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Realtor liable for failing to confirm location of new build property (Zhang v. Primont Homes (Caledon) Inc.)
Friday, August 23, 2024James R.G. CookLitigationReal Estate, Agreement of Purchase and Sale, GTA Real Estate, Caledon
In some cases, misrepresentations made prior to the signing of an Agreement of Purchase and Sale (APS), may allow a buyer to sue for damages, as demonstrated...
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Receiver appointed over property notwithstanding allegations of fraudulent mortgage (Hillmount Capital Mortgage Holdings Inc. v. Onsori-Saisan)
Monday, August 19, 2024James R.G. CookLitigationReal Estate, Mortgage, GTA Real Estate, Land Title Act
In Hillmount Capital Mortgage Holdings Inc. v. Onsori-Saisan, 2024 ONSC 4481 (CanLII), the applicant lender sought to appoint a receiver over a property in King City,
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Court critical of mortgage lender and Director of Titles for failing to consent to removal of fraudulent mortgage instrument from title (Sun v. Ryan Mortgage Income Fund Inc.)
Thursday, February 29, 2024James R.G. CookLitigationGTA Real Estate, Title Insurance, Mortgage, Rules of Civil Procedure, Land Title Act
In a decision which removed a fraudulent mortgage instrument from title to the applicants’ property, the Ontario Superior Court of Justice was...
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Sellers liable for deficiencies due to rectification of Agreement of Purchase and Sale (Melo v. Hiebert)
Friday, January 26, 2024James R.G. CookLitigationAgreement of Purchase and Sale, GTA Real Estate
The legal doctrine of rectification is a remedy that may be available to correct errors in an agreement to give effect to the true intentions of the...
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Bare trustee denied order for sale of property under Partition Act (Weise v. Weise)
Monday, October 16, 2023James R.G. CookLitigationReal Estate, GTA Real Estate, Partition Act
Given the high cost of real estate in Ontario, friends and relatives may sometimes assist with the purchase by...
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No collusion or bad faith by private mortgagee and co-owner (1000249084 Ontario Inc. v. Andazesgishahr)
Tuesday, October 10, 2023James R.G. CookLitigationMortgage, Real Estate, GTA Real Estate, Partition Act
When a property is purchased by co-owners for development and sale, they may set out their respective obligations in a...
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Partition Act application denied due to oppression (Stothers v. Kazeks)
Thursday, September 14, 2023James R.G. CookLitigationGTA Real Estate, Real Estate, Partition Act, Common Law Relationship
When properties are owned by two or more persons, situations may arise when one of the owners wishes to sell the property contrary to the wishes of the other. The Ontario Partition Act provides a way for...
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Commission not owing to agent under conditional agreement of purchase and sale
Monday, October 31, 2022James R.G. CookLitigationReal Estate, GTA Real Estate
Often, an agreement to purchase real estate will have a conditional period to allow for various steps to be completed by either the buyer or...
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Buyer breached duty of good faith in failing to complete assignment agreement
Tuesday, June 21, 2022James R.G. CookLitigationAgreement of Purchase and Sale, Town of Caledon, GTA Real Estate
Buyers of pre-construction properties in Ontario sometimes enter into an assignment agreement with another buyer before the completion...
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Real estate co-ownership dispute leads to sale under Partition Act
Wednesday, March 9, 2022James R.G. CookLitigationReal Estate, GTA Real Estate
Given the high price of real estate in Ontario, co-ownership of properties between friends and family members is increasingly common. Title may be registered in varying ownership ...
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Court refuses to impose 5 pm deadline for delivery of real estate closing proceeds
Tuesday, March 8, 2022James R.G. CookLitigationAgreement of Purchase and Sale, Real Estate, GTA Real Estate
Real estate transactions may be scheduled to be completed by a certain time of day, depending on the wording of the Agreement of Purchase and Sale (APS). In some cases ...
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No duty of care owed by seller to confirm buyers had financing in place
Monday, February 28, 2022James R.G. CookLitigationReal Estate, GTA Real Estate
Cases arising out of the 2017 market correction in the Greater Toronto Area continue to result in decisions favouring innocent sellers and substantial damages awarded against...
