Real Estate Litigation Articles

Bob Aaron bob@aaron.ca Toronto property taxes are so low the city has been left with a gaping budget hole that must be filled. Everything was going smoothly on the purchase of a St. Catharines home earlier this year — until I checked the property taxes. While working...

Bob Aaron bob@aaron.ca Landmark case protects homebuyers with title insurance from hidden physical defects that make the home unmarketable. The Supreme Court of Canada has written the final chapter in one of the most important title-insurance cases of this generation....

Bob Aaron bob@aaron.ca Although the buyer could face extra costs, don’t write off the opportunity just yet. What should a buyer do when the status certificate for their condominium purchase shows that the corporation is involved in litigation? That was the question a...

Bob Aaron bob@aaron.ca New real-estate company in Picton is owned by local law firm, allowing it to shake up the traditional commission-fee structure. An interesting development in Picton, Ont., provides a glimpse into a possible future business model for real-estate...

Bob Aaron bob@aaron.ca Court decision emphasizes it’s the house buyer, not the seller, who is most at risk. A small claims court decision released last year underscores the importance of careful wording of seller promises in agreements of purchase and sale. Back in...

Bob Aaron bob@aaron.ca Tarion’s enforcement arm is set to target real-estate agents who are involved in selling unregistered homes. Tarion Warranty Corporation has warned Ontario’s builders and real-estate agents they can be charged and fined if involved in the sale...

Bob Aaron bob@aaron.ca Tarion’s limit for deposit protection — $20,000 on condos and $40,000 on homes — hasn’t changed in years. An interim report on the Tarion warranty corporation should have gone further to protect home buyers’ purchase deposits. Special adviser J....

Bob Aaron bob@aaron.ca Over-charging homeowners to help intensify urban housing defeats the purpose. In the face of a serious housing shortage in the GTA, the City of Toronto is actively discouraging homeowners from legally adding one or two units to their houses by...

Bob Aaron bob@aaron.ca Too many renters are getting away with not paying rent, then appealing eviction orders. How many times do Ontario judges have to cry out for changes to the landlord and tenant court procedure to prevent tenants from “gaming the system” before...

Bob Aaron bob@aaron.ca Since 1997, 94 court cases in Ontario have been pinned to the Seller Property Information Statement. The Seller Property Information Statement (SPIS) continues to be the single most dangerous document in current use in the real estate market....