Fire Next Door – Episode #146

April 22, 2013 By 3 Comments

You submit an offer on a house you love and the offer gets accepted!!!

You do your home inspection and everything passes with flying colours. Now you just wait for the closing date to arrive. But in the meantime, you want to have a visit to the property to take some measurements and perhaps to show your friends and family the beautiful new house you just purchased.

You arrive at the house and realize the house next door that is attached to yours has caught fire! Now what? You haven’t even taken ownership yet. Who is responsible? What if there is obvious damage? Even worse…what if there is hidden damage? Do I still need to buy it or can I walk away?

True story…Watch the video and see what happen. If you have further questions about the details feel free to contact me…I’d be happy to share.

Filed Under: General, Inspections, Legal Tagged With: , , , ,

Home Inspector Gets Sued – Episode #113

September 21, 2012 By Leave a Comment

For most of you who have gone through a typical home inspection, the inspector will have you read and sign a report before they even begin the inspection. This is to help you understand what the inspection will deal with and what it will not deal with. There is also a standard limited liability clause which states that if the inspector made a mistake, the most the buyer could expect would be the cost of the report. This clause is common in most home inspection reports, mostly due to the fact that the inspector can’t look behind walls or under floors. Therefore, it is really tough to hold the home inspector liable for anything missed.

Interestingly, a recent court ruling found a home inspector liable for the cost of removing mould from a house. Watch the video to hear the story.

Filed Under: General, Inspections, Investing, Legal

Touring The Tuscan Hills In Italy – Episode #105

August 7, 2012 By 1 Comment

Welcome to Florence, Italy…commonly known as “the birthplace of the Renaissance”. Tourism is, by far, the most important of all industries and most of the Florentine economy relies on the money generated by international arrivals and students studying in the city. Manufacturing and commerce, however, still remain highly important.

Speaking to several local businesses and Real Estate Brokerages, I was able to realize that Florence also has a very “Tenant Friendly” law similar to Ontario (if not worse). Apparently, it is very difficult to evict a tenant in Florence…especially if the tenants include families with children. I met a business owner at a local meat shop who used to live in Canada and he moved to Italy for lifestyle reasons about 5 years ago. He told me that it takes a minimum of 6 months to evict a tenant and that you really need to be careful on who you choose as your tenants. If that is true, then if you think we have it bad with our Ontario Residential Tenancies Act then think again.

A relaxed lifestyle can be good in certain aspects, but Under the Tuscan Sun, it may be tough for a landlord to evict a tenant compared to Ontario’s laws. In the end, it is your due diligence that can save you, especially for a Landlord treating their real estate portfolio as a business.

Filed Under: Europe, General, Investing, Legal

Human Rights Code Applies To Landlords – Episode #94

May 22, 2012 By Leave a Comment

There is a lot of information that a Landlord needs to know about the Human Rights Code and Housing.

Where do housing rights apply? “The right to equal treatment without discrimination applies when renting or buying a unit. This right also applies to choosing or evicting tenants, occupancy rules and regulations, repairs, the use of related services and facilities, and the general enjoyment of the premises.” – Ontario Human Rights Commission

Believe it or not, there are rules to posting rental ads and Landlords cannot deny a tenant housing based on certain criteria which we discuss in this episode. There are some ads that openly discriminate for example: “Seeking mature couple”. And there are some ads that discriminate by accident for example: “Suitable for single professional”. There are many things you can and cannot say and in this episode I provide examples. The Human Rights Code also outlines what information you may ask for when choosing tenants or screening them.

For more information: Ontario Human Rights Commission: www.ohrc.on.ca

Filed Under: General, Investing, Legal

Things Landlords & Tenants Do BUT Are Illegal – Episode #84

April 13, 2012 By Leave a Comment

There are many myths out there that imply “becoming a Landlord is a nightmare”. Especially knowing that the by-laws are so much in favour of the Tenants in Ontario.

This is why we had Elaine Page from Page Paralegal come give us a surprising presentation on “Things you can and cannot do when you are a Landlord and/or Tenant”. Elaine specializes in Landlord and Tenant matters for over 20 years and in this episode she tells us:

1. The top 3 things most Landlords think they can do BUT truly cannot
2. And the top 3 things most Tenants think they can do BUT truly cannot

You may reach Elaine Page at: Phone: (905)-763-7922 E-mail: elaine@pageparalegal.com

Filed Under: General, Investing, Legal
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