborates with the health authority and BC Housing (for ILBC projects) on design.
  • arranges capital financing to develop the units, oversees project construction, and operates the residence or designates an operator.
  • funds the operating costs of providing assisted living.

Role of the Health Authority

  • The health authority determines the number of units for which funding is available and the preferred locations.
  • The health authority and BC Housing work together on ILBC projects to evaluate proposals and choose suitable projects. If the health authority initiates a Request for Proposals without the involvement of BC Housing, the health authority itself evaluates proposals and chooses a suitable project. Once a proposal is selected, the health authority, and BC Housing if applicable, work with the developer until the project is completed.
  • The health authority subsidizes eligible low- to middle-income clients so they can afford to live in the residences.
  • The health authority case manager determines whether a person is eligible for publicly subsidized assisted living and refers them to residences in the community.

Role of BC Housing

BC Housing:

  • coordinates the ILBC program for the province;
  • works with private and non-profit housing providers to provide interim construction financing and to ensure that the construction of new ILBC developments meets ILBC guidelines for assisted living; and
  • after a development is built, provides ongoing operating subsidies (for non-profit projects) or rent supplements (for private sector projects) to operators to maintain the affordability of the units. For more information, visit the Independent Living BC website.

Registering Your Assisted Living Residence

If your residence meets the definition of an assisted living residence as set out in the Community Care and Assisted Living Act, you must register it with the Office of the Assisted Living Registrar. The requirement to register applies equally to private-pay and publicly funded residences. For more information about the registration process, see Should I Register My Residence?



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