A few quick pointers regarding your new home warranty
By Sam R on Sep 06, 2016
As reported in April, Urbancorp Group, a decades-old property developer in the GTA, filed for bankruptcy in the spring, with about a thousand homes under construction as of late 2015. With that in mind, I’m listing a few quick pointers regarding your new home warranty.
Unfortunately, such a proceeding invariably has an effect on some eager homebuyers who have made substantial deposits. While we’re not privy to the details in this particular case, there are some things you should know if you’re contemplating putting a deposit down on a newly built home. As in all matters of law, you should consult a lawyer to get the exact details and how they pertain to your individual situation.
- Tarion Warranty Corporation protects funds up to a certain limit once you have signed an Agreement of Purchase and sale for a new home or condominium. Funds are protected if the builder goes bankrupt, fundamentally breaches the purchase agreement, or if you have a statutory right to treat the purchase agreement as terminated. If you’re contemplating a deposit claim under the third caveat, you need to talk to your lawyer.
- Under Ontario law, only condominium builders, not builders of freehold townhomes or detached homes are required to hold the deposits in trust, as this is included in the provisions of the Condominium Act. If you are in the market for a new-build detached or freehold home, request specifically that your deposit be held in trust, or request that your lawyer hold it in trust.
- The deposit protection offered by Tarion is capped at $20,000 for condominiums and $40,000 for all other new homes.
- Tarion does not protect any payment made prior to signing a purchase agreement.
- All Ontario builders must be registered with Tarion. Registered builders must have completed technical tests based on the Ontario Building Code and meet financial qualifications set by Tarion.
- Tarion offers a builder directory under which you can find out whether a builder is registered, how many homes they have built and where they are, and whether Tarion has had to resolve warranty claims for the builder in the last decade.
- There are several ways in which a property may be exempt from Tarion protection; for example, a model or inventory home may not be protected if it is deemed to have been previously occupied, and while custom homes are covered, they aren’t covered if built on existing footings.
- If in doubt, write to ismyhomecovered@tarion.com to find out.
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Vancouver has become Canada’s first “city of millionaires,” as average household net worth passed the million-dollar mark, hitting $1,036,202, more than 7% over its 2014 numbers, according to the latest Environics Analytics WealthScapes analysis. The average household net worth in B.C. grew to $883,049, up 6.3%Oil-dependent provinces, by contrast, saw modest gains or declines, rising by 1.1% and 1.8% in Saskatchewan and Newfoundland and Labrador, respectively, and declining by 0.7% in Alberta.Ontario was the second richest province, with household net worth growing by 5.2% to $793,338.Most of that wealth is on paper (or rather, drywall) of course, with home values soaring; household debt grew by 4.1% last year to an average of $133,170 nationwide, while the average net worth increased 4.3% to $680,098.
