No suspension yet for B.C. property manager accused of short-term rental fraud

Matthew Kuras is seen in this photo from TRG The Residential Group Realty Property Management's website. (trgmanagementgroup.com)

B.C.’s real estate regulator has failed in its bid to secure an urgent order suspending the licence of a man it has accused of tenanting multiple Vancouver properties “under false pretenses” and subleasing them as short-term rentals without their owners’ consent.

The B.C. Financial Services Authority asked hearing officer Gareth Reeves to issue an “order in urgent circumstances” suspending Matthew Kuras for his failure to comply with a previous order, but Reeves declined to do so, finding that the regulator had not shown evidence of ongoing risk to the public.

“If there was some compelling and credible evidence that Mr. Kuras was continuing to misconduct himself in the ways alleged in the underlying complaints subject to investigation, that may change the analysis in this case,” reads Reeves’ decision on the matter, which was issued in late January and published online earlier this month.

“It may well be that Mr. Kuras’s conduct warrants a suspension, but that does not mean that such a suspension is warranted on an interim basis.”

Kuras and the BCFSA have been in a legal battle over his alleged misconduct for months, with the regulator ordering him to share tax documents and other personal information with investigators and Kuras refusing to do so.

The BCFSA imposed $27,000 in administrative penalties on Kuras last November and secured an “order in urgent circumstances” directing him to provide the documents within 10 days.

Kuras appealed that order to the B.C. Financial Services Tribunal, which issued a temporary stay of the order but eventually dismissed his appeal. He has also filed a petition for judicial review of the order in B.C. Supreme Court, which remains pending.

Short-term rental scams

This is all playing out in the wake of CTV News investigations that exposed fraudulent tenancies at multiple downtown Vancouver condo buildings last year, and ahead of an anticipated surge in demand for accommodations in the city during this summer’s FIFA World Cup.

While each case is different, the short-term rental fraud’s typical pattern is as follows.

A tenant signs a long-term lease on an apartment, often one that has been offered fully furnished. Rather than moving in, however, the “tenant” lists the unit on Airbnb or a similar short-term rental platform without the knowledge or consent of the property’s owner.

In some of the cases CTV News has reported on, the fake tenant has had several similar listings, suggesting the scam is being run on multiple units at once, in violation of provincial regulations that limit short-term rentals to a person’s primary residence and one secondary suite on the same lot.

• Read more: ‘A strange person opened the door’: How a Vancouver condo owner discovered his long-term tenant listed the unit on Airbnb
• Short-term rental scam in downtown Vancouver happening on another well-known booking platform
• One-on-one with B.C.’s housing minister on CTV News investigation into short-term rental scam
• Vancouver Airbnb host’s legal, paid registration number fraudulently used in multiple listings

The BCFSA is not responsible for enforcing provincial short-term rental rules. Rather, it is investigating Kuras for what it sees as contraventions of the provincial Real Estate Services Act and associated regulations, particularly those regarding conduct unbecoming of a licensee.

Kuras is licensed under the act as both a trading representative and a property manager.

The underlying allegations against him, which have not been proven, are described in an earlier BCFSA document. They include:

• Tenanting five properties in Vancouver “under false pretences” and renting them out as short-term rentals without their owners’ knowledge or authorization
• “Advertising real estate without the owner’s knowledge and authorization”
• “Falsifying contractual documents”
• “Exposing owners to fines” during tenancies Kuras managed
• And “making any false or misleading statement” in a document related to a licensing renewal application

Condo owner’s lawsuit

The BCFSA’s allegations against Kuras bear some similarities to those leveled against Kuras and his employer in a lawsuit filed by a former client in 2022 and later amended in August 2024.

Frouzan Davar Ardekani filed his notice of civil claim against TRG The Residential Group Realty Ltd. and several licensed property managers who work for the company, including Kuras.

According to the claim, Ardekani entered a property management agreement with TRG in 2013 for his condo on Melville Street in downtown Vancouver.

In 2022, he terminated the agreement, allegedly because the defendants had breached it by, among other things, using the unit for short-term rentals without informing him, withholding some of the rent he was owed and charging him—rather than tenants—for fines imposed by the building’s strata council.

The claim alleges negligence by TRG and its representatives, as well as breach of contract and failure to meet the duty of care owed to Ardekani.

The allegations have not been tested in court, and the defendants filed a response to the amended civil claim in November 2024, denying all wrongdoing.

CTV News reached out to TRG and Kuras to ask them to comment for this story, but did not receive a response.

Multiple RTB orders

In addition to the Ardekani lawsuit, Kuras has been the subject of multiple court orders stemming from Residential Tenancy Branch decisions in which he was a tenant.

RTB decisions reviewed by CTV News show Kuras rented a two-bedroom, two-bathroom condo on an upper floor of Vancouver House—the instantly recognizable twisting tower at 1480 Howe St.—in January 2023. He agreed to pay $4,800 a month, but was issued a 10-day notice to end tenancy for non-payment of rent in August of that year. The RTB ordered him to pay the landlord $4,900—one month’s rent plus a $100 RTB filing fee.

In March 2023, while his tenancy at Vancouver House was ongoing, Kuras rented another two-bedroom, two-bathroom downtown condo for $4,000 a month. This one was located in a tower at 1200 Alberni St.

CTV News asked Kuras why he rented two downtown condos simultaneously, but did not receive a response.

The Alberni Street rental agreement ended in October 2023, seven months after it began. While Kuras was not evicted from this property, the RTB ordered him to pay the landlord more than $11,000, representing two months of unpaid rent plus the cost of repairing damage to the unit.

The RTB decision also notes that Kuras “failed to attend” a move-out inspection and did not provide a forwarding address in writing to the landlord.

A third RTB decision involves a one-bedroom unit in a different building on Alberni Street, which Kuras was evicted from in 2024.

He signed a lease agreeing to pay $4,000 a month in April of that year, and the landlord issued a 10-day notice to end tenancy for unpaid rent in August. The RTB ordered him to pay the landlord $4,100.

The addresses of the five properties that Kuras allegedly tenanted “under false pretences” are not included in the documents the BCFSA has made public in the case.

CTV News asked the regulator to confirm whether the Melville Street condo referenced in the Ardekani lawsuit or the three units referenced in the RTB decisions were part of its investigation, but the BCFSA declined to do so.

“BCFSA is actively investigating allegations involving Matthew Kuras and as a result (is) unable to comment on details at this time,” the regulator said in an email.

A discipline hearing in Kuras’ case is scheduled for March 19 and 20 at the BCFSA office in downtown Vancouver.