RE City of St. John's rejects owner's pleas to tear down burnt-out house. Now she says she's stuck
David Amos<david.raymond.amos333@gmail.com> | Wed, Aug 16, 2023 at 12:24 AM |
| To: mayor@stjohns.ca, atlanticIunit@cbc.ca, ariana.kelland@cbc.ca, tiffanyelton@gmail.com, joethorne@stewartmckelvey.com | |
| Cc: motomaniac333 <motomaniac333@gmail.com>, premier <premier@gov.nl.ca>, corporate.communications@firstam.com, cgaska@firstam.com, investor.relations@firstam.com | |
https://davidraymondamos3. Tuesday, 15 August 2023 City of St. John's rejects owner's pleas to tear down burnt-out house. Now she says she's stuck https://www.cbc.ca/news/ | |
City of St. John's rejects owner's pleas to tear down burnt-out house. Now she says she's stuck
'What's crushing me is I'm one small business lady in their town — who cares if I'm OK in the end?'
"I don't need a puffer anymore," she said, explaining her breathing has improved since moving out. It's a bright spot in an otherwise dreary situation.
"I live in my mother's basement. And then also I run a business, so I do a lot of production from home as well. So it's been a little bit difficult there and she wants her TV room back at some point."
Elton is stuck with her 776-square-foot home in central St. John's. She can't live in it, she can't sell it for someone to occupy, and without an affordable builder and money for a costly teardown, she has few options.
"It hurts to see your house like this. Like all the kitchen cabinets, I sold them. They're gone. I've been taking the doors off, just getting all the stuff out and selling what I can, piece by piece, whatever I can sell," she said.
- Read the original CBC Investigates report here: When a house isn't a home
Elton purchased the home on Summer Street in July 2020 for $168,000. The following spring, she discovered an opening at the front of her house which led her down a frustrating fact-finding mission that still hasn't concluded.
A CBC News investigation in January 2022 revealed Elton's home was originally a double-car garage that had been in a fire and rebuilt as a home by covering up the charred walls with new drywall.
The property was sold as a home years before, despite the city having never inspected the property following its conversion. It had exchanged hands multiple times since the 1980s, and the city had been collecting property tax on what it considered to be a residential property.
A metal casing still hangs inside Tiffany Elton's attic signaling that the property was once a commercial garage. (Paul Pickett/CBC)
After Elton alerted the city to the problem, she was handed a long list of fine notices. The property doesn't have an occupancy certificate and now cannot be lived in.
"I need it torn down. I think the city should have to tear it down because they're the ones who got me in this mess," Elton said.
In 1986, the owners applied to have the garage converted into a home, and the city council of the day approved the conversion.
However, there is no record on file that indicates the city ever received a permit application to do that work or inspected the property after its conversion to a residence.
The city does not have a record of the fire at the property, although it is evident that there was one. The only permit application made to the city was for window and siding replacement in 2006.
As the city never received an application for a permit to work on the property, there is no record of an inspection ever being done or an occupancy permit being issued.
WATCH | In the original CBC Investigates report, Tiffany Elton describes her shock at discovering her new home's true history:
In January, Elton's lawyer Joe Thorne wrote the city a letter urging them to demolish the property for her.
"While many of these problems can be laid at the feet of others, the city bears some responsibility as well," Thorne wrote.
"The cost of the demolition work is a significant burden to Ms. Elton but would be very little to the city."
Request denied
The city denied the request and said it didn't fall under the criteria it sets out for demolition, including when a property is condemned or becomes a public nuisance.
"Further, the city denies any negligence or negligent misrepresentation on its part. As previously set out, no permits were ever sought or issued for any work at 11 Summer St. with the exception of windows in or about 2006," a city lawyer wrote in a letter to Elton's lawyer.
"The city had no knowledge that the extensive changes were actually made to the property. All compliance letters state that a request does not result in an inspection of the property. While your client is able to pursue any claim she chooses, the city will strongly resist any claim in this matter."
The City of St. John's declined to comment on the matter.
Tiffany
Elton stands outside her former home on Summer Street. The property is
for sale, but whoever buys it next can only tear it down. (Ariana Kelland/CBC)
"My city has been dragging me through [this] for three years and, I feel like, treating me like I am at fault when I did not do this, and it feels nefarious. It feels like they're sticking me with this when it was their mistakes," Elton said.
"And what's crushing me is I'm one little small business lady in their town — who cares if I'm OK in the end? It's their money that they're protecting, and I think it's the principle of the matter to them. It would be admitting fault in a way to help me out of this."
The cost to tear down 11 Summer St. is around $20,000.
Leaving the property opens Elton up to the potential of liability — her home insurance dropped her because it's not actually a home.
"It's still my responsibility. I'm still paying property taxes on it as well, so as long as it's standing, it's a worry for me and a stressor for me."
Thorne was, however, able to advocate for Elton to settle with title insurance to discharge the mortgage, reversing a previous decision.
Court too costly
Elton explored the option of bringing the former owner and others to court.
She has found a duct for a propane stove cut through the burnt wood in the living room, suggesting the person who installed it knew the property had been in a fire. However, she's been advised taking the matter to court would be extremely costly.
"And in going to court, you have to bring everybody to court who were a part of it," she added.
In an email to questions from CBC News last year, the previous owner stated they were not aware of any issues with the home in the 10 years they owned the property.
After
being contacted by a previous tenant of the property, Tiffany Elton
found a propane stove had been installed in the living room. Whoever
installed it would have had to cut through the burnt wood to do so. (Ariana Kelland/CBC)
Now 42, Elton has drained whatever savings she had and has no house to call her own. She is now trying to sell the property as is, for someone to tear down.
"It's your biggest purchase and there's no way out. There's no way out," Elton warned.
"Nobody has that much money in savings to take it to court to find a solution. So whatever you buy, you're stuck with it."
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
399 Comments
David Amos
"Thorne was, however, able to advocate for Elton to
settle with title insurance to discharge the mortgage, reversing a
previous decision."
IMHO Mr Thorne and the Mayor should talk and FCT should sue the lawyer who failed to do his job on their behalf and their client Madame Elton
Peter Stride
Disgraceful behaviour by the city..like she
says this was approved by the Council years ago...and home inspections
are not that forensic.
David Amos
Reply to Peter Stride
I agree
Andrew Bickmore
Did she have a home inspection done prior to purchasing the property? A home inspection would have found some of the shortcomings and deficiencies with the property.
Tiffany Elton
Reply to Andrew Bickmore
I did.
David Amos
Reply to Tiffany Elton
Sue the dude
David Amos
Reply to Tiffany Elton
Do you have a mortgage?
David Amos
Reply to Tiffany Elton
Say Hey to Mayor Danny Breen for me
David Amos
Reply to Tiffany Elton
I just called and introduced myself correct?
St. John's woman facing prospect of full teardown of garage-turned-home
Tiffany Elton is bracing for costly remediation as lawyer steps in pro bono
Tiffany Elton purchased her first home in July 2020, but soon learned the property had significant issues — the biggest being that the structure had been a fire-damaged commercial garage.
Contractors have provided her with two options to deal with myriad structural and electrical defects outlined by the City of St. John's, after Elton approached the municipality with her concerns.
Both remediation and rebuilding, she said, cost about the same as the purchase price she paid nearly two years ago.
"I need $160,000 and I need to tear down and rebuild the house in 4½ months because the deadline (with the city) is fast approaching," Elton said in a recent interview.
"There seems to be three separate building issues. One being that it was a garage, so it is still structurally a garage. Then there's across the front foundation where the garage door was. Then there's the fire issues."
Elton purchased what she believed was a recently renovated bungalow but soon began unraveling details about the history of 11 Summer St. after rodents found a way into her home.
She discovered the building was a commercial garage that had been converted to a residential home decades before, without the proper permits from the city. The garage had been in a significant fire, and the structure was charred black.
Elton was issued a long list of fine notices by the City of St. John's after she alerted them to the issues. She has until September to rectify all of the defects. If she doesn't, she could have to pay up or get out.
Joe Thorne, a partner in the St. John's office of Stewart McKelvey, offered Elton his services pro bono. (Paul Pickett/CBC)
"Sometimes when you notify an authority about an issue, it backfires," said lawyer Joe Thorne, a partner in the St. John's office of Stewart McKelvey.
"Calling in the city was intended to address a certain issue that she had and now the city has gone in and said, 'Well, there's no occupancy permits for this house and you have major structural issues.'"
Thorne took on Elton's case pro bono after seeing her story profiled by CBC Investigates in January.
"Honestly, my heart just went out to her," he said.
"She's really been was a victim of her circumstances, and whether or not someone is legally responsible for that, she is a victim of the process and I really wanted to help out if we could."
Thorne said Elton tried to protect herself during the home buying process by getting a home inspection, a lawyer, and title insurance. But she's still left in a unenviable position.
Legal assistance
Thorne said he has been investigating the previous owners of the home and whether anyone knew or ought to have known about the fire damage.
Elton said many people came forward to her following the story with information on the history of the property, which could be helpful in the future.
In an email to CBC News in January, the previous owner said she had no idea that the property had been a garage that was significantly damaged by fire.
They owned it for 10 years before selling to Elton. The property has changed hands multiple times since its conversion 35 years ago.
Bringing a case to court would be a lengthy and costly process, and Elton says she doesn't have much time left.
In 1986, the owners applied to have the garage converted into a home and the city council of the day approved the conversion.
However, there is no record on file that indicates the city ever received a permit application to do that work or inspected the property after its conversion to a residence.
Despite that, the city has acknowledged that the property was able to be sold as a residential home for decades.
A metal casing still hangs inside Elton's attic, signalling that the property was once a commercial garage. (Paul Pickett/CBC)
As the city now knows the extent of the damage to Elton's house, it is requiring significant work to be done.
"You're dealing with a municipality and they've got their policies and procedures and they need to make sure that homes are safe for occupancy and all those things," Thorne said.
"But there also needs to be room to consider, you know, Tiffany herself and not just the property, but the person behind the property, who owns the property."
Elton said the city has helped by providing a letter for her title insurance company that outlines the issues with the property.
She said she understands the city is limited by its own acts and codes, but that doesn't remedy her predicament.
The City of St. John's declined a request for an interview.
Help from the public
While the challenges ahead may seem insurmountable, Elton said, she is encouraged by small steps along the way.
After many failed attempts, Thorne and his team convinced an adjuster from the title insurance company to assess the property.
And in the weeks following her story airing, her small business got an uptick in sales.
But nothing, she said, has been more helpful than getting free legal help.
"As you can imagine, it's an emotional roller-coaster. So it's been tough getting through it all," Elton said.
"But just to have that counsel is excellent."
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
132 Comments
Hmmm
David Amos
Reply to David Amos
Reply to David Amos
I hope my calls and emails to Joe and Danny Boy are of assistance to the young lady
Title insurance, is it really worth anything?
David Amos
Reply to Jeff Davis
If you get lucky and run into an ethical lawyer
Glenn Foster
Good for Joe. I hope it ends well
David Amos
Reply to Glenn Foster
Me too
Good for Joe. I hope it ends well
David Amos
Reply to Glenn Foster
Me too
Nel Ndoku
I am under the impression that the home inspector who inspected the property and the lawyer who conducted the homework should be on the hook if they failed with their jobs. Isn't there a reason they were hired and paid in thousands?
David Amos
Reply to Nel Ndoku
Good question and what about the Title Insurance?
Lloyd Luby
The city has a "don't tell, don't ask" philosophy when it comes to permitting. When asked, they will say you have to have a permit to renovate, but don't flag the inquiry for a follow up. Even if you obtain a renovation permit, they don't request a follow up inspection to see that you adhered to the permitted renovations. That also applies to occupancy permits it would seem where no permit requested; no problem. (though through some unknown mechanism the city has been made aware of some unpermitted renos, mostly decks in heritage zones where the homeowner has gotten bitten - perhaps a neighbour ratted them out.) Someone, those 35 years ago failed to obtain the correct permits along the way, and whoever sold it as permitted to inhabit is at fault according to logic. The lawyer and realtor at the time are also culpable. Perhaps such details should also be included in the title search to ensure that if a building changes as this one did, (or if it didn't) it will be known to have required a permitted for that change. That's not to say that the city shouldn't do better at enforcing such requirements for permits.
Paul Parsons
Reply to Robert Reader
You must be a city of St. John's employee. A lot of truth to what Mr. Luby said.
David Amos
Reply to Paul Parsons
Ditto
I am under the impression that the home inspector who inspected the property and the lawyer who conducted the homework should be on the hook if they failed with their jobs. Isn't there a reason they were hired and paid in thousands?
David Amos
Reply to Nel Ndoku
Good question and what about the Title Insurance?
Lloyd Luby
The city has a "don't tell, don't ask" philosophy when it comes to permitting. When asked, they will say you have to have a permit to renovate, but don't flag the inquiry for a follow up. Even if you obtain a renovation permit, they don't request a follow up inspection to see that you adhered to the permitted renovations. That also applies to occupancy permits it would seem where no permit requested; no problem. (though through some unknown mechanism the city has been made aware of some unpermitted renos, mostly decks in heritage zones where the homeowner has gotten bitten - perhaps a neighbour ratted them out.) Someone, those 35 years ago failed to obtain the correct permits along the way, and whoever sold it as permitted to inhabit is at fault according to logic. The lawyer and realtor at the time are also culpable. Perhaps such details should also be included in the title search to ensure that if a building changes as this one did, (or if it didn't) it will be known to have required a permitted for that change. That's not to say that the city shouldn't do better at enforcing such requirements for permits.
Paul Parsons
Reply to Robert Reader
You must be a city of St. John's employee. A lot of truth to what Mr. Luby said.
David Amos
Reply to Paul Parsons
Ditto
John Smith
A person I know recently applied for a mortgage, and between the inspections from the bank, and the insurance company, the place was thoroughly looked over....especially the insurance guy looked over the place with a fine toothed comb.....
Steve Dueck
Reply to John Smith
Too bad the same didn't happen with this lady's inspection. The inspector should be identified so that others will know to stay away from this person when looking for a good, thorough, inspection.
Olivia Massey
Reply to Steve Dueck
If you read the original article that was published in January you will see that the inspector suggested and Ms. Elton, the current owner, was willing to pay for installation of a ceiling hatch to allow access to the attic...the sellers refused the request. But, this is beyond the point of laying blame onto the current owner because if she had rejected the deal subsequent to the inspection, someone else would be dealing with it. The issue now is that the city was grossly negligent regarding permitting and inspections when the building changed from a commercial-use property to a residential-use property and also with regard to every subsequent upgrade in the last 35 years. Furthermore, the permitting and inspections did not occur yet the city easily changed the taxes levied on the property from commercial use to residential use and are now attempting to lay the cost of rectifying the situation they abetted by their negligence onto Ms. Elton.
Nancy Jones
Reply to Olivia Massey:
Perfectly stated.
