---
title: Montrose unsightly property rules and how to report
question: "How do I report an unsightly or overgrown property in Montrose?"
place: Montrose, British Columbia, Canada
place_path: ca/bc/montrose
category: Bylaws, noise and complaints
owner: municipal
owner_body: Village of Montrose
sources_read: 2026-11-08
review: machine_checked
canonical: "https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/montrose/unsightly-property/"
json: "https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/montrose/unsightly-property.json"
---

# Montrose unsightly property rules and how to report

**Question:** How do I report an unsightly or overgrown property in Montrose?

**Short answer:** In Montrose, the Good Neighbour Bylaw makes owners keep property free of rubbish, derelict vehicles, dead vegetation and noxious weeds. The Village's pages give no complaint form, so call the Village Office at 250-367-7234 or email admin@montrose.ca.

**Who handles it:** Municipal (Village of Montrose, https://www.montrose.ca)  
**Cost:** No ticket amount is set. On conviction, the Offence Act maximum fine applies, with up to 90 days in jail, or both.  
**How long:** An order to comply usually gives 14 days (10 days for a vacant building in disrepair).  
**Where:**
- In person: Village Office, 565 11th Ave., Montrose, BC V0G 1P0 (Monday to Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. and 1:00 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. (closed statutory holidays))
- Phone: Village Office, 250-367-7234

## Key facts

- **What counts:** Owners must not let their property become or stay unsightly or let water, filth, rubbish, demolition waste or discarded materials, dead vegetation or noxious weeds, or derelict vehicles in public view, pile up. Graffiti must be removed. Building materials may sit more than 15 days only with a building permit or if stored out of sight.
  - Source: [Good Neighbour Bylaw No. 779, 2024, ss. 5.2, 5.5, 10.3](https://www.montrose.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/2024-02-08-Montrose-Good-Neighbour-Bylaw-FINAL.pdf)
  - Official wording: "No owner or occupier of real property shall permit or allow the real property to become or remain unsightly." … "permit an accumulation of water, filth, rubbish, demolition waste or discarded materials" … "keep a derelict vehicle of any sort in public view" … "Every owner or occupier of real property shall keep any wall, building, fence, sign or other"
  - Check: wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-08
- **How to report:** Not confirmed. The Village's pages state no complaint form.
- **What happens next:** A Bylaw Enforcement Officer can issue an order to comply, usually within 14 days (10 days for a vacant building in disrepair). If it is not done and the owner has had a chance to be heard, the Village can do the work at the owner's cost; unpaid costs on December 31 are added to property taxes.
  - Source: [Good Neighbour Bylaw No. 779, 2024, ss. 12.2, 12.5](https://www.montrose.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/2024-02-08-Montrose-Good-Neighbour-Bylaw-FINAL.pdf)
  - Official wording: "may issue an order to comply requiring the person to remedy the nuisance or non-compliance within fourteen (14) days of deemed" … "the Village, by its employees, contractors and agents may enter the real property" … "if unpaid by December 31, the cost shall be added to and form part of the taxes for the real property as taxes in arrears"
  - Check: wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-08
- **Fine:** No ticket amount is set. On summary conviction the Offence Act maximum fine applies, with up to 90 days in jail, or both; each day is a separate offence.
  - Source: [Good Neighbour Bylaw No. 779, 2024, s. 13.2-13.3](https://www.montrose.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/2024-02-08-Montrose-Good-Neighbour-Bylaw-FINAL.pdf)
  - Official wording: "to a maximum fine as identified in the Offence Act, and in the case of a conviction a term of" … "Each day that a contravention of the provisions of this Bylaw exists or is permitted to exist"
  - Check: wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-08
- **Bylaw:** Good Neighbour Bylaw, Bylaw #779 (2024) (Village of Montrose Good Neighbor Bylaw #779)
  - Source: [Good Neighbour Bylaw No. 779, 2024, s. 1.1; s. 16.1](https://www.montrose.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/2024-02-08-Montrose-Good-Neighbour-Bylaw-FINAL.pdf)
  - Official wording: "Village of Montrose Good Neighbor Bylaw #779" … "Noise Regulation Bylaw #531"
  - Check: wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-08

## How it works

The Village's [Good Neighbour Bylaw No. 779](<https://www.montrose.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/2024-02-08-Montrose-Good-Neighbour-Bylaw-FINAL.pdf>) says owners must not let their property become or stay unsightly. That includes water, filth, rubbish, demolition waste or discarded materials, dead vegetation or noxious weeds, and derelict vehicles in public view piling up. Graffiti must be removed. Building materials may sit more than 15 days only with a building permit or if stored out of sight.

## Steps

1. Call the Village Office at 250-367-7234 or email admin@montrose.ca. The Village's pages state no complaint form.
2. A Bylaw Enforcement Officer can issue an order to comply, usually within 14 days (10 days for a vacant building in disrepair).
3. If the work is not done and the owner has had a chance to be heard, the Village can do it at the owner's cost.

## Good to know

- Unpaid costs on December 31 are added to the owner's property taxes.
- No ticket amount is set. On conviction, the Offence Act maximum fine applies, with up to 90 days in jail, or both, and each day is a separate offence.

## Official forms and pages

- [Good Neighbour Bylaw No. 779, 2024 (PDF), Village of Montrose](https://www.montrose.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/2024-02-08-Montrose-Good-Neighbour-Bylaw-FINAL.pdf)

## Related questions

- [Montrose bylaw fines and how tickets work](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/montrose/bylaw-fines.md)
- [Montrose noise bylaw: quiet hours, construction hours and fines](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/montrose/noise-rules.md)
- [Montrose RV, boat and trailer parking rules](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/montrose/rv-boat-trailer-parking.md)

## The same question elsewhere

- [Unsightly property fines in British Columbia, by municipality](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/unsightly-property.md)
- [Fruitvale](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/fruitvale/unsightly-property.md)
- [Trail](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/trail/unsightly-property.md)
- [Warfield](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/warfield/unsightly-property.md)
- [Rossland](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/rossland/unsightly-property.md)
- [Castlegar](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/castlegar/unsightly-property.md)
- [Salmo](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/salmo/unsightly-property.md)

## Sources

- [Good Neighbour Bylaw No. 779, 2024 (PDF), Village of Montrose](https://www.montrose.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/2024-02-08-Montrose-Good-Neighbour-Bylaw-FINAL.pdf) (read 2026-11-08)
- [Contacts, Village of Montrose](https://www.montrose.ca/contacts/) (read 2026-11-08)

_Checked by script, not yet by a person: the official wording behind 4 of 5 facts was matched to the official text; 1 could not be confirmed. Gov Handbook is an independent guide, not affiliated with Village of Montrose. How answers are checked: https://govhandbook.com/methods/ · Canonical page: https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/montrose/unsightly-property/_