A rental property brokerage in Kelowna has been ordered to stop providing services and had its trust
accounts suspended after BC Financial Services Authority (“BCFSA”) found it was operating without being authorized to do so.
Upon learning that Menethil was continuing to provide real estate services despite not being authorized,
BCFSA issued an Urgent Order to freeze its trust accounts, suspend its brokerage licence and ordering the brokerage’s director, David Song, to cease providing real estate services.
The order comes after BCFSA suspended the licence of Tao (Terry) Guo on February 10, 2025, following an
investigation that found Guo had abandoned his duties as managing broker of Menethil. All real estate
brokerages are required to have a managing broker in place to supervise to brokerage, and without a managing broker, Menethil has not been authorized to operate since February 10, 2025.
Menethil provides rental property management services for approximately 100 properties in Kelowna, as well as trading services. Landlord clients of Menethil, and tenants who are renting a home through a Menethil property manager, are encouraged to review BCFSA’s consumer alert on this matter to understand potential impacts to them.
There are no immediate impacts to tenancy agreements as a result of this Urgent Order. Tenants are protected by the Residential Tenancy Act and are advised to continue paying their rent according to the
terms of their tenancy agreement.
“We acknowledge the impact this may have on landlords and tenants who continued to receive property management services from Menethil despite being unauthorized to provide real estate services,” said Jon Vandall, BCFSA’s Senior Vice President, Compliance and Enforcement. “Freezing Menethil’s trust accounts is an unfortunate but necessary step to protect the funds held in trust on behalf of their clients, and to protect the interests of consumers.”
Landlords and tenants with concerns about their obligations under their tenancy agreements, including rent payment, returning security deposits, and dispute resolution, can find information on the Residential Tenancy Branch website.