Olivia Massey
Reply to Nancy Jones
Thank you! It's amazing to me that so many simply want to lay blame on the owner and/or the inspector without acknowledging that the city's laxity abetted the current condition of the property, and, furthermore, that the city is attempting to make Ms. Elton pay for their negligence in basically allowing renovations to occur without permits and inspections...yet the city is collecting taxes on an improved property. We can and we should "fight city hall" when the situation warrants it and I believe Ms. Elton's situation warrants it!
David Amos
Reply to Olivia Massey
I concur
A person I know recently applied for a mortgage, and between the inspections from the bank, and the insurance company, the place was thoroughly looked over....especially the insurance guy looked over the place with a fine toothed comb.....
Steve Dueck
Reply to John Smith
Too bad the same didn't happen with this lady's inspection. The inspector should be identified so that others will know to stay away from this person when looking for a good, thorough, inspection.
Olivia Massey
Reply to Steve Dueck
If you read the original article that was published in January you will see that the inspector suggested and Ms. Elton, the current owner, was willing to pay for installation of a ceiling hatch to allow access to the attic...the sellers refused the request. But, this is beyond the point of laying blame onto the current owner because if she had rejected the deal subsequent to the inspection, someone else would be dealing with it. The issue now is that the city was grossly negligent regarding permitting and inspections when the building changed from a commercial-use property to a residential-use property and also with regard to every subsequent upgrade in the last 35 years. Furthermore, the permitting and inspections did not occur yet the city easily changed the taxes levied on the property from commercial use to residential use and are now attempting to lay the cost of rectifying the situation they abetted by their negligence onto Ms. Elton.
Nancy Jones
Reply to Olivia Massey:
Perfectly stated.
Olivia Massey
Reply to Nancy Jones
Thank you! It's amazing to me that so many simply want to lay blame on the owner and/or the inspector without acknowledging that the city's laxity abetted the current condition of the property, and, furthermore, that the city is attempting to make Ms. Elton pay for their negligence in basically allowing renovations to occur without permits and inspections...yet the city is collecting taxes on an improved property. We can and we should "fight city hall" when the situation warrants it and I believe Ms. Elton's situation warrants it!
David Amos
Reply to Olivia Massey
I concur
jon mcgrath
Banker scamm
David Amos
Content Deactivated
Reply to jon mcgrath
I don't think so I have no doubt they chased the Title Insurance dudes and the lady will wind up with a debt free property saddled with strange liabilities brought on by a city trying to cover up their wrongs
Jan Barriault
how did her building inspector not flag any problems prior to purchase? maybe her legal guy should look at making case against home inspector??
Olivia Massey
Reply to Jan Barriault
As noted in the original article published in January, Ms. Elton's inspector suggested and Ms. Elton was willing to pay to have a ceiling hatch installed to allow access to and inspection of the attic. The sellers refused to allow it; therefore, the inspector was unable to inspect the attic. However, the point now is not to assess blame...the point is to address the city's lax permitting and lack of inspections of this property over 35 years when the building's usage changed from commercial-use to residential-use. The city issued no permits and performed no inspections yet changed the building's status for tax levies to residential use. Now, the city is attempting to rectify their gross negligence on the back of and from the pocketbook of the current owner, Ms. Elton.
David Amos
Reply to Olivia Massey
Bingo
Barbara Shortall
The silence from the Mayor is deafening.
David Amos
Reply to Barbara Shortall
I noticed that too
The silence from the Mayor is deafening.
David Amos
Reply to Barbara Shortall
I noticed that too
Jan Barriault
how did her building inspector not flag any problems prior to purchase? maybe her legal guy should look at making case against home inspector??
Olivia Massey
Reply to Jan Barriault
As noted in the original article published in January, Ms. Elton's inspector suggested and Ms. Elton was willing to pay to have a ceiling hatch installed to allow access to and inspection of the attic. The sellers refused to allow it; therefore, the inspector was unable to inspect the attic. However, the point now is not to assess blame...the point is to address the city's lax permitting and lack of inspections of this property over 35 years when the building's usage changed from commercial-use to residential-use. The city issued no permits and performed no inspections yet changed the building's status for tax levies to residential use. Now, the city is attempting to rectify their gross negligence on the back of and from the pocketbook of the current owner, Ms. Elton.
David Amos
Reply to Olivia Massey
Bingo
how did her building inspector not flag any problems prior to purchase? maybe her legal guy should look at making case against home inspector??
Olivia Massey
Reply to Jan Barriault
As noted in the original article published in January, Ms. Elton's inspector suggested and Ms. Elton was willing to pay to have a ceiling hatch installed to allow access to and inspection of the attic. The sellers refused to allow it; therefore, the inspector was unable to inspect the attic. However, the point now is not to assess blame...the point is to address the city's lax permitting and lack of inspections of this property over 35 years when the building's usage changed from commercial-use to residential-use. The city issued no permits and performed no inspections yet changed the building's status for tax levies to residential use. Now, the city is attempting to rectify their gross negligence on the back of and from the pocketbook of the current owner, Ms. Elton.
David Amos
Reply to Olivia Massey
Bingo
Sholunish Mishmikin
That guy in portapique has room in his garage now that his cruiser is gone, she could move in there
Doug Chafe
Reply to Sholunish Mishmikin
Not the sharpest knife in the drawer are you?
Olivia Massey
Reply to Sholunish Mishmikin:
Your comment isn't funny in any way, shape, or form. And equating the two events is disrespectful to the loss of lives, as well as to the survivors, of the Portapique event. You must suffer from a cerebral disconnect if you think your lame attempt at humour at the expense of the Portapique residents is acceptable.
David Amos
Reply to Olivia Massey
Ask yourself why the nasty comment was not deactivated long ago
When a house isn't a home
Tiffany Elton says she’s living a real estate nightmare after discovering the home she purchased is actually a charred former double garage.
January 20, 2022
It was the rats that first alerted Tiffany Elton to the problem.
The sounds of rodents scratching and squeaking started coming from inside the walls and floors of her 776-square-foot home in central St. John’s last winter.
For the first few months in her new home, Elton thought she’d finally made it. The 41-year-old bought a small bungalow with an affordable mortgage that would be paid off by the time she turned 65.
Now, more than a year later, the small business owner fears she will have to go into bankruptcy and feels unsafe in her own home.
"It's been a nightmare. Physically, I feel it. Emotionally, I feel it," Elton told CBC News.
"I feel heartbreak."
'Perfectly maintained'
Elton purchased the home on Summer Street in July 2020 for $168,000.
The MLS (Multiple Listing Service) listing for the property boasted the house was newly shingled with new vinyl flooring and a remodelled kitchen.
The listing said it was "perfectly maintained and recently renovated and improved, pride of ownership is evident in this move-in ready home."
“The pest control guy found the burn, and he said, ‘You have a bigger problem than just rodents up here.’”
It said the home was built in 1986 and was on a concrete slab foundation.
"The house looked great. I thought it was perfect — new floors, new tile, new cabinets, newly painted and it was staged really well," Elton said.
"I had no reason not to believe it wasn’t true."
A caution at the bottom of all MLS listings indicates that listing information is "from sources believed to be reliable. However, it may be incorrect."
It adds: "This information should not be relied upon by a buyer without personal verification."
Shocking discovery
Once the snow began to melt in the spring of 2021, Elton inspected the outside of her property to see where the rodents could be accessing her house.
She says she quickly realized where they were getting in.
"There was a hole around the [width] of a garage door across the front foundation. It was like the foundation was completely missing," Elton said.
"It was missed and I didn’t notice because the asphalt was built up and the siding was built down.… I could stick a metre stick in it and swing it side to side."
The home inspectors say there were no
visible gap underneath the front of the home at the time of the
inspection, as the foundation was not accessible and could not be
inspected.
After filling the gaps with scrap metal, spray foam and concrete, Elton called in a pest control company. The worker asked for a trap door to be cut to the attic so he could set up rodent traps.
He climbed a ladder into an attic charred black, with specks of burned wood covering the pink insulation.
A large industrial light casing hung precariously from wires in the ceiling, signalling that it was once a garage.
"He said, 'You have a bigger problem than just rodents up here.'"
Elton was in shock.
That shock soon turned to utter disbelief when she started cutting holes in her walls. Nearly every spot she surveyed was charred black.
Flash forward to December 2021, and Elton is showing what she found.
She gingerly takes down a large gold decorative mirror to reveal a taped up hole in the wall of her living room.
Each wall has a strategically placed piece of art to cover similar inspection spots. Aside from the front of the house, where there was once was a garage door, each wall is damaged by fire.
"In my opinion [the walls are] burned worse than the attic. That was a shock, which means the entire envelope of the house is completely burned," she said.
Since that discovery, Elton said she has been sent down a frustrating fact-finding mission in an attempt to save her home, her finances and her jewelry and botanicals business. She uses part of her home as a studio where she makes her handcrafted items for sale.
"[The] more information that I get, the more and more it complicates everything because the structure is likely not safe, it’s not what I bought," she said.
"I didn't buy a burned-out house."
Property does not have occupancy certificate
Elton said she followed the homebuying process without missing a step, but has been let down at every turn and fears her only chance for recourse is to take the matter to court — a costly burden that she says she cannot afford.
The initial home inspection Elton paid for didn’t detect any major deficiencies.
On two occasions, Elton said, she and her home inspector asked the sellers to create a hatch to access the attic in order to complete the inspection — one at their expense, and the other at Elton’s.
Both times, she said, the sellers said no.
Elton said her inspector told her the worst-case scenario would be mould in the attic but that a restoration company could mitigate it for $1,500.
In an email to CBC News, the home inspectors confirmed the sellers denied access to the attic on two occasions.
However, they said mould was just one of many possible issues they flagged.
Documents from the City of St. John's archives show that 11 Summer St. was originally a double-car garage.
In 1986, the owners applied to have the garage converted into a home and the city council of the day approved the conversion.
However, there is no record on file that indicates the city ever received a permit application to do that work or inspected the property after its conversion to a residence.
A lawyer for the City of St. John’s confirmed for Elton by email that the property also does not have an occupancy certificate — that is despite the city having issued a compliance letter, which flags any outstanding permits or assessments owed for the house as part of the purchase process.
The city does not have a record of the fire at the property, although it is evident that there was one. The only permit application made to the city was for window and siding replacement in 2006.
"They have been charging property taxes and allowing this home to be sold with no occupancy permit for years," Elton said.
"So, in my opinion they should be the ones to come forward and say, 'We fooled up, this house isn't a house, this shouldn't have been sold and here's how we intend to fix the situation,' but they're not."
City says situation is ‘unfortunate’
The City of St. John's declined an interview request, but in a statement, called Elton's situation "very unfortunate."
As the city never received an application for a permit to work on the property, there is no record of an inspection ever being done or an occupancy permit being issued.
Compliance letters, like the one needed for a real estate transaction, reference zoning, assessments owed and any current outstanding work orders, the statement said.
"They do not provide occupancy status or trigger an inspection of the building," the statement noted.
Now aware of the issues, the city will not issue Elton a compliance letter, which would allow her to sell the property, until the work is completed.
Her home insurer, upon learning of the issues, has cancelled her policy.
‘You trust the process’
A property condition disclosure form is supposed to alert buyers to defects in a home and protect sellers from liability for issues they told the buyers about before the sale.
The property disclosure form, which is part of the real estate transaction that’s been reviewed by CBC News, indicates that the property has an occupancy certificate and that there were no structural problems.
In an email to questions from CBC News, the previous owner stated that they were not aware of any issues with the home in the 10 years that they owned the property.
The owner said they did not know about any historical fire or commercial use, and followed the same homebuying process Elton did when they purchased the home a decade earlier.
The property has been sold multiple times since its conversion 35 years ago.
It appears that the original owners of the property have died.
Fines on top of fines
Elton contacted the City of St. John's on multiple occasions during 2021 in an attempt to find information on what to do and to find out who may be liable.
The city requested a new inspection be carried out on the property.
Now with access to the attic, a second home inspection at Elton’s expense confirmed what she suspected: the structure was around 50 years old — not 36.
There was no ventilation in the attic and the safety of the structure itself was questionable.
It was recommended that the property be inspected by a structural engineer.
Elton gave the City of St. John’s a copy of the inspection report.
But that backfired when the city slapped Elton with fines for other issues flagged on the report.
"The city gave me notices which were based on the inspection report they had me pay for — I had 15 days to repair the watermain and put a meter on it. I had 30 days to hire a structural engineer or risk fines of $5,000," Elton said.
"I don’t have the money for that right now."
At Elton's request, the city held off until she got a structural engineer to survey the property.
In a report released last month, Parsons Engineering determined that the house was not at a high risk of "imminent failure" but has structural defects resulting from the fire.
The report recommends repairing or sealing the damaged sections to avoid structural issues in the future.
What next?
Elton said uncertainty is taking its toll.
"I make everything for my store in my home, in my studio, so that shuts me down. I don’t want to lose my business. That's my income, I work too hard to stop it," Elton said.
Elton was hopeful her title insurance would cover the costs incurred as a result of the pre-existing damages.
But that route appears to have been exhausted, she said, when insurance company FCT denied her claim in June.
"The policy does not provide coverage for loss arising from building code violations, property defects or vendor misrepresentations unless they can be brought within a covered risk," said a letter from FCT.
She is hopeful a letter outlining deficiencies from the city will allow her to appeal that denial.
FCT directed CBC News requests for more information about the situation back to the letter it sent to Elton last year.
A ‘lemon’
Toronto-based commercial real estate partner Simon Crawford of Bennett Jones said every now and then a homebuyer gets saddled with a "lemon" of a property, even when they do everything right.
"They're faced with the very real problem that they either don't have a valid claim against the seller or insurer or do have a valid claim but now bear the additional burden of having to go to court to pursue that claim, which can be costly and uncertain," Crawford said.
Homebuyers can protect themselves by hiring expert home inspectors who have background knowledge in engineering and architecture, get title insurance or negotiate a written agreement about any unseen defects.
However, Crawford said that last option is easier said than done, especially in a hot real estate market where there is competitive purchasing.
In most cases, he said, homebuyers do not go through due diligence in order to win a bid.
Expecting the worst
Elton said the real estate ordeal has affected her physical and mental health.
"I'm now on high blood pressure medication. I’m only 41. I know that’s because of the anger I’m feeling every day," Elton said.
"I've had to reach out for help, professional help, to help get me through it. I’ve had night terrors, nightmares."
Elton is hoping to find a lawyer who can take her case on contingency. Any legal advice she’s received so far has been a warning that taking everyone to court would be costly and time-consuming.
"I'm preparing for the worst. I expect the worst."
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IMNnqA013cE&ab_channel=CBCNL-NewfoundlandandLabrador
Here & Now Thursday, January 20, 2022
59.4K subscribers
Tiffany Elton Needs Help for Her Home
$15,245
raised of $30,000 goal194 donations
My Home Buying Experience went very wrong
Most recent CBC article…
CBC Here and Now covered my story….
CBC News Article covering my story…
————————————————————
Currently asking for donations to help with the tear down of the house!
You have already helped get me through the last couple years with lawyers and other costs.
I need help to tear it down and get rid of it. See the most recent update for details.
I need $15,000 plus HST for the tear down.
