It is quite common in real estate agreements to see a paragraph where the buyer agrees to accept basic easements, subdivision agreements and restrictive covenants. These are often on title and have been for years or even decades, and would be very difficult for a...

For some people, the history of the people in the house they are buying is irrelevant; for some, it’s only relevant if there was something violent; and for others, any issues are important to know and address before deciding to go ahead with a purchase. I had clients...

With house prices on the rise and interest rates remaining historically low, it has become very common for young homebuyers to jump into the market while they can still afford to buy, but require a family member, often a parent, to co-sign or guarantee the mortgage in...

UFFI, or urea-formaldehyde foam insulation, is a synthetic type of insulation that is injected into the walls of a house. It was used extensively in homes in the 1970s, until it was discovered that it produced some adverse health effects from formaldehyde vapour...

I see it all the time – a buyer puts in an offer that is accepted, the home inspector finds some deficiencies, and the seller agrees to have the work completed “on or before closing.” I hate that wording. On or before closing means that it can be done any time before...

It’s quite common to make your mortgage payments weekly, biweekly or semi-monthly. Sometimes, this works out with the date that you close your mortgage – closing date is a Tuesday, and you want your payments to come out on Tuesdays. Sometimes, you want a different day...

I’ve been talking a lot about sellers recently, because that’s where I’ve seen the most issues over the past several months. Last week I wrote about the problems that can come up when you forget about a rental item. Today, it’s mixing up what a survey is. A formal...

I had several clients over this past summer who had issues with selling parts of their houses. Specifically, the offer didn’t mention something that the buyer had every right to assume was owned and would be transferred (whether a hot water heater, water softener or...

It’s my least favourite call: telling a seller that they don’t have quite enough money to close, and that they will need to bring some in in order to satisfy what must be paid out. Sometimes, this is because there is a much higher mortgage penalty than the client...