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B.C. Court awards damages arising from liability for foreign buyers’ tax
Thursday, February 17, 2022James R.G. CookLitigationGTA Real Estate, Commercial Real Estate, Estate Freeze
Some Canadian provinces have introduced a “foreign buyers’ tax” in recent years to curb what is perceived as the impact of foreign speculators on over-heated ...
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Sellers not allowed to rely on “escape clause” to accept a better offer
Monday, November 29, 2021James R.G. CookLitigation, Real EstateAgreement of Purchase and Sale, GTA Real Estate
In some cases, sellers may wish to ‘hedge their bets’ by accepting a conditional offer that contains a term allowing them to continue to market the property for sale until...
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Porch bandits - adverse possession remains alive and well in Toronto
Friday, November 26, 2021James R.G. CookLitigationLand Title Act, GTA Real Estate
The doctrine of adverse possession remains alive and well in Toronto despite the conversion of most properties into the Land Titles registry system many...
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Stepfather’s mortgage to stepdaughter determined to be a gift rather than a loan
Monday, November 1, 2021James R.G. CookLitigationLoans, Real Estate, GTA Real Estate, Monetary Gift, Brampton
Family members who provide financial assistance to each other for the purpose of purchasing real estate may intend that such funds be a gift without any expectation of...
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Buyers bound to agreement of purchase and sale negotiated by family friend
Tuesday, October 26, 2021James R.G. CookLitigation, Real EstateAgreement of Purchase and Sale, GTA Real Estate
Buyers who rely on real estate services provided by a family friend would do well to ensure that they are fully aware of the consequences of entering into a...
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Buyer entitled to repudiate agreement after discovering water damage
Wednesday, August 11, 2021James R.G. CookLitigation, Real EstateAgreement of Purchase and Sale, GTA Real Estate
During the period between the time an Agreement of Purchase and Sale (APS) is signed and the completion date, a property being purchased usually remains in...
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Commission owed to real estate agent despite lack of written agreement
Friday, July 9, 2021James R.G. CookLitigationGTA Real Estate, Real Estate, Caledon, Buyer's Representation Agreement, Small Claims Court
In the real estate industry, relationships between buyers and their real estate agent are often governed by a written Buyers Representation Agreement (“BRA”). A BRA usually...
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Oral agreement to transfer family home results in years of litigation between father and daughter
Monday, July 5, 2021James R.G. CookLitigation, Real EstateMississauga, GTA Real Estate
Agreements between family members are often informal and not reduced to writing, even if they involve substantial assets such as real estate. The parties may think that they have agreed on some of the terms but...
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Seller entitled to repossess townhouse after buyer fails to complete purchase
Friday, July 2, 2021James R.G. CookLitigationReal Estate, GTA Real Estate, Agreement of Purchase and Sale
Sales of new condominiums and townhouses may sometimes allow a buyer to move into a unit on an “interim occupancy date” which may be several months before the purchase is scheduled to be finally...
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Buyer’s failure to waive conditions nullifies agreement of purchase and sale
Friday, June 4, 2021James R.G. CookLitigationGTA Real Estate, Agreement of Purchase and Sale, Land Title Act
While conditional offers may be rare in the Greater Toronto Area, where multiple bidders compete for most properties, buyers in less heated markets may...
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Living in a condominium requires a balancing of interests between the residents and compliance with the rules and by-laws that govern the community. No owner can be permitted run amok or...
Tuesday, May 4, 2021James R.G. CookLitigation, Real EstateOntario Mortgages Act, GTA Real Estate
A mortgagor has a right to request a discharge statement from a mortgagee at any time prior to the mortgaged property being sold by...
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Buyers’ liability to sellers in aborted real estate transactions - Part 2
Monday, May 3, 2021James R.G. CookLitigation, Real EstateAgreement of Purchase and Sale, GTA Real Estate
We have previously addressed a number of circumstances in which buyers unsuccessfully attempted to back out of a binding Agreement of Purchase and Sale (APS) for the purchase...
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Agent’s claim to commission owing under BRA dismissed due to non est factum
Tuesday, April 27, 2021James R.G. CookLitigation, Real EstateGTA Real Estate, Buyer's Representation Agreement
Agents often require buyer clients to enter into a Buyer’s Representation Agreement (BRA) which sets out the buyer’s agreement to pay the agent a commission on...
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