Then I can get a loan for the first phase and the mortgage to rebuild my house. I have $8000 of this amount now myself.
————————————————————
My dream turned into a nightmare and a rodent infestation is the
BEST part of my story because they led me to the undisclosed fire over
the entire frame and more major issues….
It cannot be sold, as a home, it will not get a compliance letter
to be sold or an occupancy permit or home insurance until the issues are
fixed. (Yet, It was sold to me “having” all those things)
It is not and never was a house and should never have been sold as such.
————————————————-
In my research I found out it was a commercial double car
garage that had a major fire before the "build date" of 1986 in the
Rabbit town Area of centre city St.John’s, Newfoundland, that had no
permits for any of the work done and was never granted an occupancy
permit because it was never inspected or approved by the city and had
other building issues including a garage door hole across the front
foundation.
It was sold to me as a 782 square foot home at $168,000, "A Perfectly maintained and recently renovated and improved, pride of ownership is evident in this move in ready home!"
I have been trying to get help and answers on my own for more than 3
years now but the main recourse is a costly and long civil suit in
Supreme Court. The retainer is $45,000 and it will be dragged out in
court by the city and you need to take everyone involved to court.
My story can be all of our stories. If you are buying a home or thinking about it...
READ ON!
I found the perfect house for me June 2020, it was move in ready and low maintenance and on budget!
I made it, I moved in... I loved it. Single indepedent small
business lady and now home owner! No more renting expensive places with
high heat bills during a pandemic! Safety. Security. Old age plan.
I followed all the steps and rules and hired all the professionals to buy my home:
I assumed everyone had a duty to be truthful and educated on
what they were selling and knew the condition and history of the home.
1) I hired a REALTOR but realtors can only go by what the sellers
tell them. They thought it must be house because of the property value
the city had. $134,000.
2) The MLS AD. It sounded great! But embellished with a false build
date. It was not built in 1986. The foundation and burned frame and
roof are from the old original structure. It was not newly renovated
either. It was painted.
3) Hired an Inspector. I hired the one with the highest google rating and best reviews.
They missed a foundation hole where a previous garage door was,
missed unventilated attic (because they flew a drone over it and did not
walk on it so missed the dips and bends and fake vent), and advised me
to buy it having not seen the attic. They said "this is the house for
you!" and they'd come back after the sale to inspect the attic for my
peace of mind, They refused when I asked. They had said worst case
scenario it is mold in the attic which their friends at a local Restoration
company could fix for roughly $1500 but they did not think so because
of new ice shield and the condition of the shingles. I believed that to
be good advice. I bought the house based on his advice. I felt I had no
major reason to push to see the attic or walk away from the House.
Especially since he was my inspector in the house before I walked away
from for many issues. I trusted his opinion. There is no regulatory
board for inspectors in Newfoundland.
4) Property Disclosure Form from the Sellers…
They said there was an occupancy permit on this form in writing,
there was not one. Homes with No occupancy permit cannot be sold or
owned or lived in. They did not dislcose fire, foundation holes,
moisture and air issues with mold and humidity, or unventilated attic. The lawyer who did my sale came back and said they said "We do not recall a fire."
In my opinion, after 10 years owning a 782 square foot home they
likely knew about fire damage. And the rodents and therefore holes in
the foundation. I found out within a couple months. When asked twice
during the sale for entry to the attic they refused. Houses by code need
an entry into attic space anyhow. You would know daily about the
windows running water in the colder months and forming mold because the
humidity is so high. So you would look into ventilation which would lead
you to look at the roof where the fake ventilation vent is or
installing an hvac. That they didn’t do that indicates they saw the fire
damage so did not do these things and closed it up.
The living room ceiling has developed creases in the plaster panels
that have been dropping which indicate the living room ceiling was down
recently and is settling. Someone saw the fire damage. Whoever put the
bathroom ceiling fan in saw the fire damage. The ceiling fan in the
bathroom has a serial number with a date of 2010. (I bought it in 2020)
That vents up and through the burned attic.)
A tenant came forward who said the sellers put in a propane stove
for them, we found the vent for it inside the wall which shows they had
to cut through a burned beam and walls to install. Photo seen on July
2023 cbc article.
5) I got a Compliance Letter by the City through the Lawyer who gathers the paper work for the sale. I do
not know how this burned garage that is my home got one. I believe I
should have been more protected at this stage as well. I believe
everyone should be more protected at this stage. They only look to see
if there are any open permits at the time of sale. They do not check
occupancy or the history. The compliance letter essentially allows the
sale of the home by the city. It implies it complies based on the name
but without occupancy it should not comply for sale. Nobody checks for
occupancy permits during the sale. This should be changed and it should
be mandatory, I have since had five others reach out in similar issues
with homes that have b no occupancy permit that they recently bought and
are now on the hook for major repairs to get occupancy. This really is
the biggest reason I am in this mess. Had we known the home did not
actually have occupancy I would not have been allowed to buy it based on
the cities own policies which they do not enforce. Or verify. But yet
they can issue a compliance letter, allowing the sale?
6) Title Insurance through Lawyer….
Title insurance will not help at this point, they do not think my
title is at risk based on the information I have provided that I have
gotten from the city so far. Update as of April 17: after trying several
times and because of my new lawyer an adjuster has been put on
the case. It is unknown yet what they will do for me but this is
progress! I will be hopeful but brace myself as well as I have learned
to not get too excited over the course of all this. News to come.
7) The law firm who does the paper work for the sale. They decided not to help because it is a conflict of interest.
8) I got CMHC insurance - it does not help the buyer, it protects the lenders.
9) Home Insurance
It does not cover passed issues, no latent defect clause and mine
was REVOKED due to property condition. I now cannot get insurance for my
home from any companies. I have been flagged. One said if I hire
another expensive structural engineer for the foundation hole I may be
able to but I know it won’t pass. I assume I won’t get it until the
remediation work is done and approved.
10) THE CITY
The Authority over properties and buldings, they have a care of
duty, but they cannot give advice or guidance or tell me what happens
next. They have been instructed not to talk to me directly anymore. They
can only speak to my lawyer now.
They did confirm there is no occupancy permit and have sent many notices from all building
Departments with possible fines based on their codes and acts
against me for the issues discovered in my new home inspection I got and
paid for because they needed it to look into my home’s situation.
It is deemed it needs to be torn down because home insurance will
not cover it because it’s foundation is not a house and it is completely
burned. It is not safe to live in.
I can try to be approved for an occupancy permit after it is fixed. The
city’s acts and codes say no one shall occupy or own a home with no
occupancy permit. I received a letter saying I will not get a
compliance letter now which it will not get without fixing the issues.
So I cannot sell it as a home. This means the house should not have
gotten a compliance letter to be sold to me in the first place but the
city didn’t know about the true condition or status of the home.
I also asked the property be accessed again based on actual
condition by the city. The value was not accurate. In 2021 it was
$152,800 and for 2022 it is $164,000. Based on the information I have on
the house now and what the city has now it’s value has been changed to
$84,900. (Empty land in my area is $60,000) That’s what it should have
been when I bought it. I’m now being credited what I have over paid in
property taxes.
In 2013 the value jumped from $60,000 that it was for over a decade to $134,000 with no records of any work done. That $79,000 increase is a lot and interesting to me for such a Small House with no records of any work done. Even if it was prorated.
Home assessments for property tax purposes by the city should in my opinion be more in depth as well.
After a lot of back and forth with all
Departments at the city, and the city having a council meeting due
to a push from the public, the new deadline for me to repair should be
September 2022 for everything. (We have still gotten some notices since
that decision with 15-30 days but that may be an internal miscommunication and not accurate).
The deputy mayor told me on the phone we had until September
2022 to fix the issues. They are not allowed to speak to me anymore.
Recently we asked if the city could cover tear down since they
issued a permit in 1985 that was not followed up on that converted the
burned garage into a house, they raised the property taxes so high in
2013 you’d think it was a house that set me up for this and they issued a
compliance letter allowing the sale when a house without an occupancy
permit it should not comply for sale…
They said no, after a council meeting determined they would not
help me. The city profited for a decade on this house over charging
property taxes .
They also can tear it down easily for a lot less money.
I believe they do not wish to admit fault.
I just want them to tear down the house.
“ I have been instructed that the City will not facilitate the
demolition of your client’s home at 11 Summer Street.
The City of St. John’s Act does set out instances where Council may
decide to demolish a structure:
- Section 98: development areas;
- Section 100: unhealthy areas;
- Section 316: public nuisances and 375: nuisances;
- Section 385: condemned buildings.
None of these sections are applicable to your client.
Again, while the City remains willing to work with your client to
address her property, the City is not in a position to facilitate the
demolition as requested. I also urge your client to contact _______
prior to proceeding with any plans as set out in my correspondence of
January 23, 2023.
Further, the City denies any negligence or negligent misrepresentation
on its part. As previously set out, no permits were ever sought or
issued for any work at 11 Summer Street with the exception of windows in
or about 2006. The City had no knowledge that the extensive changes
were actually made to the property. All compliance letters state that a
request does not result in an inspection of the property. While your
client is able to pursue any claim she chooses, the City will strongly
resist any claim in this matter.”
This statement does not mention the original permit. They gave the
owners in 1985 to convert the burnt shed. Also, I was aware of the
inspection note on the compliance letter and I did have an inspection.
However, that is not the issue the issue is that they issue compliance
letters without checking for occupancy, which is why I am in this mess.
I have been back-and-forth trying to get a permit for demolition,
but they are requiring plans for a new build and it’s very confusing.
I’ve been several months now trying to sort that out and through quotes I
have realized I don’t have enough money to tear down as it is. They are
requiring a $3200 hazardous waste testing even though it was built with
new materials in 1985 after asbestos was ever used in new construction,
and it would’ve been built completely over the Burned frame… $5100 to
detach from the city mainlines plus a larger amount to take away the
burned materials and because the house was burnt, the burnt materials
need to be wrapped in special wrapping and brought to a special
facility. So this is not your average home demo. I have asked the city
if there’s any fees they can waive, but they are not.
The Mortgage: I was being fined $150 a month because I don’t have
home insurance. Due the current (actual) condition of the property and
reduced home value they can ask for the full immediate repayment of what
I owe on the mortgage then send me to collections for this amount which
would send me into bankruptcy.
I could lose my small business and therefore my income and
everything I worked for and built. And lose what money I put into the
property and my down payment and have no home.
This has since been removed after a long fight to prove I fell under the policies.
And final note, I’ve been rejected by about 14 different builders.
Nobody wants to build a house that’s under $200,000 and I need a quote
to apply for a mortgage to rebuild and a builder.
ALL THESE STEPS AND CODES, ACTS AND INSURANCES IN THE HOME BUYING
PROCESS AND NONE PROTECT THE BUYER. When buying a home you assume all
the risk and will be responsible for any issues the sellers did not
disclose.
The only recourse should NOT be to sue at $2000 a day and months in
court. I should not have been sold this house or have incurred a large
amount of debt trying to get resolutions and patch up the perimeter from
rodents. Or be squatting with no insurance in my own home. It
should not be all my responsibility given that the transaction seems to
have been fraudulent to begin with….
BUT here I am.
I did not qualify for a new mortgage to repair it or anymore
loans… I found a co-signer but the cost needs to get under $200,000 to
afford it.
We all work so hard to get where we are, build and protect our
credit, maintain where we are, keep it all afloat, it should not be this
easy for others to knock you down, with no protection. Buying a home
should not be this risky. It is the biggest transaction of your life.
You shouldn’t be risking everything to buy your home or to protect your
security.
The tear down is $15,000 plus HST
The lowest rebuild estimate was $264,000
plus tax. I can’t afford that kind of loan.
I know soon I have to let it go and may have to leave it as is.
I have tried really hard to find a solution. But I have to accept it is what it is and move on soon.
Sometimes that’s what you need to do for peace.
Credits:
- ARIANA KELLAND of CBC for covering this
- 709 electric who have been back-and-forth 1 million times and helped me a lot securing the house.
- Joe Thorne, who came forward, pro bono to act as my lawyer.
- Wes Anderson, who has listed my property for sale which is only for land value.
(House needs to be torn down)
- Dave Hoddinott who drew plans for me for a new build to shop around to try to get quotes.
- Mike Guihan, who came back and did the second inspection which
confirmed my suspicions of things that were missed in the first
inspection.
Updates (16)
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/newfoundland-labrador/tiffany-elton-home-update-1.6930147
I would like to mention my main message now…
Look for an occupancy permit yourself when buying a home, the compliance letter the real estate lawyer gets from the city allowing the sale does not check for occupancy which is actually needed to buy, sell, own, live in a house in the city. If it does not have one you are on the hook for fixing all the issues to make it eligible for an occupancy permit.
This is the biggest disservice to home buyers and why I’m in this mess.
This has to change.
My house is for sale for land value only, it’d be good for a builder who has the means to tear it down.
That’s not my ideal way out, but it’d be something. I’d love to find an affordable builder who can build me a simple house with a mortgage I can afford. ($200,000 max)
https://www.facebook.com/deardawcy/
deardawcy@gmail.com
https://www.newfoundlandlabrador.com/plan-and-book/shops-and-galleries/36375936
Dear Dawcy & Ritual Botanicals
St. John's
Jan 1 - Dec 31
A small shop of handmade jewellery, items for ritual self-care, candles, and home scents made in Newfoundland. Located on the third floor of Posie Row and Co.
https://www.stewartmckelvey.com/people/thorne-joe/
Suite 1100, Cabot Place
100 New Gower St.
St. John’s, N.L.
A1C 6K3
Language(s) spoken: English
Bar Admission(s): Ontario, 2010; Newfoundland and Labrador, 2013
Legal Assistant(s): Sherry Spracklin
Joe has a wide-ranging general commercial litigation practice, including particular focus on insolvency/restructuring, insurance defence, and municipal law. Joe focuses on common-sense solutions to legal challenges. Joe believes in the adage “litigation is the pursuit of practical ends, not a game of chess.”
Joe has appeared before all levels of court in Newfoundland and Labrador, as well as the Federal Court of Canada, the Quebec Superior Court, the Ontario Small Claims Court, the Ontario Superior Court of Justice, and the Ontario Court of Appeal.
Some of the ways Joe has helped clients include:
- Representing a publicly traded company in defending a claim for millions of dollars made by a former director and officer seeking payment of disputed awards and bonuses.
- Successfully responding to an appeal seeking to disqualify a Court-appointed receiver in an insolvency proceeding.
- Advising creditors, debtors, and insolvency professionals in a wide of array of insolvency and restructuring matters.
- Negotiating resolution of dozens of personal injury claims.
- Assisting municipalities before regional appeal boards and courts in defending council decisions.
- Enforcing foreign and inter-provincial judgments.
https://www.stjohns.ca/en/city-hall/mayor-danny-breen.aspx
Mayor Danny Breen
Mayor Danny Breen
Danny Breen is the Mayor of the City of St. John's.
