Most people in Ontario these days will buy a property without a survey, or without an up-to-date survey. Most of the time, this will not be an issue. However, there are times when nothing replaces having that knowledge ahead of time. Where a survey really matters is...
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A road to nowhere
In 1985, Veikko Kivikangas subdivided a parcel of waterfront land he owned in Sudbury into three lots. One had direct road access; the others were given a right-of-way over each of the other pieces in order to access their lands. There had long been a gravel road over...
Survey says
Almost all real estate deals will come into my office with a provision for the seller to provide a survey. If you are selling, be careful: you don’t want to offer more than you have. First, to be a survey, it must have a proper mark on it from a licenced surveyor....
Toeing the line
In Ontario, most purchases close without an up-to-date survey, because most buyers purchase a title insurance policy at the same time that they buy the house. What happens if you find out after the fact that your neighbour's property encroaches onto yours? Generally...
Survey says
Someone asked me an interesting question the other day: what happens if there is a mistake in the survey and I don't find out until after closing? 20 years ago, when you bought property in Ontario, your lawyer would have done a full certification of title. There would...