Chinese oligarch sues city of Vancouver over $200,000 "Empty Homes Tax"

That 15-40K number you’re citing is for the demolition itself. It doesn’t include the permit (another 15K) or asbestos removal. My experience is that most homes built before 1980 will have some amount of asbestos in them, so that’s another 15K or so. And the majority of homes being demolished are older ones that will likely full of the stuff.