Contact the Mayor
709-576-8477
Message from the Mayor
Thank-you to the residents of St. Johns who have given us the privilege to serve as your City Council for the next four years. I am honoured and humbled to be returned for my fourth term on City Council and second term as mayor. I am excited to lead such a talented City Council with diverse backgrounds – one that reflects the demographics of our City. As I said to the new Council on October 12, 2021 at the Swearing-in Ceremony, key to our success will be engaging proactively with the public on the important issues we face, considering all the information (including everyone's thoughts and opinions), making the best decisions possible and communicating our decisions effectively.
I firmly believe that we cannot operate in isolation and must continue to develop and enhance fair and mutually beneficial relationships with other municipalities, business and community partners, and the provincial and federal governments. The more effectively we work together, the better for everyone in St. John's and our neighbouring municipalities.
We have a firm strategic plan in place and strong goals to work towards.
Our goal is to use your tax dollars wisely, ensuring that our organization is effectively and efficiently run. Being a sustainable city - economically, environmentally and financially – calls on us as a Council to create the conditions that drive the economy; protect, preserve and enhance the natural environment. We must consider how people move around our city, and the regional transportation connections and infrastructure for which we have responsibility.
Our city is changing and diversifying, and expectations around inclusion and accessibility will be top of mind for Council.
Ultimately, we have an important role to place in creating a city where people feel connected, have a sense of belonging and are actively engaged in community life.
About the Mayor
Danny Breen was first elected to the St. John's City Council in the Fall of 2009 and was re-elected by acclamation in 2013, representing Ward 1, in the east end of St. John's. He was first elected as Mayor of the City of St. John's in 2017.
Danny has served as Chair of the Public Works Committee, Chair of the St. John's Sport Event Partnership and Chair of the Finance Committee of the Eastern Regional Services Board. He has also served as Chair of the City's Audit and Accountability Committee and the Finance Committee, as well as Co-Chair of the St. John's Regional Fire Services Committee. He also served as Council representative on the Board of Directors of St. John's Sports and Entertainment and continues to serve on many other Council Committees.
He is currently Council lead on Governance and Strategic Priorities; Economic Development; the Big City Mayor's Caucus; and Citizenship Court.
Danny is a Graduate of Memorial University of Newfoundland with a Bachelor of Arts Degree (Political Science). In the past Danny has been actively involved in his community serving on The Board of Directors of the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada. He has also been involved in several school councils, minor hockey and many other community organizations.
Danny was born and raised in St. John's, where he resides with his wife Ann. He has two daughters, Erika and Katie, and two grandchildren, Kyla and Neil.
Re How to protect yourself from real-estate title fraud
David Amos<david.raymond.amos333@gmail.com> | Mon, Jan 23, 2023 at 7:22 PM |
| To: bking@kinginternationalgroup.com, info@chicagotitle.ca, info@ctic.ca, info@soloontario.ca, info@stonegatelegalservices.ca, paladinparalegal@gmail.com, cassandra@weatherstonparalegal.com, charlenelewin@sympatico.ca, dan@sfglegal.ca, elaine@pageparalegal.com, shemeshparalegal@gmail.com, lorrie@mcculloughlegalservices.com, inquire@paralegalonbroadview.com, sglass@sfglegal.ca, sarahteal@sarahteallegal.com, teri@landriautlegal.com, denaliparalegal@gmail.com, info@wjburgesslegal.com, Pilonlaw@gmail.com, "claude.poirier" <claude.poirier@snb.ca>, "john.mcnair" <john.mcnair@snb.ca>, Erin.Hardy@snb.ca, "alan.roy" <alan.roy@snb.ca>, "rob.moore" <rob.moore@parl.gc.ca>, "Ross.Wetmore" <Ross.Wetmore@gnb.ca>, "robert.gauvin" <robert.gauvin@gnb.ca>, "robert.mckee" <robert.mckee@gnb.ca>, "andrea.anderson-mason" <andrea.anderson-mason@gnb.ca>, mmcdermm@gmail.com, "freedomreport.ca" <freedomreport.ca@gmail.com>, premier <premier@ontario.ca>, "Bill.Blair" <Bill.Blair@parl.gc.ca>, "Brenda.Lucki" <Brenda.Lucki@rcmp-grc.gc.ca>, "hugh.flemming" <hugh.flemming@gnb.ca>, MRichard@lawsociety-barreau.nb.ca, serge.rousselle@umoncton.ca, kevhache@nb.sympatico.ca, "greg.byrne" <greg.byrne@gnb.ca>, "kris.austin" <kris.austin@gnb.ca>, austin@gnb.ca, "David.Coon" <David.Coon@gnb.ca>, "blaine.higgs" <blaine.higgs@gnb.ca>, Patrick.Windle@snb.ca, windlejim <windlejim@rocketmail.com>, priscilla.hwang@cbc.ca, torontotips@cbc.ca, john.lancaster@cbc.ca | |
| Cc: motomaniac333 <motomaniac333@gmail.com>, mthiele@ottawalawyers.com, hlankin@barristonlaw.com, mcu <mcu@justice.gc.ca>, debsmith@fnf.com, corporate.communications@firstam.com, cgaska@firstam.com, investor.relations@firstam.com | |
https://davidraymondamos3. Saturday, 14 January 2023 How to protect yourself from real-estate title fraud https://www.cbc.ca/news/ How organized crime has mortgaged or sold at least 30 GTA homes without owners' knowledge Future of title insurance could be at risk if this real estate fraud trend continues John Lancaster, Nicole Brockbank, Farrah Merali · CBC News · Posted: Jan 23, 2023 5:00 AM AST A "Sold" sign in front of a home in the York neighborhood of Toronto, Ontario A private investigation firm working for a title insurance company says a handful of organized crime groups are behind a string of real-estate frauds in the GTA — where at least 30 homes have either been sold or mortgaged without the real owners' knowledge. (Cole Burston/Bloomberg) A year ago, Melissa Walsh says police assured her family it only happened to them. Fraudsters nearly sold her great uncle's east end Toronto home without the family's knowledge. "We were told to move on, get over it," she said. But earlier this month a Toronto police press release revealed another case where scammers successfully sold a house before the real homeowners found out what happened. And now it turns out those two cases are likely just the tip of the iceberg. CBC Toronto has learned that a handful of organized crime groups are behind these real-estate frauds — in which at least 30 homes in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) have either been sold or mortgaged without the real owners' knowledge. Those revelations come from a private investigation firm working for a title insurance company to try and get to the bottom of the scams, which are costing insurers millions in claims. Toronto police seek public's help after house sold without owners' consent It's happened again. 2nd Toronto home listed for sale without homeowner's knowledge "It's a very painstaking process to try and understand who's behind it," said Brian King, president and CEO of King International Advisory Group. "We're sort of aware of four or five loosely organized groups that are working in the GTA." The firm is currently investigating four title transfer frauds across the GTA where the ownership of a home was stolen using identity theft to cash in on the sale of the property. And at least another 26 mortgage frauds where mortgages have been registered on a home without the owner's consent to obtain the cash value of the mortgage. A woman with brown hair and a dark shirt. Melissa Walsh, whose great uncle's Toronto home was listed for sale last year after someone impersonated him, says at the time police told her family they were the only people who had experienced the fraud. (Submitted by Melissa Walsh) "Hearing that this has happened to potentially over 30 other families is hard to wrap your head around," said Walsh. "I don't understand why this hasn't been discussed before this point." In addition to the four claims King is investigating, the three other title insurers offering coverage in Canada told CBC Toronto they've also all received fraud claims where a homeowner's property was sold without their knowledge. However they couldn't provide specific numbers before publication. Karen Decker, senior vice president for Stewart Title, said the company has had "many more than one" case of a house being sold out from under the real homeowner in the Toronto area. How the scheme typically works So how does this actually happen? King says an organized crime group starts by looking through publicly available property records for a home without a mortgage — or a small one where there's still a lot of equity left in the property — as a target. From there, the groups who ultimately receive the fraudulent funds use stolen IDs and hire "stand-ins" to pose as tenants to gain access to the home, and other "stand-ins" impersonate homeowners to mortgage or sell it. "A lot of times they're petty criminals that are paid anywhere from $5,000 to $10,000 to stand-in and pose as the homeowners," said King. "The people behind the frauds do not want to be front-facing." The Toronto Police Service is seeking the public's help identifying a man and woman wanted in connection with a complex mortgage fraud investigation. Earlier this month, the Toronto Police Service put out a press release seeking the public's help identifying this man and woman wanted in connection with a title fraud investigation. (Toronto Police Service handout) The stand-ins, like the pair Toronto police were trying to identify through a press release earlier this month, are also being shared between crime groups, according to King, depending on the ethnicity of the person needed to impersonate the homeowner. After that, the mortgage or sale happens quickly. For the sales, the fake homeowners often accept the first reasonable offer they get. "In most instances, [they're] very sophisticated people, the money is moved out of the fraudulent bank accounts usually within seven days," said King. "It'll get changed fairly quickly either into cryptocurrency and moved about, or into gold bullion, and quite often it'll be shipped overseas immediately out of reach of the authorities here." CBC Toronto reached out to Toronto police multiple times for comment, but no one was available to speak on its title fraud cases. King says these cases pose a challenge for police because the organized crime groups can have several properties on the go at once across multiple jurisdictions. A man sits at a desk. Brian King, president and CEO of King International Advisory Group, says his private investigation firm is aware of 'four or five' organized crime groups committing title frauds across the GTA. (Farrah Merali/CBC) "In an ideal world, we would have some way of co-ordinating these efforts amongst the various regional and municipal police departments so that they get visibility and the links can be made," he said. King's firm tries to trace where the fraudulent mortgage or home sale funds go for clients, and says they've been successful in getting money back in some cases. But frequently title insurance companies don't find out about the fraud until it's too late. Future of title insurance could be at risk In most of these cases, the real owner and the buyer are protected from most of the losses incurred through the fraud by having title insurance. The insurance protects homeowners from fraudulent claims on their property and pays for legal expenses to re-establish the homeowner's title rights. If a buyer unwittingly buys a home that's been fraudulently listed, the insurance should also protect them. In cases like that, the true owner will likely get their home back and the unwitting buyer will get their money back. But with title transfer and mortgage fraud claims skyrocketing, title insurer John Rider worries about the sustainability of providing this coverage in the long-term. A man stands in an office hallway. John Rider, senior vice president of Chicago Title Insurance Company in Canada, is worried that if these mortgage and title frauds continue to grow, insurers eventually won't be able to provide this coverage to consumers. (Farrah Merali/CBC) "We went from zero of those claims to now many dozens," said Rider, senior vice president of Chicago Title Insurance Company in Canada. "There's four title companies in the business in Canada and we estimate that industry wide, it's easily $200 million, probably more, in fraud claims in the last two-and-a-half years." Chicago Title Insurance Company has received more than 80 mortgage fraud claims since late 2019 — largely from the GTA and Greater Vancouver Area. The other three title insurers shared similar concerns with CBC Toronto — about a growing number of mortgage and title transfer frauds in recent years. How thieves stole a Toronto condo and sold it for $970K How to protect yourself from real-estate title fraud "We're seeing a level of sophistication in that area that we've never seen before," said Daniela DeTommaso, president of title insurance company FCT. "It's very organized." Rider wants to see the government step up and lead the way on bolstering ID verification standards for professionals — so they don't just rely on IDs — in these kinds of transactions. "Otherwise [the government]'s going to find that they're going to have a lot of consumers at their doorstep begging for help because they've lost title to their homes," he said. CBC Toronto's investigation into title fraud is ongoing. If you have any information about this story or would like to share information on another fraud, send an email to torontotips@cbc.ca. ABOUT THE AUTHOR John Lancaster Senior Reporter, CBC Toronto John Lancaster is a senior reporter with CBC News focusing on investigative and enterprise journalism. His stories have taken him across Canada, the US and the Caribbean. His reports have appeared on CBC Toronto, The National, CBC's Marketplace, The Fifth Estate-and of course CBC online and radio. Drop him a line anytime at john.lancaster@cbc.ca. CBC's Journalistic Standards and Practices 505 Comments David Amos Methinks many lawyers in Canada and the USA who truly care about Real Estate Fraud and Title Insurance should start checking my work ASAP N'esy Pas? Peter Hill Reply to David Amos Why? Nothing wrong with the paperwork. David Amos Reply to Peter Hill Have you read my lawsuits in both countries? https://www. King International Advisory Group Suite 200 – 50 Staples Avenue Richmond Hill, ON Canada L4B 0A7 tel +1 416 628 6877 info@kinginternationalgroup. Brian D. King, CII | President & CEO Read Brian's Bio BRIAN D. KING, C.I.I. Brian D. King is President & CEO of King International Advisory Group. He is the former CEO of King-Reed & Associates (later CKR Global), a company which he grew to Canada’s largest investigation agency. Upon studying criminology at Conestoga College, King became licensed as a Private Investigator in Ontario in 1979. His current practice is directed towards the Legal, Insurance, Corporate and Government communities. With over 35 years of experience, Mr. King has developed comprehensive strategies for dealing with delicate issues relating to Fraud and White Collar crime, as well as Human Resources and Workplace Harassment Compliance issues. He has worked closely with many regulatory bodies & government organizations, including the Human Rights Commission of Ontario, The Ontario College of Physicians & Surgeons and the compliance departments of several fortune 500 companies. In addition, King volunteers pro-bono working for the Association in Defence of the Wrongly Convicted. He has been involved in high-profile criminal cases involving miscarriages of justice, including the wrongful convictions of Steven Truscott and Robert Baltovich, both of whom have since had their murder cases overturned. Throughout his career King has developed excellent relations with investigators internationally. His business travels have included the Far East, Singapore, Great Britain, Ireland, Northern Africa, U.S., Cuba and Mexico. He also has trusted contacts in Australia, New Zealand, India and across Europe. King frequently works cases throughout Latin America and East Asia, including the re-investigation of the notorious Bre-X fraud in Indonesia and the Ianiero murders at the Barcelo Resort in Mexico. In the early 2000’s, King chaired the Privacy Committee for the Canadian Council of Private Investigators and was instrumental in lobbying the federal government to obtain the Investigative Body Status Regulation for Investigators and Insurance Adjusters in Canada. Through this he became known as an industry expert on PIPEDA and often provides oversight to industry leaders on Privacy related issues. He has since added to his credentials, becoming a Certified Fraud Examiner and an active member in the American Society of Industrial Security among other industry associations. He is also the former Chair of the Council of Private Investigators – Ontario, Privacy Committee. Through his efforts, King’s firm became the first to utilize DNA testing privately in a Canadian criminal case. Presently, several King International Advisory Group team members have been trained in DNA sample collection. In recognition of his dedication to the field, King has received many awards and distinctions from his colleagues. In 1997 he was presented with the prestigious “Investigator of the Year Award” by the Global Investigators Network at their annual Conference in Chicago, Illinois. In 2003 he was awarded the “International Investigator of the Year Award” by the Council of International Investigators in Kinsale, Ireland. He later sat on the Council’s board and became the only member in its history to become president of the organization in two separate years. Considered an expert in many aspects of investigations, King is a frequent speaker and guest lecturer at industry functions. He has authored various articles and publications for industry-related papers, including: The King-Reed Surveillance Techniques; Insurance Fraud – a perspective on bodily injury Claims; Insurance Fraud – an update on bodily injury claims; and Launching Your Investigation – investigating workplace violence. Office: 416 628 6877 Cell: 416 346 5833 Email Brian bking@kinginternationalgroup. https://chicagotitle.ca/ctic_ John Rider John Rider Senior Vice President, Retail and Commercial Title Insurance Leader of the Title Division – Retail and Commercial for Chicago Title – John manages the Canadian national team made up of the best title insurance professionals anywhere in operations, commercial and residential title insurance sales, claims and underwriting. Motivating, challenging, pushing, promoting, inspiring, selling and fostering, John sees everyone on the team as part of the overall customer experience and works to make: “Making our Clients a Success”, the mantra of everyone on the team. John joined CTIC in July of 2015 bringing a wealth of career knowledge and experience in strategic planning, operational restructuring and innovation, sales and sales training and product development – basically in building and setting up businesses for scalable and expansive growth, significantly improved customer service, process improvement and increased profitability. John is doggedly determined to make CTIC the number one title insurer in Canada by providing the best offering of coverage, customer service and pricing in the Canadian market. He also believes that the key to achieving this goal is: working to people’s strengths, motivating the team to always go the extra mile for their customers and having fun in the process. John is a “recovering” lawyer who practiced at Stikeman Elliott and Fraser and Beatty (now Dentons) in the area of Commercial Real Estate before leading the commercial department of another title insurance company, establishing the market for commercial title insurance in Canada. He is a graduate of Queens University and Western University. He has a partner of 15 years and two wonderful children and really enjoys biking, walking, reading and eating, not necessarily in that order. 