Alberta developer faces Consumer Protection Act charges over return of life lease fees

The head of an Edmonton property development company that owes hundreds of seniors money from life lease contracts is now facing charges under Alberta's Consumer Protection Act.

Court records show that Greg Christenson, president of Christenson Group of Companies, has been charged with two counts of failing to return a life lease entrance fee within 180 days — alleged violations of new rules introduced in Alberta last year.

According to court information, the charges stem from alleged failure to return two people's life lease fees between roughly the beginning of 2025 and the end of April.

The life lease model is often used for seniors' housing. It sees residents pay a large lump sum upfront, plus monthly operating costs, to occupy a unit for the remainder of their life. If they die or they have to move out, their initial investment is returned, minus a percentage that the housing operator uses to refurbish the unit.

As of the end of 2024, the Christenson Group, which owns nine retirement homes in Edmonton and central Alberta that previously offered life leases, had yet to repay more than 200 seniors or the family members now managing their estates.

Christenson was charged May 7 "for allegedly failing to repay two private loans," lawyers Ian Mahood and William Kenny told CBC News in a statement.

"These charges are without merit. At all times, Mr. Christenson has abided by all relevant and applicable laws," the statement says.

"Mr. Christenson looks forward to clearing his name in court, and further looks forward to defending his contracts under which the monies in question were lent."

Alberta's changes to life-lease rules

Some of the former retirement residents in Christenson Group buildings have been waiting three years or more for hundreds of thousands of dollars they put toward a life-lease unit. The company owed about $75 million, in total, by the end of 2024.

People are waiting because the Christenson Group's life-lease contracts include a provision for a repayment queue that kicks in if more than six per cent of the life lease holders in a building terminate their lease at the same time. It's a common feature of this type of housing agreement, but experts say the lengthy wait for the return of so many entrance fees is an outlier across the country.

The provincial government brought life leases under the jurisdiction of the Consumer Protection Act last year, setting approximately six months as the time limit for life lease operators to repay former residents.

Potential penalties for offences under the act include fines up to $300,000 or as much as two years in jail.

The rules apply only to contracts terminated after the legislation took effect in mid-2024, and don't cover anyone who entered a life lease queue before that, even if they have been waiting longer than six months.

Christenson has previously told CBC the root of the long queues is the COVID-19 pandemic, which hit seniors' care and housing hard, and prevented his company from moving in new life lease residents for a long period of time.

He has said the company intends to repay everyone, and they're working on a remortgaging plan, with a new rental-only model, to make that possible.

The company is not offering any new life leases, but there are still many residents who live in life-lease units, and will be expecting the return of their entrance fee when they terminate their contracts.

A group of current and former life lease residents, as well as their family members, are advocating for a solution through a non-profit, the Alberta Life Lease Protection Society.