While there may be many good reasons for seniors to register a home jointly with their children, writes Bob Aaron, it’s not always foolproof — and can backfire badly. Hardly a week goes by when I am not asked by a client with grown children whether they can save...
Anyone involved in a transaction involving houses built close together in the 1970s and 1980s need to conduct due diligence, writes Bob Aaron. The problem can be below ground. Imagine buying a house which was advertised as a fully detached home and finding out before...
Navigating a real estate agent’s creative bag of euphemisms, writes Bob Aaron, is key to cracking the code when searching for a home — like this handyman special with its low maintenance yard! Real estate has always had its own special language — with plenty of...
Buyers and sellers of real estate should always ask their lawyers in advance who will have access to their money, Bob Aaron writes. As Ontario’s real estate market continues to modernize, the growth of digital tools like third-party payment services and electronic...
A ruling in favour of 40 home buyers against a developer, writes Bob Aaron, is a warning to builders against adding costs not outlined in agreements of purchase and sale. A group of 40 unhappy buyers in the Clarkson Urban Towns project has successfully sued the...
Tarion is responsible, among other things, for protecting homeowners when builders walk away from projects and buyers lose their deposits. As the Tarion Warranty Corporation approaches its 50th anniversary next year, it appears to be failing to uphold its consumer...
An umbrella policy, writes Bob Aaron, provides an extra layer of protection against lawsuits resulting from damage to someone else’s property, or injuries due to an accident. “If it’s not raining, why do I need an umbrella insurance policy?” As a real estate lawyer, I...
With or without a trust agreement, writes Bob Aaron, adding a child to your home title could result in expensive litigation or income taxes costing far more than any probate fee savings. With the value of the average Toronto home running north of $1 million, it can be...
In a court case between a homeowner’s Charter right to freedom of expression and the use of Nazi swastikas on his house, versus a municipality’s crackdown on symbols of hate, which side should prevail? According to court documents, the story began in 2022 when...
"All 80-year-old unit owner Joshua Frankel wants is a good night’s sleep. Sleep deprivation is no trifling matter." With these words in January, Justice R. Lee Akazaki began his 4,400-word ruling on a dispute between Frankel and York Region Condominium Corporation 664...
Case is a lesson for homeowners who did not buy title insurance when they bought their house, writes lawyer Bob Aaron, to arrange existing owner title insurance through their lawyers. A court decision released in January highlights the importance of homeowners having...
Faced with costs of thousands of dollars for each property, Lake of Bay residents responded with angry social media posts and letters to their councillors, Bob Aaron writes. In the wake of intense vocal opposition from local residents, the council of the Township of...
Opinion - Based on the author’s interpretations and judgments of facts, data and events. Nicholas Sutton has unsuccessfully tried for 14 years to sell this West Sussex mansion singer Adele once leased, writes Bob Aaron, after it gained a reputation as being haunted....
Want to avoid problems in your next real estate deal? Here are the top 10 issues in my experience that can lead to disappointment, unnecessary expense and even litigation in real estate agreements, in no particular order: Wrong unit I frequently see residential...
The “entire agreement” clause in a purchase contract, writes Bob Aaron, will always be a complete bar to any claims by a buyer for an innocent misrepresentation outside an agreement of purchase and sale. A decision of the Ontario Superior Court last summer is a...