100 – 55 Superior Boulevard Mississauga, Ontario L5T 2X9 Hours: Monday – Friday 9am to 8pm EST Phone: 289-562-5216 / 1-888-868-4853 Fax: 289-562-2478 / 1-866-214-1953 E-mail: info@chicagotitle.ca Quebec & Atlantic Provinces 1, Westmount Square Tower 1, Suite 446 Westmount, Quebec H3Z 2P9 Hours: Monday – Friday 9am to 5pm EST Phone: 1-877-849-3113 Fax: 1-877-339-3773 E-mail: info@ctic.ca Deja Vu Anyone??? ----- Original Message ----- From: "David Amos" <david.raymond.amos@gmail.com> To: <info@chicagotitle.ca> Sent: Thursday, October 16, 2008 3:01 PM Subject: Fwd: Here is why I hung on the lawyer for Fidelity, Deb Smith ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: David Amos david.raymond.amos@gmail.com Date: Thu, Oct 16, 2008 at 2:19 PM Subject: Here is why I hung on the lawyer for Fidelity, Deb Smith To: debsmith@fnf.com, dkmurphy@fnf.com, "t.j.burke@gnb.ca" t.j.burke@gnb.ca, freb01@nb.sympatico.ca Cc: corporate.communications@ investor.relations@firstam.com She said she did not get my email even after I had the proof I that I had sent it to her twice. I know the lawyers for First American Title are not any more ethical but at least after all my calls and emails and blogs etc they can't say their company didn't know the awful truth about themselves before we meet in court. Veritas Vincit David Raymond amos From: Smith, Debra - New York debsmith@fnf.com Date: Thu, Oct 16, 2008 at 1:54 PM Subject: Out of Office AutoReply: First American and Fidelity National Title Insurance dudes and other Real Estate Crooks To: David Amos david.raymond.amos@gmail.com I will be out of the office from Monday, October 13th through Friday, October 17th. I will have no access to email. If you need immediate assistance, please contact Maria Filippelli at maria.filippelli@fnf.com or 212-880-1317. Thank you. Debra ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: David Amos david.raymond.amos@gmail.com Date: Thu, Oct 16, 2008 at 1:54 PM Subject: Fwd: First American and Fidelity National Title Insurance dudes and other Real Estate Crooks To: debsmith@fnf.com ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: David Amos <david.raymond.amos@gmail.com> Date: Thu, Oct 16, 2008 at 1:36 PM Subject: RE: First American and Fidelity National Title Insurance dudes and other Real Estate Crooks To: debsmith@fnf.com Hey Gypsy just in case you think I am joking about Mikey Allen and the Alliance Realty dudes in Moncton and the Cendant Corp dudes in New Jersey who read my work in your blog quite often, I figured I would expand on things a little bit for the benefit of my fellow common man who pays taxes and and the mortgage on his home in good faith that the bankers and government are ethical and won't screw him out of house and home the first chance they get if you have the power to embarass them. It happened to me and it can happen to anyone. To stay on topic in this blog here is a little bit of what your MP Mikey Allen knew about mean old me as soon as he got elected in 2006. Hell I even discussed this crap with him on the phone after the election and he asked what he could do. I demanded that he uphold his oath as a parliamentarian and uphold the laws that the smiling bastards make then I went to Woodsock and stuck some documents and CD under his door to prove to him I am a man of my word and that his boss Stevey Boy Harper was a crook. A bunch of kids in the computer access place right next door to Allen's office watched me do it after I explained some shit to them and they had told me that the new Neo Con government had cut the funding and they were about to be shut down. Hell I even said it in Youtube the day after I did it. http://www.youtube.com/watch? Rest assured that the New Brunswick Real Estate Association learned last year what their overseer the Minister of Justice of New Brunswick knew I knew about their business over four years ago. The crooks in Cendant Corp and the Title company dudes have laughed at me way past too long for the benefit of Stevey Boy Harper and his puppet master. Brian Mulroney. Here are just a few of quite litterly thousands of document lawyers do not want to argue with me about. I am writng this as I wait for John Hershberger of Fidelity National Title Insurance in Jacksonville, FL, 32207 to never call me back as usual. (904 854 8976) http://www.scribd.com/doc/ http://www.scribd.com/doc/ http://www.scribd.com/doc/ http://www.scribd.com/doc/ http://www.scribd.com/doc/ http://www.scribd.com/doc/ http://www.scribd.com/doc/ Same thing a year before with different property and Coldwell Bankers and First American Title http://www.scribd.com/doc/ http://www.scribd.com/doc/ The above documents about Putnam Investments, Coldwell Bankers, Cendant Corp, Brian Mulroney and the US Senate Committee on Banking caused the following hearings from years ago to disappear from the Congrgessional record just as soon as I made a few calls at about this time last year. http://banking.senate.gov/ http://banking.senate.gov/ These are the title dudes top lawyers. These publicly held corporations sold the Title Insurance on two very fraudulent real estate transactions which involves the forging of my wife's signature and the creation of a fraudulent document bearing mine etc etc. The first order of business of any lawyer working for a publicly held company is to protect its shareholders' investment. The lawyers MUST act with integrity not only according to their licence to practice law for a fee but according to the Code of Ethical Conduct of the publicly held company. http://www.firstam.com/ The lawyers were very foolish indeed to make false allegations against me while I was running for aseat in the 39th Parliament and then invite me to sue their company just because they thought the corrupt public officials would protect their fancy arses. Now that the actions of many bankers, accountants and lawyers etc involving countless questionable real estate business have come under scrutiny methinks somebody should settle with me ASAP and tell the truth thewhole the and nothing but the truth for the benefit of many people around the world who have lost bags of money already because of loss of confidence in their business. Kenneth D. DeGiorgio Senior Vice President, General Counsel The First American Corporation Corporate Headquarters: The First American Corporation1 First American WaySanta Ana, California 92707 Toll Free: 1.800.854.3643 Local: 1.714.250.3000 Kenneth D. DeGiorgio is senior vice president and general counsel for The First American Corporation. Fidelity National Financial Corporate Headquarters 601 Riverside Avenue Jacksonville, FL 32204 888.934.3354 DeGiorgio's tenure with First American began in 1999 when he was appointed regulatory counsel. He was promoted to vice president and associate general counsel in 2001, then to his current position as senior vice president and general counsel three years later. DeGiorgio also serves on the board of directors of RP Data Ltd., an Australian public company in which First American owns a minority interest. DeGiorgio began his career as an associate in the Los Angeles office of White & Case, a law firm based in New York. A California native, he graduated with honors from Harvard University before attending Uni... [Message clipped] View entire message 8 attachments — Scan and download all attachments New York.pdf 198K View as HTML Scan and download Yankee election day.pdf 90K View as HTML Scan and download Boises Response.pdf 11K View as HTML Scan and download Frontline response.pdf 128K View as HTML Scan and download Roy+Black.pdf 16K View as HTML Scan and download NY GOP.pdf 124K View as HTML Scan and download Spitzer Response.pdf 14K View as HTML Scan and download Spitzer nervous.pdf 17K View as HTML Scan and download https://www.cbc.ca/news/ How to protect yourself from real-estate title fraud Title fraud involves stealing a homeowner's identity to refinance or sell home without them knowing CBC News · Posted: Jan 13, 2023 5:00 AM AST Real-estate title fraud take place when someone steals ownership of a home, using identity theft, in order to benefit from its value. Experts say there are ways to help prevent it. (Graeme Roy/The Canadian Press) Recent news stories have highlighted the dangers of real-estate title fraud, which take place when fraudsters or scam artists steal ownership of a home in order to benefit from its value. Yesterday, CBC News reported on a Toronto family that was able to thwart an attempted scam where someone used fake identification to pose as the 95-year-old homeowner and convinced real estate agents to list the home for sale without the family's knowledge or permission. The case resembles an ongoing Toronto police investigation, in which police say two homeowners left Canada for work in January 2022 only to learn months later that their property had been sold without their knowledge by people using fake identification. So, what is title fraud and how can you prevent it from happening? Toronto police seek public's help after house sold without owners' consent What is title fraud? Title fraud takes place when a person uses fake identification or forged documents to steal the identity of a homeowner and take away their "title," or legal ownership of a property. Once fraudsters have their hands on a property's title, they can re-mortgage it, sell it to an unsuspecting buyer, or extract value from it in some other way and make away with the proceeds. Homeowners often don't learn about what's happened until they receive notice of missed payments or they try to sell, title insurance company First Canadian Title (FCT) says on its website. It can take considerable time, money and effort to deal with having to restore your title and/or remove any fraudulently registered mortgages. - First Canadian Title insurance company Victims of title fraud lose the right to mortgage their home, can no longer leverage the equity and can't sell the property until they re-establish their title rights through the courts, according to FCT. "It can take considerable time, money and effort to deal with having to restore your title and/or remove any fraudulently registered mortgages," FCT writes on its website. Morris Cooper, a civil litigation lawyer in Toronto who successfully argued a landmark case in 2006 that shifted the responsibility for title fraud from victims to lending institutions, said seniors and people who rent out their homes to tenants can be at a high risk of title fraud. But homeowners can take steps to protect themselves. Take steps to protect your identity Stealing a person's identity is often the first step in title fraud. Government-issued identity documents, including driver's licences, passports, birth certificates, social insurance number (SIN) cards and citizenship cards, can all be used to apply for mortgages or to take steps to buy or sell a home. The Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre offers the following tips for preventing identity theft: Be wary of who you share personal information with. Regularly check credit card reports, bank and credit card statements and report anything irregular. Shred documents containing personal information before placing them in the garbage. Limit mail theft by regularly retrieving mail. Notify the post office, financial institutions and other service providers of your new address when you move. The Toronto Police Service is seeking the public's help identifying a man and woman wanted in connection with a complex mortgage fraud investigation. The Toronto Police Service is seeking the public's help identifying a man and woman, pictured here, who allegedly used fake identification to sell a home they didn't own. (Toronto Police Service handout) For more information on how to prevent identity theft, visit the following links: Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre Canada Revenue Agency Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada Get title insurance Title insurance is an insurance policy that protects property owners and their lenders against losses related to the property's title or ownership, including from title fraud, according to the Financial Services Regulatory Authority of Ontario (FSRAO). While it can't prevent you from becoming a victim of fraud, it is the single most important thing to mitigate its consequences. A man sitting in a chair inside his office. Realtor Varun Sriskanda says getting title insurance can protect homeowners from the consequences of real-estate title fraud. (Shawn Benjamin/CBC) "Title insurance will step in and save you in a situation like this," said Varun Sriskana, a realtor, property manager and housing advocate based in Toronto. "It protects you in case someone defrauds you." Title insurance can cover legal expenses incurred by homeowners seeking to restore their right to their property's title, according to FCT. It protects homeowners from fraudulent claims on their property and pays for legal expenses to re-establish the homeowner's title rights. WATCH | Mortgage and title fraud 'nothing new,' Toronto real estate agent says: Mortgage and title fraud 'nothing new,' Toronto real estate agent says Duration 6:35 There are not enough 'checks and balances' in place to prevent title and mortgage fraud, says Toronto real estate agent Varun Sriskanda. He would like to see the industry make changes to keep up with fraud and scams. If a buyer unwittingly buys a home that's been fraudulently listed, the insurance should also protect them. In cases like that, the true owner will likely get their home back and the unwitting buyer will get their money back. It's happened again. 2nd Toronto home listed for sale without homeowner's knowledge Know who you're dealing with People on both sides of a real-estate transaction should make sure they're comfortable with the identity of the person on the other side of the deal, said Stephen Moranis, past president of the Toronto Regional Real Estate Board. That means potential tenants should ensure the landlord actually owns the property, while landlords should check references and request documents like credit scores to verify potential tenants, Moranis said. "Either side should be very, very careful to verify and ensure that the other party they're dealing with is actually in a position, a legal position, to either lease or or sell the property that they're considering," said Moranis. Murtaza Haider, a professor of data science and real estate management at Toronto Metropolitan University, said he spoke to neighbours the last time he was looking to purchase a home, asking them about the property and the current owners in a search for potential red flags. Simply Googling a person's name and cross-checking social media photos can also help turn up any irregularities, Haider said. Preventing title fraud by renters Homeowners who rent their homes to tenants could be at a higher risk of fraud because the tenants have physical access to the home. Landlords should take steps to make sure that documents containing personal information like driver's licence renewal applications or tax returns don't fall into the wrong hands, Haider said. "Make sure that your mail stays with you. Make sure that you have a forwarding address," said Haider. "Make sure that they don't end up in the hands of people that you don't want other than yourself." Murtaza Haider, professor of data science and real estate management at Toronto Metropolitan University, says homeowners should keep track of their digital and physical mail to make sure their personal information doesn't get into the wrong hands. (Doug Husby/CBC) Haider said homeowners can also search for their property online from time to time to see if it's being inappropriately listed for sale or on a rental website like AirBnB. "It's always good to be checking the address, checking it at various locations on the internet to see your property is being used for for the intended use," Haider said. Landlords should also rely on banking information, rather than cash payments, as that adds another layer of due diligence, Haider said. The Ontario government also provides a free, online tool that allows any member of the public to check the validity and current status of a driver's licence. Driver's licence numbers that come up as invalid could be a red flag. CBC's Journalistic Standards and Practices https://www.cbc.ca/news/ Court gives woman home back in rare ruling reversal CBC News · Posted: Feb 07, 2007 11:18 AM AST A Toronto woman who lost her home to identity fraudsters has won it back after Ontario's highest court reversed its own decision on a previous case. Five Court of Appeal judges unanimously ruled Tuesday in favour of Susan Lawrence, a 55-year-old homeowner who lost her home just over a year ago. The court declared Lawrence the legal owner of her home and ordered a company that had issued the mortgage to fraudsters to pay $25,000 toward Lawrence's legal costs. Lawrence discovered her house had been stolen last January when she tried to sell it and buy a new one. "I put for sale sign on my house. I sold it. I had a long closing date and when I went to buy a new one, I was told I didn't own the house I had," she said. 