Bob Mackin
A collapsed $11.3 million real estate deal in the lucrative Cambie Corridor has sparked a B.C. Supreme Court lawsuit.
Subject house on Cambie at 37th (BC Assessment/Google)
Bellevilla Development filed Nov. 28 in B.C. Supreme Court against Chi-Jen Lo (aka Jeff Lo), Jeff Lo Personal Real Estate Corp., Lily Gan, Lily Gan Personal Real Estate Corp., Crest Realty dba Re-Max Crest Realty on Nov. 28.
The lawsuit said Bellevilla and Hui Ding jointly retained Gan and Crest in November 2017. Ding allegedly agreed to buy the property at 37th and Cambie personally or through her nominee and alter ego, D&W Investment Ltd., from You Kun Kai and Shu-Chen Cheng on July 22, 2017. Ding was the principal and sole shareholder of the B.C. company.
“Ding would then divest herself of the entirety of her shares in D&W through a sale of those shares to Bellevilla in the subject transaction.”
“Thereafter, Ding assigned the agreement pertaining to the property with the original vendors, to her company D&W in or around late November 2017. D&W would complete the acquisition of the property on or about Feb. 26, 2018.”
Bellevilla would become the sole shareholder in D&W and the sole beneficial owner of the property.
But there was a speedbump.
“The plaintiff says and the fact is that Lo, Gan and Crest Realty failed to properly advise Bellevilla that the transaction — a share purchase and sale — could not be effected through the use of the aforementioned standard form document.”
Bellevilla claims the original contract was deficient, because there were ambiguities as to the parties, transaction and price.
A contract prepared by the parties’ lawyers on Dec. 6, 2017 contained more details.
The contract was contingent on Bellevilla securing a financing commitment. Bellevilla would provide Ding a first deposit payment of $100,000 within one day of both parties signing and a $400,000 second deposit by Jan. 15, 2018.
But, on June 20, 2018, Bellevilla advised Ding that it was unable to secure satisfactory financing and triggered the financing subject clause in the agreement. Ding filed in B.C. Supreme Court against Bellevilla, seeking liquidated damages for $1.13 million.
The new statement of claim says that deposits and accrued interest remain in the Crest Realty trust account, with an additional $630,000 paid into court as security for the Ding claim. Last year, the 67.5-foot x 140-foot property, containing a one-storey, 1954-built duplex, was assessed at almost $9.06 million.
None of the allegations has been proven in court and the real estate agents have not filed their defence statement.
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