Auditor general’s reports suggests City of Vancouver let millions of dollars slip in land sales
Posted February 6, 2026 7:07 am.
Last Updated February 6, 2026 7:08 am.
A new report from Vancouver’s auditor general suggests the city let millions of dollars slip through its fingers in the sale of publicly-owned land.
Findings show the city’s sale policy was inconsistent, with some details hidden from public view. In addition, an audit showed that staff did not provide crucial information to members of council.
As a result, some land was sold for less than its assessed value.
“When you’re selling land, especially in the Lower Mainland where values are very high, it’s important that you get it right,” said City of Vancouver Auditor General Mike Macdonell.
“You only have the one chance. You can’t go back in time and do a land sale.”
In addition, the findings show the city failed to collect interest that buyers should have paid.
“Council policy is that any extended contracts should have interest charged on them,” Macdonell said.
“Interest was not being charged on them, and council’s approval of that was not sought. We found that, had council decided that it did want to seek interest, the city could have been entitled to up to $25 million.”
The report looked into 16 transactions between 2016 and 2024, one being the sale of a property on Beach Crescent. In this instance, council was not advised of a staff calculation error that cost the city $13 million.
In the same transaction, the City also agreed to pay a $12.1 million community amenity contribution that was legally the buyer’s responsibility.
In six of the transactions examined, council gave approval without being made aware that the agreed sale price was below the appraised value.
Differences in sale price and appraised value in those six cases ranged from $50,000 to $2 million.
UBC political science professor Stewart Prest says these mistakes have big consequences.
“The city either gets the benefit of that resource or it doesn’t,” Prest said.
“If we are not maximizing the value of the land held by the city when it’s being sold, then that means the city and taxpayers are losing out on value they could have access to, which could affect everything from investments in other areas to potentially tax rates in the city.”
In response to the auditor general’s report, the City of Vancouver Manager’s Office said, “The Real Estate team has reviewed the report in detail and agrees with many of the proposed enhancements.”
Report recommendations include a clear council-approved strategy for selling land and a transparent policy for doing it.