'Ferocious' outcry Thieves had forged her signature to obtain a nearly $300,000 mortgage on her 100-year-old Victorian home. In a previous ruling, ajudge restored the title to Lawrence's name, but would not absolve her of the phoney mortgage in her name. The court was bound by a 2005 Court of Appeal decision, Household Realty vs. Liu, that stated fraudulent mortgages were legally binding once registered. Public response to the case was "very, very ferocious," said Lawrence, and her lawyer, Morris Cooper, saidthat may have contributed to the unusual reversal. Cooper says it'svery rare for the Appeals Court to reverse any decision, especially such a recent one. After a lengthy legal battle, Lawrence is already looking forward to her next challenge — finding the thieves. "That's my next job," she said. "I'm going to harass the police detectives, that's what I can do." CBC's Journalistic Standards and Practices https://www.barristonlaw.com/ Morris Cooper Morris Cooper Mediator and Arbitrator Barrie, Bracebridge, Huntsville 7057929200 hlankin@barristonlaw.com Morris has been a civil and commercial litigator since his call to the bar in 1976, with a wide-ranging practice as lead counsel in every court, including The Supreme Court of Canada. He has applied that experience to business and shareholder disputes, professional negligence, title insurance claims, class actions, and much more. His early career experiences in family law have given Morris a unique perspective in resolving complex inter-generational business and estate disputes, recognizing the human factors that drive litigation and block settlement. Morris has been a commercial arbitrator since the late 1980s and an Adjudicator for the federal government under The Canada Labour Code since the 1990s. He is a strong advocate in favour of arbitration as an alternative dispute resolution tool, particularly in construction disputes and boundary and property access conflicts, where having the parties and the arbitrator collectively view the site represents a great advantage over our court system. Morris is a consensus-building mediator, providing the parties and their counsel with insights into the strengths and weaknesses of their issues and offering creative solutions to seemingly irreconcilable positions. He is not a “carrier pigeon” conveying unrealistic offers and counter-offers, and is a tenacious mediator, keeping the parties talking and staying at the table until a deal can be hammered out. Morris and his family have owned a 400-acre hobby farm and woodlot in southeast Muskoka since 1986, where he now spends most of his time in classic rural fashion: i.e. repairing broken equipment. To contact Morris, please call our office or email hlankin@barristonlaw.com (Mediation & Arbitration Co-ordinator - Hannah Lankin) https://www.cbc.ca/news/ It's happened again. 2nd Toronto home listed for sale without homeowner's knowledge Like recent case Toronto police are investigating, fraudster impersonated homeowner John Lancaster, Ryan Patrick Jones, Farrah Merali · CBC News · Posted: Jan 12, 2023 5:00 AM AST | A "Sold" sign in front of a home in the York neighborhood of Toronto, Ontario Last week, Toronto police asked the public for help after a pair of homeowners returned to Canada to find their home sold without their knowledge in 2022. CBC News has learned that wasn't an isolated case. (Cole Burston/Bloomberg) When Melissa Walsh's great uncle moved into a long-term care home in late 2021 just before his 95th birthday, her family decided to rent out the east end Toronto home he's owned since the 1970s. The idea was to help him pay his expenses. The family had turned to a local Royal LePage brokerage where two real estate agents helped them find and screen tenants to rent the house located just off Queen Street East near Kew Gardens in The Beach neighbourhood starting in December 2021. That began a chain of events that Walsh describes as "the ultimate real estate nightmare." The family later learned the tenants chosen had used fake identity documents and bogus references on their lease application, and Walsh said police eventually referred to them as "ghosts" after trying to locate them. What's more, just weeks after the lease agreement was signed, the family found out that someone posing as the 95-year-old homeowner had hired two different real estate agents from another Royal LePage brokerage to list the house for sale without the family's knowledge or permission. The home was staged with furniture, advertised online for $1.29 million and quickly generated a flurry of offers, Walsh said. One came in at $1.9 million. "I can't even form words to describe that moment at that time because it's just so unbelievably out there," Walsh said. "You're going, 'What happened? What's going on?'" A woman with brown hair and a dark shirt. Melissa Walsh, whose great uncle's Toronto home was listed for sale last year after someone impersonated him, says the incident raises questions about whether the real estate industry does enough to verify the identities of the people they work with. (Submitted by Melissa Walsh) Walsh's family was able to put an end to the attempted scam before the house could be fraudulently sold, but the case bears a striking resemblance to an investigation the Toronto Police Service (TPS) asked for the public's help with last week, in which another family wasn't so lucky. In that case, police say two homeowners left Canada for work in January 2022 — the same month Walsh's great uncle's home was listed for sale — only to learn months later that their property had been sold without their knowledge by people using fake identification. In an email viewed by CBC News, a TPS detective in the force's financial crimes unit who is investigating told Walsh the two cases are "related." Walsh said the detective subsequently told her the fake name used by the male tenant who rented her great uncle's home was also used in the TPS case. Toronto police seek public's help after house sold without owners' consent CBC Investigates Is a GTA real estate deal that sounds like paradise too good to be true? CBC News is not identifying the names of the fraudulent tenants as doing so may identify the victims of identity theft. "At first, we thought it was mostly just a handful of real estate agents that weren't doing their job, but then after hearing about this other house, I think there's definitely a deeper problem with the real estate industry," Walsh said. Over the past year, CBC News has reported on numerous allegations of fake identifications and other documents being used to rent homes and take out fraudulent mortgages, but these attempted home thefts appear to take real estate fraud to an alarming new level. A living room with modern furniture. Walsh says she was shocked when her family learned her great uncle's home was listed for sale, and that two listing agents they had never hired had been granted access to the home to stage it with furniture. (Submitted by Melissa Walsh) Red flags Walsh said the two cases raise questions about whether real estate agents in the multibillion dollar industry are doing enough to verify the identities of potential tenants, homesellers and homebuyers. In her family's case, she said documentation provided by the tenants and the person impersonating her great uncle contained several red flags that the agents should have picked up on, beginning with the fact that the person impersonating Walsh's great uncle spelled his name wrong twice when signing documents. When screening the two potential tenants, the agents collected photocopies of their driver's licences, contact information for their employers and personal references, and credit history checks. The companies listed as employers had very little online presence, including no website. When CBC called the phone numbers, those given for the employers were out of service, as was one of the personal references. The second personal reference appeared to be a wrong number. CBC News also ran the three driver's licence numbers through the Ontario government's free driver's licence check tool. Two driver's licenses with information redacted.A man and a woman provided these driver's licences when applying to rent the home. When CBC News checked the validity of the licence numbers using a free online tool, both came back as unrecognized. (CBC) The two licences provided by the tenants on their lease application came up as "not found," meaning they were not recognized Ontario driver's licence numbers. The licence number provided by the person impersonating the 95-year-old homeowner on his listing application came back as "not valid," meaning it had been suspended, cancelled or expired. It's unclear whether any of the agents involved ever called the references and, if they did, what response they received. It's also unclear whether they checked the validity of the driver's licences, or what the status of the licences would have been in November 2021 or January 2022, respectively. 'A coordinated scheme' In a statement, a spokesperson for Royal LePage said it doesn't govern day-to-day operations at its brokerages, which are all independently owned and operated. But licensed sales representatives are obligated to abide by industry regulations and to perform due diligence as laid out by the regulating body. "This very unfortunate incident was clearly a coordinated scheme aiming to take advantage of real estate professionals and an innocent family," communications director Anne-Elise Cugliari Allegritti wrote. "The Royal LePage agents in question followed all due protocol and had no reason to suspect that any suspicious activity had taken place." Marketplace Ontario real estate regulator ineffective at protecting homebuyers, sellers, audit finds According to the Real Estate Council of Ontario (RECO), the industry regulator, both provincial and federal legislation requires real estate professionals to confirm the identity of all individuals, including buyers and sellers, involved in a real estate transaction. "The most common [method] would be to rely on government-issued photo identification to assure themselves of the identity of the person they are dealing with," RECO said in an email. "Also, the local public land registry information about the owners of every property within the municipality, which ought to be confirmed before engaging to sell a property, is readily available to agents." Federal guidance documents that RECO identified as the industry standard tell agents they can determine whether a person's government-issued ID is "authentic, valid and current" by viewing it in the presence of the person being identified and analyzing its characteristics and security features. Identification can also be verified without the person physically present by using a scanned version paired with a live video chat or photo of the person being identified, according to the guidance. ID rules too lax, realtor says Varun Sriskanda, a realtor, property manager and housing policy advocate who was not involved in either fraudulent incident, said these requirements are too lax to prevent identity theft, mortgage fraud and title fraud. "We only collect one piece of government-issued ID. That means that the fraudster only needs to forge one piece of government-issued ID," said Sriskanda. "All you need is to convince your realtor that you are that person standing in front of them and that that identity document is yours. After that, that house goes on MLS." Sriskanda said provincial rules should change to require agents to check at least two different pieces of ID to make it more difficult for fraudsters to dupe agents — something he said he already does as a matter of practice. A man sitting in a chair inside his office.Realtor Varun Sriskanda says real estate professionals should be required to check more than one government-issued ID when verifying the identity of clients involved in real estate transactions. (Shawn Benjamin/CBC) Morris Cooper, a civil litigation lawyer in Toronto who successfully argued a landmark case of mortgage fraud in 2006, said the onus shouldn't be on agents. "They're salespeople. They get paid if the sale closes, and they don't get paid if it doesn't," Morris said. "The gatekeepers are really the real estate lawyers who handle the transaction of the purchase and sale, and they are obliged to satisfy themselves as to the identity of their clients in all cases." Walsh said her family's experience has shaken her faith in the real estate industry. "At the end of the day, you just kind of assume that these people are doing their jobs, that there are those regulatory bodies that have these rules to follow to make sure that nobody is getting their properties sold from beneath them, but clearly those systems aren't in place," she said. If you have any information about this story, send an email to torontotips@cbc.ca ABOUT THE AUTHOR John Lancaster Senior Reporter, CBC Toronto John Lancaster is a senior reporter with CBC News focusing on investigative and enterprise journalism. His stories have taken him across Canada, the US and the Caribbean. His reports have appeared on CBC Toronto, The National, CBC's Marketplace, The Fifth Estate-and of course CBC online and radio. Drop him a line anytime at john.lancaster@cbc.ca. CBC's Journalistic Standards and Practices| https://twitter.com/ Varun Sriskanda @VarunSriskanda · Jan 5 Title fraud is sadly pretty easy to accomplish in Ontario where we use an electronic land registry system. The fraudster finds a property that will be vacant for an extended time & has no mortgage on it. No mortgage means nothing to discharge, no banks to deal with, less risk. Varun Sriskanda @VarunSriskanda · Jan 5 Since the property is vacant they can sell the house with a Realtor. Here is the tricky part: finding 2 pieces of valid government issued ID that belongs to the home owner & then 2 people that look like the real owners OR creating new ID docs all together. This is identity theft. Varun Sriskanda @VarunSriskanda · Jan 5 A Realtor has a responsibility to identify their client using 2 pieces of ID. They only need to check the ID, make copies of it and note down the ID # on a form. The Realtor doesn't need to investigate and determine if the ID is real or if that person is who they claim to be. Varun Sriskanda @VarunSriskanda · Jan 5 The property is sold on MLS with brokerages and deposits are made. Goes to closing and the lawyer representing the fake seller checks ID's. Same deal here: 2 pieces of valid govt issued ID with no checks to see if its legit, forged or if those people are who they say they are. Varun Sriskanda @VarunSriskanda · Jan 5 On the closing date the buyers lawyer will send funds to the sellers lawyer. They change title. If the sellers lawyer has no mortgages to pay out they give the entire funds to the fake seller by cheque. Varun Sriskanda @VarunSriskanda · Jan 5 The fake sellers would have already created a bank account for them using the 2 ID documents. This process again is just as easy as selling the house and having lawyers complete the transaction. Varun Sriskanda @VarunSriskanda · Jan 5 The best way to protect your self is TITLE INSURANCE. They step in to cover you and make you whole if someone commits title or mortgage fraud on your property. If you purchased your house with a mortgage then title insurance is mandatory by most lenders. Varun Sriskanda @VarunSriskanda · Jan 5 If you dont have title insurance then under the Land Titles Act, the Land Titles Assurance Fund can compensate people for certain financial losses they incur due to real estate fraud or omissions and errors of the land registration system. Varun Sriskanda @VarunSriskanda · Jan 6 Fraud involving mortgages & title is nothing new in Ontario. In 2011 fake ID's were used by 3 people pretending to be a married couple + their daughter who owned a Heaslip Terrace house in Scarborough. They got approval, closed on the refi and had their lawyer pay out $200K. David Raymond Amos @DavidRaymondAm1 Replying to @VarunSriskanda Perhaps we should talk https://www.cbc.ca/news/ Mom, daughter face homelessness after buying home and tenant refuses to leave Elsie Kalu lost job, seeking shelters, and begging Landlord Tenant Board for hearing Priscilla Ki Sun Hwang · CBC News · Posted: Oct 24, 2022 5:00 AM ADT Elsie Kalu stands near the front door of the townhome she bought in April 2022. She hasn't been able to move in because the tenant who was living there refuses to leave. Elsie Kalu stands near the front door of the townhome she bought in April 2022. She says she hasn't been able to move in because the tenant who was living there refuses to leave. (Francis Ferland/CBC) An Ottawa homeowner says she and her daughter could soon be homeless because they can't move into the townhouse she bought in April due to a tenant who refuses to leave — and she blames the Ontario government for failing her family. Elsie Kalu says the ordeal led to her losing her job, plus she is now at risk of getting kicked out of her rental and faces threats of foreclosure — losing her property to the mortgage lender. She is begging Ontario's Landlord and Tenant Board (LTB) to grant her a hearing so she can state her case to evict her tenant and finally move into the home she bought. "Why would the government allow another person to take everything from one person? It's like robbing the poor to pay the poor," said Kalu, standing outside of the home she hasn't entered since buying it. "It can't be right. I cannot provide social services for another citizen. I'm not rich enough." It's like robbing the poor to pay the poor. - Elsie Kalu, Homeowner Kalu became a small landlord when she purchased a townhome in the city's eastern suburb of Orléans. Small landlords — those who typically own just one or two rental units — can become homeless when a tenant refuses to pay rent and leave a space the landlord needs for their own accommodations. CBC previously spoke to landlords who were homeless due to major delays in getting a hearing and eviction order from the LTB — the body that makes decisions for disputes between landlords and tenants. Small landlords who became homeless during pandemic blame 'broken' system Kalu moved across the river from Gatineau, Que., to Ottawa in 2021 to access better