Legally Speaking Everything You Wanted to Know About Short-Term Rental Changes #571

The BC Government introduced the Short-Term Rental Accommodations Act, prompting questions among REALTORS® and homeowners, today we explore the most common ones.

Legally Speaking Stay Cool – New Home Buyer Rescission Period for Residential Real Properties Coming January 3, 2023 #555

BC’s new Home Buyer Rescission Period (HBRP) for residential real estate property takes effect on January 3, 2023 and while it is not a new concept, REALTORS® need to be aware of the effects of the new regulation

Legally Speaking Disclosure of Archaeological Findings: More Digging May Be Required #522

Heritage concerns may affect the value of the property, its redevelopment potential, or even the ability of a new owner to make any renovations, repairs, or additions to the existing structures…

Legally Speaking The First Law of Holes #517

Will Rogers defined the first law of holes as follows: “When you find yourself in a hole; stop digging…

Legally Speaking Implied Agency: If It Quacks Like a Duck, It May Be a Duck! #503

Implied agency is very much on the brain these days with the Superintendent of Real Estates new rules on agency now in effect…

Legally Speaking Death at a Property #502

If someone dies at a property, is the death a material latent defect that must be disclosed in writing to all other parties before entering…

Legally Speaking Words Count in a Warranty #466

A warranty is a minor term in a contract and does not go to the root of the agreement between parties…

Legally Speaking Buyers’ Due Diligence Obligations #452

There have been a number of recent articles on a seller’s obligation to make full and complete disclosure of all issues respecting property offered for sale…

Legally Speaking Underground Storage Tanks: A Refresher #434

For properties built before 1957, the presence of an underground oil storage tank (UST) poses significant environmental and financial risk to buyers and sellers…

Legally Speaking Defects, Disclosure and Caveat Emptor #430

It’s trite law that a seller and a listing REALTOR® have a duty to disclose known material latent defects, but not patent defects…

Legally Speaking Property Disclosure Statement – Shield or Sword? #406

In the early 1990s, the profession introduced the Property Disclosure Statement, or PDS (formerly, the Property Condition Disclosure Statement)…

Legally Speaking Strata Property Act—Common Expenses, Issue Between Non-Sectioned Apartment and Townhome Units; Strata Property Act—Undisclosed Strata Council Conflict of Interest #392

A strata corporation incorporated in 1987 had 36 apartment-style units and eight townhome-style units…

Legally Speaking Property Law Act, s.6—Seller Must Have Title to Sue; Commission Case—No Breach of Fiduciary Duty #373

A couple who agreed to purchase a yet-to-be-constructed condominium from a developer repudiated the agreement after it was built because their complaints could not be resolved…

Legally Speaking Buyer’s Agent Failure to Advise of Amendment in Counter-Offer #362

An Ontario buyer’s agent, who submitted an offer to the seller’s agent, discovered the importance of carefully examining the seller’s counter-offer for amendments the hard way, at a personal cost of $50,000…

Legally Speaking No Commission on Building Contract Where Agent Failed to Disclose #220

Possession under the Contract of Purchase and Sale works well when possession is the day after completion, but not as well when both are on the same date…

Legally Speaking Psychologically Impacted Property – The Haunted House; Rights Attached to an Easement #192

Generally, when we consider a licensee’s duty to disclose material facts concerning the property in question, we think of material facts relating to the physical condition of the property…

Legally Speaking CREA’s Standards of Business Practice Establishing REALTOR’s Duties #153

The extent to which the CREA Code of Ethics and Standards of Business Practice are factors in a judge’s decision involving the liability of licensees is illustrated by the following case…

Legally Speaking Soil Contaminated Sites #138

What do gas stations with underground tanks, sawmills, pulp mills, paint manufacturing shops, dry-cleaners, shipyards, truck parking yards for moving or fuel companies, junkyards, farms and…

Legally Speaking Soil Contaminated Sites [Continued] #139

A whole new growth industry is developing of scientists, engineers, law professors, lawyers, columnists, experts and others, around the pollution of the environment and the liability for doing so…

Legally Speaking Selling Licensee’s Duty to Disclose – No “Subject to Sale” Clause #94

It is the selling licensee who discovers what a prospective purchaser can or cannot afford, or what specific quality or use of the property is of particular interest to the purchaser…

Legally Speaking Prospectus and Court Ordered Sales #80

By the time this is published, we hope that Bill 66, The Real Estate Amendment Act (No. 2) 1985,* has been proclaimed…

Legally Speaking Defects, Duty to Disclose Those That Are Reasonably Discoverable #66

We import more than fruit, vegetables, movies and the Beach Boys from California; now we may be importing their law…

Legally Speaking Section 28 Disclosure Statement #53

Section 28 of the Real Estate Act was amended in 1981 to widen the requirements for disclosure to be made by a licensee prior to the purchase of real estate by the licensee or his associates…

Legally Speaking CPI Rental Increase Formula; Woodstoves; Vendor’s Continuing Liability to Mortgagees Following Sale #44

Column 41 discussed a matter raised by the Vancouver Island Real Estate Board concerning the potential uninsurability of a home whose owner failed to disclose to his insurer that a woodstove was a source of heat…

Legally Speaking Prospectus, Disclosure Statement and Other Changes #83

More than you ever wanted to know about this subject, but were afraid to ask…

Legally Speaking Licensees’ Duty to Disclosure of All Facts to His Principal #1

The selling agent brought an offer to the listing agent for $85,000.00 on September 26, 1977, which was accepted by the vendors, subject to their obtaining a release of a prior offer by September 29th…