Appeal court agrees: Condo developers need to disclose all features to buyers

by admin | Apr 12, 2019 | 2019 Toronto Star Property Law Column, Toronto Star Property Law Columns

Bob Aaron bob@aaron.ca The Ontario Court of Appeal has affirmed the obligations of condominium developers to provide buyers with complete and transparent disclosure of a proposed project’s features. This includes a budget statement which fairly and accurately reveals...

Dangers of using a Seller Property Information Statement. It can cost you big.

by admin | Mar 29, 2019 | 2019 Toronto Star Property Law Column, Toronto Star Property Law Columns

Bob Aaron bob@aaron.ca A court case decided in Bracebridge last month emphasizes the risks of using a Seller Property Information Statement. It also illuminates the risks of having the same agent act for both the buyer and seller. In July 2014, Aden and Shirley Bowman...

A co-housing agreement can make living arrangements easier for homeowners

by admin | Mar 15, 2019 | 2019 Toronto Star Property Law Column, Toronto Star Property Law Columns

Bob Aaron bob@aaron.ca With Toronto’s high housing prices, more attention is being focused on the concept of co-housing with buyers sharing occupancy and ownership costs of buying a home. Last month, Star real estate reporter Tess Kalinowski wrote about a new...

Expert witness’s knowledge of typography proves trust papers forged

by admin | Feb 15, 2019 | 2019 Toronto Star Property Law Column, Toronto Star Property Law Columns

Bob Aaron bob@aaron.ca When Canadians file for bankruptcy, most of their assets — including houses and cottages — become the property of the trustee in bankruptcy and are sold to pay creditors. One of the few exceptions to this rule occurs when the bankrupt person...

This property owners’ fight for land severance plan was needlessly hard

by admin | Feb 1, 2019 | 2019 Toronto Star Property Law Column, Toronto Star Property Law Columns

Bob Aaron bob@aaron.ca One way of making better use of the scarce residential land we have in the GTA is to intensify housing. The City of Toronto’s official policy is pro-intensification. But its planning department seems to be actively opposed to squeezing more...

‘Idiotic’ Toronto policy stymies mayor’s affordable housing plan

by admin | Jan 18, 2019 | 2019 Toronto Star Property Law Column, Toronto Star Property Law Columns

Bob Aaron bob@aaron.ca Urban planner Sean Galbraith demonstrated — in recent Twitter posts — how Toronto’s own zoning regulations are standing in the way of Mayor John Tory’s goal to create 40,000 affordable housing units. Galbraith, of Galbraith & Associates,...