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Nepean, ON Real Estate News

By Kerry Fox
(Kerry Fox, Barrister & Solicitor)
GST issues for condo investors in Barrhaven, Nepean, Ontario In the last few years, there are more ‘average' people buying condos as investments because the stock market has been performing so poorly.   Like all brand new construction, there's GST payable on a new condo. Normally, a buyer would qualify for the GST new housing rebate and the builder would rebate the purchase price by this amount. If you're not planning on living at the unit yourself (either yourself, or a relative), you don't qualify for the new housing rebate. A condo buyer has to sign an affidavit before taking possession of the unit declaring that they are entitled to the rebate. Once you've told the builder that you're a condo investor, the builder will gross up the purchase price by the amount of the rebate. A few y...
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By Kerry Fox
(Kerry Fox, Barrister & Solicitor)
Noisy neighbours- tips for condo buyers in Barrhaven, Nepean Ontario Noise complaints are a common problem that condo buyers have to deal with. Sometimes, issues with noise are directly related to how many units at the building are being rented out to tenants. One of the pieces of information that's contained in the status certificate is how many units in the condo are not owner occupied. If you have a tenant in your unit as a condo buyer, you're required to advise the board within a certain period of time of the tenancy commencing. Another common reason for noise is the type of flooring used in units. Most condominiums have restrictions on the type of hardwood flooring you can instal as a condo buyer because hardwood causes noise. Usually, you're required to have a certain type of unde...
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By Kerry Fox
(Kerry Fox, Barrister & Solicitor)
Pet rules for condo buyers in Barrhaven, Nepean, Ontario Many condominiums pass restrictions on pet ownership. Condos routinely restrict pets over a certain size (ie. 25 lbs.), certain types of animals, owning multiple pets, and pets which are a nuisance. Other rules for condo buyers include having to carry pets when they are outside of the unit. When it comes to pets in condos, it's one thing for the condominium to have rules in place about them. But, the law is a bit vague as to what kinds of restrictions condominiums are legally permitted to enforce against pet owners. In general, courts have held that the restrictions have to be reasonable and they need to be enforced consistently by the board of directors. There have been situations where a condominium has gone through a number of ...
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By Kerry Fox
(Kerry Fox, Barrister & Solicitor)
Parking spots for condo buyers in Barrhaven, Nepean, Ontario With most condominium purchases, a condo buyer is going to be getting at least one parking spot along with their unit. The spot will either be a separate freehold unit, or an assigned unit. For condominium townhomes, parking spots are usually assigned by the board of directors. In highrise buildings which have underground parking, the spots are most often freehold units. In highrise buildings with underground parking, a condo buyer should know that the parking spots are never exactly the same size. Some are wider than others. Some are in a location which is harder to access. It's important as a condo buyer to look at the actual parking spot you're going to be getting. It's also important to look at the condominium reference pl...
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Insurance policies in condominiums in Barrhaven, Nepean- what do condo owners need to know?  As a condo owner, there are 2 different insurance policies you need to know about. The condominium has a blanket insurance policy for the common elements of the condominium- this would cover the basic structure of the building. Additionally, each individual unit owner needs to have their own individual policy for the contents of their unit and any improvements made to their unit. Typically, what is covered under a condo owner's policy includes drywall, and whatever is on top of drywall such as fixtures, cabinetry, flooring, and carpeting. What happens when a condo owner causes damage to the rest of the condominium? A common problem occurs when, for example, someone leaves on vacation and a pipe ...
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By Kerry Fox
(Kerry Fox, Barrister & Solicitor)
When is a condo reserve fund "okay"? You may be familiar with the basics of how condo reserve fund studies work. Typically, they outline what the condominium needs to set aside every year for the next 30 years. At some point in this 30 year period, the condo reserve fund will drop down to quite a low level. The fund doesn't just keep growing and growing with no end in sight. As major expenses come up and are dealt with, the condo reserve fund gets drawn down and then it is replenished again over time. When I'm talking with a client after having reviewed their status certificate, the most common question I get asked is: "Is it okay?", or "Is the condo reserve fund okay?" This is a difficult question to answer with a simple ‘yes' or ‘no'. The Condominium Act requires condos to have condo ...
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Condominium buyers beware of lost money for upgrades in Barrhaven, Nepean, Ontario Many in Ottawa are familiar with the EcoCite condominium project in the Glebe that was taken over by the lender this past summer. I don't know the specifics about the financial situation of the developer (other than to say it obviously wasn't good), but the end result was that all of the agreements of purchase and sale with the buyers were cancelled. As a condo buyer, you could still renegotiate with the lender to purchase a unit in the building, but not for the same price as what you had originally agreed to pay. It's bad enough to lose an opportunity to own the unit that you wanted in the building that you wanted, particularly if you've been waiting around a long time. It's worse, though, if condo buyer...
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Condo buyers- legal hurdles for condominium buyers in Barrhaven, Nepean, Ontario As a condo buyer,  you want to keep a few things in mind when buying a brand new condo from a builder: The plans, or sketches, which are attached to the agreement, are not legally binding on the builder. The builder can always modify these floor plans if necessary. The unit you purchase as a condo buyer may end up being smaller than what was represented in the sketches, or the dimension may be different. The budget for the first year condo fees (which you receive as part of the disclosure package) is only an estimate. The monthly fees can always end up being higher by the time the condo is finished and ready for occupancy. As a condo buyer, you should expect that these monthly condo fees will always increas...
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