health-care services for her daughter, who has autism. She bought the townhome sight unseen during the pandemic real estate boom through a real estate wholesaler, which buys and sells off-market homes at below-market value, and avoids realtor fees — a risky move, she acknowledged in hindsight. A townhome with a green front yard.Kalu bought this home, at middle, and wanted to move in. She has no date yet from the Ontario Landlord and Tenant Board to hear her case to evict the tenant and occupant. (Francis Ferland/CBC) It was only after signing the purchase agreement in January, Kalu said, when she found out she had an unco-operative tenant and a male occupant. Kalu closed on the home in April but says she's received no rent so far, and has started a file with the LTB about this. CBC has tried to contact the two occupants. When a reporter knocked on their door, which was barricaded from inside with plastic boxes, they did not answer and shut their curtain as music blared from inside the home. A lawyer representing them said Kalu should go through the LTB "if she believes that she is actually owed rent." No job, no money for daughter's therapy The LTB has a service standard to schedule hearings within 25 business days. An update this July says it should take seven to eight months. Kalu filed an eviction application to the LTB in May. Since then, she's trying to fork out more than $5,000 a month for the home she's currently renting, and utilities, plus the mortgage, condo fees, and property taxes for her Orléans home. According to her LTB submission, Kalu lost her job this August as a financial adviser, which required her to pass a regular credit score check. She's been taking out loans and racking up her credit card debt, so her score didn't meet her company threshold. "I'm just sinking ... Financially, it has wrecked me," said Kalu. "This has ruined me emotionally and mentally." A woman and a child hold hands looking at a townhome. Kalu and her four-year-old daughter stand in the driveway of the home the family owns and wants to move into. She says her daughter, though enrolled, isn't able to attend the school near this home nor access speech therapy. (Francis Ferland/CBC) The submission goes on to say Kalu's four-year-old daughter was diagnosed with autism last year, but still can't attend the school near the new home, which promised to provide her a speech therapist and other resources. For the past three months, Kalu said she stopped critical therapy for her daughter because she can't afford it. Denied expedited hearing, foreclosure threat Then earlier this month, Kalu's lender sent her an email indicating it would consider legal action should she miss another mortgage payment this December. "So if the LTB doesn't help me ... everything I've worked for, all that I've invested, I could just lose it," she said. Kalu's current landlord also issued her a notice to end her tenancy for missing one month's rent. Kalu says she's called three local shelters — one that had a wait list of two years, and the others said they can't accept her until she's actually homeless. "So basically, 'we cannot help you until the day you'll be really ending up in the gutter,'" said Kalu. A woman holds up a piece of document. Kalu holds a document from the LTB, denying her an expedited hearing, citing her issues aren't urgent enough. (Francis Ferland/CBC) Kalu's paralegal filed a request to expedite her hearing. The LTB refused in September saying the case isn't urgent enough, according to its threshold. "I'm frustrated, I'm outraged, I'm angry and I'm sad," said Kalu. "They can't stay forever because I can't [continue to] pay [the] mortgage and be homeless, and that's what's about to happen now." "My daughter can't end up on the streets. I cannot end up on the streets ... I need my home." Tenant silent, lawyer responds Kalu gave her tenant an N12 notice this April — a form under Ontario's Residential and Tenancies Act to notify tenants about a landlord's intention to move in. She's also served the tenant multiple N4 notices for non-payment. Lawyer Michael Thiele, who represents the tenant and the male occupant, said in an email that his clients have "the right to occupy the premises for an indefinite period of time." "Everyone knows how inflation has caused rents to skyrocket. Affordability is a huge problem. Moving onto the street is not an option," Thiele wrote. When asked why the tenant hasn't paid rent, Thiele suggested Kalu take it up with the LTB "if she believes that she is actually owed rent," but didn't elaborate or provide proof of payment when CBC followed up. Kalu has a separate application open with the LTB for the tenant's non-payment of rent. WATCH | Kalu tries to enter her home for the 5th time with CBC Ottawa: ‘I’m a wreck’: Ottawa homeowner says difficult tenants, tribunal delays are causing stress Duration 2:51 Elsie Kalu, who bought a house in Orléans in April 2022, says the tenants won’t allow her to enter the home and refuse to pay rent. She has filed an eviction application, but backlogs at the Landlord and Tenant Board mean she doesn’t yet have a hearing date. According to Kalu's submission, the occupants refused to let her inspect the home four times despite 24-hour notices — by posting doctor's letters on their door citing COVID concerns stating they're unvaccinated. Thiele responded to this stating the household is "entitled to protect themselves." A landlord can enter a rental unit after giving 24-hour notice to carry out an inspection to see if it's in good repair, to carry out repairs, or for "any other reasonable reason" set out in the lease, according to the Residential Tenancies Act. The occupants also refused to let an appraiser in to appraise the home, the LTB submission states, so Kalu couldn't get financing with her bank — forcing her to delay the closing and use a private lender with an 8.99 per cent interest rate and two per cent lender fee. "The rights of entry are stipulated in the Residential Tenancies Act. This is not one of them," Thiele wrote. "Why should a tenant allow a landlord to enter a property to snoop around? This is the tenant's home and arguing that the tenant should open her door to the whims of the landlord disregards the fact that a person has the right to privacy in their home. The tenant doesn't need a reason to refuse. The landlord needs a legal reason to enter — the difference is significant." The Act states a landlord can enter to allow a potential mortgagee or insurer to view the unit. Kalu's LTB submission also states an occupant told her "the house is dilapidated," but refused to allow tradespeople she hired to enter. Thiele said his client disagrees with this characterization, and said the tenant may file against Kalu at the LTB for the condition of the house, citing rent abatement. Two photos side to side of signs posted on a front door of a home. On the left, Kalu's 24-hour notice of intent to enter posted on the home. On the right, a sign put out by the occupants stating they're quarantining. (Submitted by Elsie Kalu) Kalu said in her submission that the first time she met the tenant and the male occupant, they closed the garage door on her and her daughter's head. In response, Thiele said tenants may have the right "to repel trespassers who refuse to leave" and said landlords can call police should they feel they have been wronged. CBC asked the LTB for submissions or responses filed by the tenant in relation to Kalu's eviction and non-payment applications, but the LTB said it found none. WATCH | Small landlords advocate talks possible solutions for LTB backlog: Expert says LTB delay causing ‘cruel and unusual punishment’ for Orléans homeowner Duration 2:08 Varun Sriskanda, a member of the board of directors for Small Ownership Landlords of Ontario, says fixing the backlog at the Landlord and Tenant Board should be a priority for the province. CBC spoke with the previous landlord who said he's rented the home to the tenant for about a decade. He said he began having issues with the two occupants just before the pandemic, when he notified them he wanted to sell the home after getting diagnosed with cancer. The former landlord said the LTB had failed him, too, as he never made it through an eviction hearing after applying for one. Who's responsible for failing landlords? "My anger to [the tenant] is limited, but my anger to the government, my anger to LTB, that is the part that really drives me crazy," said Kalu. "They should not let this happen." In an email to CBC, Ontario's Landlord Tenant Board blames the Ontario government's temporary moratorium pausing eviction hearings from March to August 2020 for its longer-than-average wait times and backlog. It's working to modernize operations and hire more staff to help go through the backlog, a spokesperson wrote. It says, as of Sept. 30, there were 36 full-time and 47 part-time adjudicators at the LTB. The LTB would not answer whether the board was responsible for failing small landlords, redirecting the question to the Ontario Attorney General's office. That office declined to comment. When asked who could compensate small landlords who have become homeless, forfeited their homes, and lost thousands of dollars in arrears due to LTB delays, the tribunal referred CBC to Ontario's Housing Ministry. When asked whether there are discussions to create separate considerations for small landlords in the Residential Tenancies Act, which advocates say is allowing some to fall through the cracks, the LTB again referred CBC to the Housing Ministry. The Housing ministry also didn't answer those questions directly, but said it's committed to the well-being of Ontarians, continuing its work on homeless prevention, and "making sure tenants and landlords are treated fairly." A woman stands on a driveway of a home looking at the camera.Small Ownership Landlords of Ontario, who's advocating for small landlords like Kalu, calls the LTB's delays 'cruel and unusual punishment'. (Francis Ferland/CBC) "This is a cruel and unusual punishment [for Kalu]," said Varun Sriskanda, a board member with Small Ownership Landlords of Ontario, a not-for-profit group for small landlords. The LTB must fix its backlog as soon as possible, Sriskanda said. It needs to hire more adjudicators and stop doing hearings virtually, as it's allowed for delays and distractions by those who aren't tech-savvy, he said. The $19 million the Ontario government pledged this year to tribunals won't go far enough, he said. "It's an absolute mess," said Sriskanda. "It's failing tenants and landlords entirely." ABOUT THE AUTHOR Priscilla Ki Sun Hwang Reporter/Editor Priscilla Ki Sun Hwang is a reporter with CBC News based in Ottawa. She's worked with the investigative unit, CBC Toronto, and CBC North in Yellowknife, Whitehorse and Iqaluit. She has a Master of Journalism from Carleton University. Want to contact her? Email priscilla.hwang@cbc.ca CBC's Journalistic Standards and Practices https://www.ottawalawyers.com/ Michael K E Thiele Michael K. E. Thiele Partner Phone: 613-563-1131 ext. 226 Fax: 613-230-8297 Email: mthiele@ottawalawyers.com Mr. Thiele has a diverse business background in agriculture and the hospitality industry in Eastern Ontario. After attending University in Maine, U.S.A., and Glasgow, Scotland, he returned to Ontario to complete his law degree at Queen’s University at Kingston, Ontario. Mr. Thiele was called to the Ontario Bar in 1997 and has practiced law in Ottawa since that time. In 2001 he formed a law partnership with two colleagues. The firm expanded, added associates as its reputation grew and two additional partners were added in 2010. His firm, Quinn Thiele Mineault Grodzki LLP, began to restrict the practice to personal injury work in mid 2010 and presently this makes up the majority of the cases the firm takes on. Mr. Thiele retains his passion for residential landlord and tenant law. He maintains a significant blog that can easily be found in a Google search and he continues to teach Landlord and Tenant law to paralegal students at Algonquin College who are seeking to be licensed as paralegals by the Law Society of Upper Canada. Mr. Thiele’s practice consists of landlord and tenant law and general litigation including personal injury, property losses, insurance claims, and disability insurance matters. Mr. Thiele most enjoys representing individuals before various administrative law tribunals, boards and committees. Areas of Practice 50% Residential Landlord and Tenant Law 30% General Litigation 20% Administrative Law (various tribunals, boards, committees) Litigation Percentage 80% of Practice Devoted to Litigation Bar Admissions Ontario, 1997 Education Kingston – Queen’s University, Faculty of Law, Kingston, Ontario, Canada A.B., Bachelor of Arts cum laude – 1992 Major: History – Colby College, Waterville, Maine Ontario Increases Funds for Clearing Landlord Tenant Board Backlog Ontario Increases Funds for Clearing Landlord Tenant Board Backlog Published on April 11, 2022 Ottawa Lawyer, Michael Thiele Weighs In on the Announcement In a recent interview with the Ottawa Citizen, Michael Thiele, an Ottawa lawyer who represents both landlords and tenants, offered his views on the latest announcement by the Ontario government. Attorney General Doug Downey announced that over the next 3 years, Ontario will spend in excess of $19 million to help facilitate faster decisions at the Ontario Land Tribunal and the Landlord and Tenant Board. Thiele’s perspective is, “More money to make things faster does not mean that things will be fair or reasonable. Fast decisions are worth nothing if they are not fair decisions. Without fair hearings, no decision can be perceived as fair even if the correct decision happens to be made.” A partner at a leading personal injury law firm, QTMG, Thiele, along with other Ottawa lawyers, is concerned that the province is likely to move hearings online permanently, and this digital process has already proven to be confusing and stressful for all parties. In many cases, neither the landlords nor their tenants have the required technology or adequate skills to work through cases in a digital environment, he said. When it comes to residential landlord and tenant law, in-person meetings in a pre-pandemic world are the best way to clear backlogs, and this must continue now that the economy has opened up again. While the province is confident that the infusion of funds will help create more affordable housing by reducing delays at the Landlord and Tenant Board, Thiele’s opinion is that “People are fighting before the board to keep rental housing because they have no place else to go. They are motivated to slow down the process.” You can read the full article here. https://www.cbc.ca/news/ 'People are being shown no mercy': Online evictions raise alarm in Ontario It's 'absurd' to evict people during a health crisis that has left many unable to pay rent, advocate says Holly McKenzie-Sutter · The Canadian Press · Posted: Dec 26, 2020 3:22 PM AST Tribunals Ontario doesn't keep track of evictions, but according to ACTO, the board heard more than 7,000 cases in November. Ninety-six per cent of those were filed by a landlord against a tenant, the ACTO said. (Kimberley Molina/CBC) Tenant after tenant addressed the virtual meeting, describing how COVID-19 has wreaked havoc on their lives and finances over the last year. A Toronto mother said she struggled to keep up with bills after losing work in the restaurant industry. A Hamilton man behind on rent payments said he was staying in touch with his landlord about his financial situation after being laid off. "It's COVID, people struggle," he appealed to Landlord and Tenant Board member John Mazzilli during the Dec. 18 block of hearings — all of which involved non-payment of rent. Similar scenes playing out over the last several weeks have raised concern among Ontario advocates, who say the resumption of evictions in the pandemic's second wave coincides with a shift to online-only hearings that stack the deck against tenants. "These people are being shown no mercy," Kenn Hale with the Advocacy Centre for Tenants Ontario (ACTO) said in a recent interview. "They're expected to pay and pay now or get out." Hale, director of advocacy and legal services for ACTO, said it's "absurd" to evict people during a health crisis that has left many unable to pay rent due to lost income. "It's bad enough in normal times for people to lose their homes and to be treated unfairly in an administrative proceeding. But it can be life or death in the kind of situation we're in now," he said in a recent interview. A group of Ontario legal clinics wrote to Tribunals Ontario in October with proposed guidelines for adjudicators considering evictions cases during the pandemic — including the public health risk and pressures on people's finances. The group said they had not received a response as of mid-December. (Cole Burston/The Canadian Press) Evictions were suspended until late summer, and the Landlord and Tenant Board is now working through a backlog of cases that observers say predated the pandemic and has grown this year as more people lose income. Tribunals Ontario doesn't keep track of evictions, but according to ACTO, the board heard more than 7,000 cases in November. Ninety-six per cent of those were filed by a landlord against a tenant, the centre said. As of Dec. 14, a total of 4,597 hearings were scheduled for the month. Hale said the shift to an online-only hearing model has made it harder for tenants to present their circumstances or access legal advice, including through ACTO's duty counsel program. Lawyers must now introduce themselves to tenants in the virtual session, in front of all other participants, and both need to exit the meeting to speak privately. Hale said such introductions don't always run smoothly, with lawyers entering "chaotic" hearing situations where they struggle to make themselves heard. Bill 184 concerns There's also concern about changes under Bill 184, which became law in the summer. It allows landlords to offer repayment agreements without appearing before the Landlord and Tenant Board, so some tenants are signing on to potentially unreasonable repayment terms without fully understanding their rights, Hale said. A group of Ontario legal clinics, including ACTO, wrote to Tribunals Ontario in October with proposed guidelines for adjudicators considering evictions cases during the pandemic — including the public health risk and pressures on people's finances. Hale said the group had not received a response as of mid-December. The Progressive Conservative government has not yet acted on an Opposition motion supporting a freeze on evictions that passed unanimously this month, days before the legislative assembly adjourned until February. NDP MPP Suze Morrison, who introduced the motion, said the online hearing format isn't accessible for people with visual impairments or those who don't have stable internet access, among other challenges. "I'm deeply concerned that there are human rights violations happening here," Morrison said by phone. A statement from Premier Doug Ford's office this month said the government "is continuing to explore ways to further support Ontarians during this difficult time." 