2014 Saskatchewan Residential Real Estate Year in Review

So, after trying to stay regular in my blogging endeavour for the past nine months, I am going to try and capture a few themes of the past year in an effort to serve up a drive thru delivery of real estate law.

Why can’t we all just get along?

Well, the reasons vary -from fuzz in my pool (http://ktrealestate.blogspot.ca/2014/07/neighbours-nuisance-and-noble-firs-case.html) to building on one neighbour’s land (http://ktrealestate.blogspot.ca/2014/04/not-on-my-land-two-owners-battle-on.html).

However, none of them hold a candle to the Ontario Superior Court of Justice decision in which members of an affluent neighbourhood start engaging in battles over dog poop.  The decision is worth a few chuckles at least: http://canlii.ca/t/g6wvd

Clearly, some additional community BBQs are needed for 2015. 

The Government of Saskatchewan put in a number of changes to the Condominium Property Act and Regulations following an extensive consultation process.  A description of those changes was my most read post from the year, and can be found here: http://ktrealestate.blogspot.ca/2014/06/major-changes-to-condominium.html

A number of condominium boards are still struggling to meet the requirements of the updated Act.  The transition into requiring more regular updates of the reserve fund, having audited financials, and working through updated insurance requirements has caused these boards some frustration, but most seem to be working through it. 

Locally, we have not seen a lot of significant condominium law decisions being issued by the Courts.  It is expected that some of the legislative changes may increase the number of matters being heard by the courts over time, however. 

In the meanwhile, check out a great lawyer and blogger out of Ontario, Chris Jaglowitz with Gardner Miller Arnold who highlights the top ten condominium cases out of Canada here:

In Saskatchewan, the Courts have appeared to pay some special attention to foreclosure practice, with some decisions with particularly stern language for some counsel for the lender.  The instruction from the bench is that the existing practice was not particularly borrower friendly, and accordingly, the Court is providing more direction on the appropriateness of seeking kinds of relief (http://ktrealestate.blogspot.ca/2014/11/the-costs-of-foreclosure-and-maybe-some.html), and following certain processes when certain facts present themselves (http://ktrealestate.blogspot.ca/2014/05/why-listening-to-your-clients-can-get.html). 

Foreclosure lawyers should ignore at their own peril.

We had another year with flooded homes and basements, and that will likely bring a new deluge of basement related litigation.  I explored some of these issues in the following blog post: http://ktrealestate.blogspot.ca/2014/07/post-flooding-legal-blues.html

Buying a new home, especially one that you are involved in the design of, is a challenging process.  Often individuals are emotionally invested in their ‘dream’ home and want it to be perfect.  They are also fearful of all the shoddy build stories that they have heard from family, friends and the media.  The process can be exceptionally stressful. 

A good tip is to get your professional advisors involved at the front end.  Understand the risks of various aspects of the transaction before you sign the contract: (http://ktrealestate.blogspot.ca/2014/05/representing-clients-when-dealing-with.html).  Elements like the risk to your deposit (http://ktrealestate.blogspot.ca/2014/09/15-million-down-drain-questions-you.html) and the right type of builder’s mortgage (http://ktrealestate.blogspot.ca/2014/04/the-right-new-home-with-wrong-builders.html) should be understood at the front end of the transaction. 

I have tried to blog on a number of topics, but with the idea of making the process of buying and selling your home easier and more readily understood.  One of my most popular posts was the following post on the types of costs you should expect when buying your property.  A little too wordy, but an expansive overview on how to budget for these big purchases:

I am looking forward to keeping the blog going, with some new directions and ideas for relevant posts.  If you have any ideas for topics you would like to hear about, let me know. 

Have a Great 2015!