Over the last 18 months, the real estate industry and society, in general, has encountered challenges that one may not have ever dreamed of, never mind planned for. No one could have predicted multiple province-wide shutdowns due to a pandemic.

In the last couple of issues of our newsletter we’ve looked at the process of evicting a tenant because either the current owner/landlord requires the premise for his own use or that of his immediate family, or he is selling the property and is giving notice to the tenant on behalf of the new owner who does. We saw that the process is initiated by serving the tenant with an N12 Eviction form. And we also saw that the process can be enforced in a timely manner by simultaneously submitting an L2 Application with the Board.

We’ve been tracking the market pretty closely month by month, especially since the brisk run we saw in 2017, the impact of the Government imposed foreign buyers spec. tax and mortgage stress test in the Spring of 2017, then the unprecedented world-wide pandemic commencing in the Spring of 2020. All these have had an impact to be sure. What we want to do, if we can, is try to examine market fluctuations in the light of these events, factoring in normal seasonal changes and see if we can see patterns and trends. The idea is to get an overview as to how the market has responded to date and see if we can get a handle perhaps on where it is going in the future.

When you purchase a new home, there are several factors to consider. This article will discuss three important features found in every new home contract. It will first consider the deposit structure and the warranty related to your deposits. It will then discuss the nature of the statement of critical dates and how this can impact your home closing. Last, it will consider your pre-delivery inspection and how issues discovered before you move in may be addressed after closing.

As landlords we are in the business of attracting and retaining tenants, not getting rid of them. But there are times and circumstances where it becomes necessary to part ways with a tenant. At such times there are specific procedures and time frames that need to be followed.

Statistics show a slight decrease in both sales numbers and in average prices in May as compared to April, across Niagara.