What is a Status Certificate???

You have purchased a Condominium, and you hear the words “Status Certificate”? Well what is that? and why does my lawyer have to read this stack of paperwork?

A Status Certificate is a document that explains the current status of Condominium Corporation. When purchasing resale is it important that your offer is conditional upon the review of the Status Certificate.

The Status Certificate provides important information about the condominium corporation, such as any arrears or increases in common expenses; Whether any major work needs to be done to the building; The amount of the reserve fund and whether the reserve fund is sufficient for any major work. The Status also provides information about any claims against the corporation and whether the corporation is involved in any proceedings. This is important because if there are high claims against the corporation and the corporation’s insurance does not provide coverage; the corporation can either increase the common expenses or levy a special assessment against the unit owners. When you are purchasing a condominium, you need to know of any potential or significant increase in your monthly common expenses which is very important.

The Status Certificate package also includes the corporation’s financial statements, declaration and by-laws. The financial statements gives good indication of a corporation’s financial stability and give a good indication to whether or not the corporation is healthy. The statements will demonstrate the trends in expenditures and receipts for previous years and provide comparisons of a corporation’s actual and expected costs to come. The budget for the current year will also be included, identifying both the income to the corporation, and the amount of the reserve fund. The declaration of the corporation (Condo Docs) outlines the rules and regulations of the corporation for example whether you can keep pets or weight restrictions,what colour window coverings can and cannot be.

Therefore when purchasing a Condominium, have a lawyer on your team so you can find out the inns and outs of the building. You never know what you can find in the condo docs, and could possibly be a deal breaker or winner!

Part II of a 'Get Ready to Wait!'

Tarion, the provincial agency that provides consumer protection for new home buyers, revised the rules governing condo delays last summer. As of July 1, any project that started sales on or after that date is covered.Frankly, the challenge for a lay person is just understanding those new rules. While the Tarion protections are now appended to all sales and purchase contracts, usually to the front page, the darn thing is so long and complicated it might as well be written in Sanskrit for the average buyer.

“You really do need a lawyer to go through it and explain it,” Mr. Leclair says. “It is vital to know what your rights are and the best time to do that is within the 10-day rescission period right after signing the deal.”

In essence, occupancy becomes a moving target from the time you sign until the roof of the project is completed. Developers can change move-in dates as many times as they want with 90 days notice until the roof slab or trusses and sheathing are in place.

After that, the developer has 30 days to set firm occupancy and can change that date only once again with 90 days notice. That final occupancy date cannot be more than 120 days from the one given when the roof was completed.

What happens if the project is not ready for occupancy once that final, final date is set? The developer has to start paying you $150 a day to a maximum of $7,500 for every day of delay.

“In effect, buying a new condo means being prepared for what may prove to be a very long and drawn-out process,” Mr. Margulies says. “If you get in at the early stages when prices are best, then you are looking at anywhere from 30 months to five years before move-in.”

And if your project gets pulled, the cycle starts all over again if you choose to try another development.

The length of waiting time and uncertainty involved in buying a condo today may suggest buyers focus on projects that already have financing and a construction permit.

“If you opt for a project closer to construction or in construction, you may pay more but you will be much more certain of being able to take occupancy within a more reasonable period of time,” Mr. Margulies says.