Apply for Housing

You can use the Housing Registry to apply for many types of affordable rental housing, including BC Housing subsidized rental homes, non-subsidized rental homes, and supportive housing. Access and apply for the Housing Registry online: https://housingapplication.bchousing.org/olf/faces/welcome

Brightside selects all housing applicants directly from the Housing Registry based on eligibility and applicant preferences/requirements.

In short, the Housing Registry helps Brightside maintain waitlists, and assists Brightside in understanding what type of housing and/or subsidies an applicant is eligible for.

Metro Vancouver is experiencing unprecedented need for affordable housing, and with thousands of applicants, it is important that a system is in place to ensure homes are made available in a fair, equitable, and needs-based way. The Housing Registry is currently the most effective means of doing so. Brightside prescreens applicants from the Housing Registry based on time on the waitlist + urgency of need.

The Housing Registry includes listings for numerous housing providers throughout British Columbia, including subsidized and unsubsidized rental housing. To learn more about the types of housing available through the BC Housing Registry, visit https://www.bchousing.org/housing-assistance/rental-housing.

The Housing Registry assigns each building a special code. You can find the codes for each Brightside building in the table below this FAQ. You can select more than one building code when selecting your preferences. You may also opt to select “All Vancouver properties” to broaden your search beyond just Brightside properties.

To be considered for tenancy/housing with Brightside, you must have an active file with the Housing Registry

Brightside Community Homes Foundation is a charitable, non-profit housing society that operates in the private sector. BC Housing is the provincial housing entity accountable to the Minister of Housing through a Board of Commissioners.

BC Housing funds certain housing-related initiatives for private-sector non-profits like Brightside, such as capital improvements, building retrofits, and redevelopments of aging housing stock.

BC Housing also maintains Operating Agreements with non-profit housing societies that enable provincial government-supported housing subsidies for eligible individuals/families. Some of Brightside’s buildings have BC Housing Operating Agreements.

You can learn more about BC Housing here.

To determine if you are eligible for subsidized housing, visit: https://www.bchousing.org/housing-assistance/rental-housing/subsidized-housing

Successfully applying to the Housing Registry does not guarantee you placement in subsidized housing; applicants must meet eligibility requirements for BC Housing subsidies, and will be notified once a home that meets your needs becomes available.

Eligibility for BC Housing subsidy is not a requirement to sign up for the Housing Registry. You must still register on the Housing Registry to apply for housing with Brightside.

The Housing Registry functions as a waitlist registry only. When you are next on the list, you will still be required to complete a housing application with a relevant housing provider (such as Brightside).

If you have already signed up, but need to refresh/reactivate/update your file (which should be done every 6 months), please contact their Housing Registry Inquiry Line at 604-433-2218, or 1-800-257-7756 outside the Lower Mainland.

Please ensure that you regularly/promptly update your file if you change your contact number and/or email address. You can update your file by calling 604-433-2218, or 1-800-257-7756 outside the Lower Mainland.

Yes. Brightside utilizes the Housing Registry to identify applicants based on their registry date. However, Brightside reserves the right to prioritize applicants that are at imminent risk of homelessness or are otherwise precariously housed.

Once you are next in line on the Housing Registry and an appropriate unit becomes available, you will be contacted by Brightside and provided with a Brightside Housing Application Form to complete. Brightside is not, however, able to project average wait-times for when a unit will become available.