Premier David Eby has claimed that the BC Supreme Court "assured" him and other government leaders that the outcome of the Cowichan title case would not "affect landowners in the claim area."The decision, it turned out, did impact those with property — but to what extent has been far from clear.."Obviously this is a moment of huge anxiety for homeowners that are in the claim area as well as business owners who have land in this area," Eby said during a press conference in Vancouver on Monday.He went on to note that, "the court assured us that they would make a decision that didn’t affect landowners in the claim area so they didn't have to be served, they didn’t have to be told about the case.""Unfortunately," Eby added, "that obviously turned out not to be the case."As a result, it was only once the ruling had been handed down that landowners found out their properties were involved..WATCH: Tensions erupt at packed Cowichan Decision info session in Richmond.On October 28, hundreds of concerned residents packed into the Sheraton Vancouver Airport Hotel in Richmond to learn more — and voice their concerns.Among those who spoke up was a resident who claimed that he has lived in Richmond since 1975 and was recently told by his lender that they will not be renewing his mortgage as a result of the court's decision.He did not mince words, asking the mayor and his team point blank why they did not reach out to land owners in Richmond at any point since the case was filed in 2014."The obligation to notify is that of the plaintiffs," the city's lawyer explained..EXCLUSIVE: Mortgage brokers sound alarm over Cowichan Decision's impact on landowners.A number of mortgage brokers told the Western Standard that the decision could theoretically impact landowners' ability to renew, citing the issues associated with a transition from freehold to native leased land."If somebody's coming to me and saying, hey, I want to purchase something on native leased land, okay, that's not going to necessarily be a problem," GLM Mortgage Group President Geoff Lee said, "but your lender selection isn't going to be as as abundant at it was for freehold."He added that if homeowners need to switch lenders, they would have to re-qualify, which presents its own set of problems, especially if the borrowers' financial situation has changed since they were first approved.
