Where to start in Richmond
A City Centre condo and a property in another Richmond area should be compared on more than a map.
- Check the exact route to your destinations, the surrounding land uses and how the unit’s exposure affects the time you spend at home.
What to check at a viewing
Move through the building as a resident would: entrance, elevator, parking, storage and waste area.
- Compare the facilities you would use with their place in the ownership budget.
- For a noise-sensitive household, spend time in the unit and ask property-specific questions; a broad statement about an entire area cannot settle the issue.
Documents to request for the building
The home’s interior is only one part of a strata purchase.
- Ask for the current document package and review the budget, insurance, meeting records, depreciation report and information certificate with appropriate professional help.
- Identify questions that need answers before your contractual review deadlines.
More on documents to request for the building
A low monthly fee is not a substitute for understanding the building’s financial position.
Your viewing checklist.
Tick each point as you review it. Print a copy to keep.
Compare your options
A comparison that looks beyond square footage
Imagine two apartments at a similar price.
- One offers more stated area but loses much of it to circulation; the other gives you a useful dining space, better storage and separation for working from home.
- Draw your main furniture on both plans.
Add the building’s shared costs and maintenance questions before deciding.
This exercise is not about choosing the smaller home; it is about identifying the space you will actually use.
- Living space
- Furniture, door swings and useful wall lengths.
- The building
- Records, insurance, access and maintenance.
- The monthly picture
- Mortgage, strata costs and other expenses.
- Outside your door
- Your real routes, privacy and neighbouring uses.
Planning resources for Richmond
Richmond reports 49 kilometres of dikes and 39 drainage pump stations in its flood-protection system.
Read the City’s flood information, then ask about the individual property, disclosures and insurance. A city-wide protection system is not an address-specific risk assessment.
Official planning informationRead the Richmond city guideOfficial information
Start with these resources, then confirm the details for your property and circumstances.
Richmond area plansBC: strata documents for buyers and sellersReference review: September 30, 2026