Court approves sale of North Vancouver townhouse operated as rogue hostel

Nearly four years after it began, a protracted legal battle over an illegal hostel in a North Vancouver townhouse appears to be over.

On Thursday, a B.C. Supreme Court judge approved the sale of the property Emily Yu had operated as the 15-bed “Oasis Hostel” for about $800,000.

The sale closes Feb. 28.

In court, Thursday, Yu attempted to argue that she had another offer on the property, but produced no documentation to prove it.

In his ruling, Justice Barry Davies was scathing.

“You have made life for your neighbours unbearably miserable. You have put people through incredible expense. You have been our own worst enemy in this matter,” he said.

“Your townhouse will be sold.”

Outside the Vancouver courthouse, Yu declined to comment other than to call the court proceedings “corrupt.”

1:04 Emily Yu arrested at North Vancouver townhome

“It brings an end to her defiance of the court process and it puts my client now in a position where they can put all of this behind them, years of frustration,” said lawyer Stephen Hamilton, who represented Yu’s strata corporation in the dispute.

The court ordered the sale of the property in June, 2020, but Yu proved defiant.

2:00 Court orders sale of North Vancouver townhouse being used as a hostel

At one point, she was arrested after allegedly refusing to let a bailiff, realtor and potential buyer access the property.

In 2018, she was found in contempt of court and later ordered to pay about $95,000 to the province and more than $50,000 in fines and legal fees to her strata — who had gone to court in a bid to stop her from using the property as a hostel.

Hamilton said the proceeds of the sale will first be applied to Yu’s debts, including what he estimated had grown to be a $100,000 legal bill for his clients.