'Digital-first strategy' from Tribunals Ontario Tribunals Ontario, meanwhile, said it's pursuing "a digital-first strategy to meet the diverse needs of Ontarians and enhance the quality of our dispute resolution services." It said requests for in-person hearings would be considered on a case-by-case basis to ensure people are accommodated under the Human Rights Code. As of mid-December, Tribunals Ontario had not confirmed if any in-person hearings had been approved. Sam Nithiananthan, an organizer with People's Defence Toronto, said the online hearings have been a "double-edged sword" in the evictions process, as allies can now tune in and support their neighbours. Nithiananthan said the crisis has exposed long-standing issues faced by renters in the city, and it's motivated tenants to organize in larger numbers than he'd seen before. "What has been shifting is tenants are now standing up," he said. Toronto legal clinic asks city's top doctor to suspend evictions during the pandemic Community advocates fear hundreds will lose their homes in mass evictions Tenant organizer Bryan Doherty with Keep Your Rent Toronto said his group and others have called for rent relief that goes beyond a moratorium on evictions, arguing that simply pausing evictions would leave cases to pile up. "We knew that a moratorium at the beginning of the COVID crisis would actually just produce an eviction blitz midway through the crisis, which is what we're seeing now," he said by phone in a mid-December interview. Rents have long been unaffordable in Ontario's largest city, and Doherty said "COVID kind of threw gasoline on that fire." He said pressure needs to be applied to landlords and governments to address the housing crisis affecting working-class tenants during the pandemic and beyond. "I don't think it's going to be the same. The question is whether or not it will be worse or slightly better," he said. CBC's Journalistic Standards and Practices 151 Comments David Amos Methinks everybody knows why a 'Digital-first strategy' rings a lot of bells with me N'esy Pas? https://www.cbc.ca/news/ Evictions during pandemic could increase spread of COVID-19: Waterloo region lawyer 196 households faced eviction in Waterloo region between Nov. 24 and Dec. 18 Hala Ghonaim · CBC News · Posted: Jan 04, 2021 7:01 AM AST Advocates are asking the province to impose an evictions ban during the pandemic. (Amanda Pfeffer/CBC) A lawyer in Waterloo region is speaking out against ongoing tenant evictions during the pandemic that she worries could increase the spread of COVID-19. There were 196 households facing eviction hearings in Waterloo region between Nov. 24 and Dec. 18, according to Kristen Thompson, staff lawyer at Waterloo Region Community Legal Services, which provides services for low income community members. Thompson said the Landlord Tenant Board (LTB) and Court Enforcement Office usually shutter operations over the holidays, but that wasn't the case this year. It has been working through a backlog resulting from the eviction moratorium at the start of the pandemic. That means evictions were enforced over the holidays and during the current lockdown. "My concern is, as we enter a lockdown, without ensuring that our neighbours have a place to call home, we will see an increase spread of COVID-19. For example, tenants evicted might have to rely on the shelter system or go to crowded homes of friends and family, which would decrease the individuals ability to comply with social distancing directives," said Thompson, noting this could also overburden the shelter system. Ontario's temporary moratorium on eviction orders was lifted in August. Reinstate ban Thompson, along with other advocacy groups and legal clinics in Ontario, is urging the province to reinstate a moratorium on evictions. "Essentially what I think we need to do is impose another eviction moratorium, so not allow evictions at this point in time and again look to what support government has given to make sure rent is paid," she said. Toronto legal clinic asks city's top doctor to suspend evictions during the pandemic She said the government must consider increasing funding to local rent banks, providing rent subsidies to market units and increase investment into affordable housing. Thompson said many people can't afford rent right now, especially during a pandemic that has left many either without work or struggling financially. She said those who continue to receive Canada Recovery Benefit (CRB) or provincial social assistance either cannot afford rent or to enter a repayment plan. On top of that, Thompson said, some tenants aren't attending their online eviction hearings because they can't access legal assistance or don't have access to technology. NDP motion passed Advocates and residents, including those in Toronto, have protested for the ban. The Ontario NDP party has also been outspoken on the issue. Earlier this month, the legislature unanimously passed a motion put forward by Suze Morrison, NDP tenants rights critic, to ban residential evictions, but a law has not been imposed. "So many families have lost their job or income through no fault of their own during this horrific pandemic. Yet Doug Ford is showing them no mercy. He refuses to sign an eviction ban into law," said Morrison in an emailed statement to CBC News. "In communities all over the province, many of these evicted people have no good options. Shelters are full, and it's a dangerous time to apartment hunt, or to crash with friends or family from another household. These evictions are putting people at risk of catching and spreading COVID-19," Morrison added. When asked by CBC News to respond to calls for another moratorium, the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing highlighted in an emailed statement new measures that were introduced to protect tenants such as the Canada-Ontario Housing benefit, which provides rent assistance. "We have also invested $510 million through the Social Services Relief Fund into our communities, which is being used toward rent banks and utility banks, and provides emergency loans for those most in need. We encourage those who are struggling to pay their rent to contact their local service manager to see what supports are available to them," the statement read. CBC's Journalistic Standards and Practices https://www.cbc.ca/news/ Ontario temporarily pauses residential evictions for length of emergency declaration The move marks the 2nd time the province has paused evictions during COVID-19 pandemic The Canadian Press · Posted: Jan 14, 2021 1:48 PM AST Ontario has temporarily paused residential evictions during its current state of emergency in a bid to allow people to remain in their residences for the provincial stay-at-home order. (Cole Burston/The Canadian Press) Ontario has temporarily paused residential evictions during its current state of emergency. The province's municipal affairs minister says the pause will ensure people can stay safely in their residences while a stay-at-home order remains in place. The order, which came into effect today, requires all Ontario residents to stay home as much as possible, only leaving for essential trips. This is the second time the province has paused residential evictions during the COVID-19 pandemic. Evictions during pandemic could increase spread of COVID-19: Waterloo region lawyer Community advocates fear hundreds will lose their homes in mass evictions The Landlord and Tenant Board will continue to hear eviction applications and issue orders, but the enforcement of eviction orders will be postponed, except in urgent situations — such as for illegal activity. The government says if tenants can pay their rent, they should continue to do so, or pay as much as possible. The province declared the state of emergency on Tuesday and said it will stay in place for at least 28 days. Suze Morrison, NDP MPP and tenant rights critic, is criticizing Thursday's order saying it still leaves people vulnerable to evictions during the pandemic. (Evan Mitsui/CBC) Suze Morrison, the provincial NDP tenant rights critic, criticized Thursday's order saying it still leaves people vulnerable to evictions during the pandemic. Morrison said the Ford government needs to institute a moratorium on all eviction notices, hearings and orders, as well as the suspension of eviction enforcement by the sheriff for the entire duration of the pandemic. "Thousands of people in Ontario are at risk of being thrown out of their homes, through no fault of their own, after losing income this year because of COVID-19," said Morrison. "Calling off the sheriffs at the eleventh hour from enforcing evictions that have already been ordered will not keep folks housed and safe." The order also has "overly broad exceptions that will still allow eviction enforcement to continue under the new directive," Morrison said, and people have complained that virtual eviction hearings have been rife with procedural unfairness. "Doug Ford has baked in loopholes you could drive a truck through, allowing any evictions to continue at the discretion of the Landlord and Tenant Board," she said. With files from CBC News CBC's Journalistic Standards and Practices Service Standards Important Notice July 25, 2022: Over the past two years the Landlord and Tenant Board has experienced significant challenges that have caused us to fall short of meeting our service standards. We are working to catch up but it is taking us longer than usual to process applications, schedule hearings, and issue orders. We are actively working to improve our service timelines and we thank you for your continued patience. On average, new and adjourned matters are currently being scheduled within seven to eight months from when they were received or adjourned. A Notice of Hearing will be sent to the parties before the scheduled hearing date. On average, orders are being sent approximately 30 days after a hearing related to an L1 or L9 application and approximately 60 days after a hearing for all other application types. You can check if a hearing has been scheduled or an order has been issued for your file by visiting the Check File Status page. If your file number begins with “LTB” (e.g. LTB-L-000420-21), you can check your file status by logging into the Tribunals Ontario Portal. To avoid mailing delays, email the LTB office which is handling your file, and ask that your Notice of Hearing and order be sent by email. Service Standards Service excellence is a priority for the LTB. Our service standards keep us focused on providing our clients with fair, effective, and timely dispute resolution. Applications to evict a tenant for non-payment of rent and for applications to collect rent the tenant owes: Applications will be scheduled for a hearing within 25 business days Decisions will be issued within 4 business days of the conclusion of the final hearing All other applications (excluding L5 - Application for an Above Guideline Increase and A4s - Application to Vary the Amount of a Rent Reduction): Applications will be scheduled for a hearing within 30 business days Decisions will be issued within 10 business days of the conclusion of the final hearing While the LTB is committed to these service standards, we recognize that every case is different and some decisions take longer to issue than others. https://soloontario.ca/small- Small Ownership Landlords of Ontario started in the early spring of 2020 as a result of the numerous issues small Ontario Landlords were facing with the Landlord Tenant Board of Ontario. There are many landlord groups on Facebook but the majority are focused on the rental industry. A small group of individual mom and pop landlords began noticing the difficulties landlords were facing with an inefficient and backlogged LTB and decided to start a group on Facebook to offer suggestions, ideas and support. Unlike big corporate landlords, small landlords often get into the housing rental market to supplement their income by renting out space in their own home, or through the purchase of a first home they plan to live in. Once COVID hit and the provincial government placed a moratorium on evictions, small landlords faced extreme financial hardship as tenants stopped paying rent. Even prior to the moratorium on evictions, the Residential Tenancy Act is complicated, hard to understand and follow and the LTB was already being investigated by the Ombudsmen of Ontario due to the increasingly lengthy delays in obtaining a hearing for anything from damages to property, non rent payments, illegal activities in the rental property etc. Thus SOLO was born. Our presence has grown to over 2000 members on Facebook and Twitter. We are in the process of being registered as a not for profit organization. We meet monthly by video conferencing and have been working on the following activities: Meeting with the Landlord Tenant Board Executives We are planning to meet the LTB’s executives on Thursday October 29th, 2020. We are intending to present evidence that 1) the hearing schedule is still slow and not following first in first out 2) we have extreme cases that need attention 3) educate the LTB on the impact the delays are having on landlords well being 4) any general question you – SOLO members want – us to ask by sending it to solo@soloontario.ca . Note that we are very fortunate to have this “high level access” so we will try to keep the communication frank and respectful. We will not push an individual agenda, but we will come with suggestions to speed up the process and bring fairness which I am sure the LTB itself will be interested to hear. We will not be going there only to complain but we will offer practical solutions. Meeting the MP Housing Minister A letter was sent to the PM for a virtual meeting to discuss our issues namely asking for financial relief due to the eviction ban and LTB closure. We have been directed to the minister of housing as this is under his jurisdiction for our demands. SOLO member Ruby is also pursuing to reschedule a meeting with the Housing Minister’s Parliamentary Assistant, MPP Gill after the last minute cancellation earlier this month We will continue to pursue until we get a proper hearing with the political branch to ask for compensation. Outreach with Law Enforcement We are in the process of approaching the Law Enforcement across the province to try to get some understanding on the apparent lack of consistency when police are intervening with landlords / tenants issues that fall outside the RTA. A draft letter has been prepared and we will keep you updated. If anyone has any suggestion or contact within the Law Enforcement outreach we will be more than glad to talk to them. Just send an email to solo@soloontario.ca . Writing to local MPP’s and the Ombudsmen of Ontario We encourage our members to write and call their local MPP and the Ombudsmen to advocate for change. The length of time for a hearing is closing in on 9 months and many of the small landlords will experience bankruptcy if evictions are not sped up considerably. Your SOLO Board of Directors Asif Aftab Asif Aftab is an IT professional and property owner in GTA. Asif has experienced firsthand the challenges posed by the professional tenants and the broken LTB system. The philosophy that underpins Ontario’s current system is that property owners are obligated to provide free housing to tenants if they decide not to pay the rent. Asif has joined SOLO to support other smaller property owners, advocate against the current LTB policies, and influence a positive change. Boubah Boubah believes that most tenants and landlords are decent law abiding citizens and the focus should be on encouraging small ownership landlords to stay in the rental business by making the LTB resolution system smooth and timely for the benefit of both (good) landlords and (good) tenants. Crystal Crystal is a professional accountant and small property owner in Southwestern Ontario. While blessed with great tenants, Crystal has witnessed the hardships suffered by small property owners and also learned how parts of the RTA, delays at the LTB, and new policies enacted by municipalities are contributing to the housing crises. Crystal wants to help influence positive change that supports responsible small landlords which benefits good tenants. Varun Sriskanda Varun Sriskanda is a licensed Realtor in Ontario with Re/Max Royal Properties and a lawyer licensing candidate with the Law Society of Ontario (LSO). He holds a Bachelors in criminology from the University of Windsor, a law degree from the University of Buckingham and a Masters in law from Osgoode Hall. He is passionate about all things real estate but mainly the rights of housing providers. Raymond Rashid Is a real estate investor and technology evangelist. He has expertise in Marketing, Analytics and Statistics. He hopes to use his ambitions and experience to help level the scales in matters of LTB. Rose Marie I am an advocate for landlords who want access to timely justice. Vera SOLO was born to make changes to a one sided system and I wanted to be a part of. Changes for the small property owner, not just for today but for the many tomorrows. To change a system to one that is responsible and accountable to all participants. Kevin Costain Kevin has a background in technology and has been a small business owner for more than two decades. He is also a SOLO landlord with one property in Oshawa, Ontario. Kevin has worked tirelessly for many months both in public and behind the scenes. He spearheaded a shift of internal technology making it easier to work with and support SOLO members. How to contact us There are several ways to contact us: Email: info@soloontario.ca Phone / WhatsApp: 1-647-792-4951 Twitter: @LandlordsSolo Facebook: Facebook.com/LandlordsSolo YouTube: Ontario SOLO Instagram: @SoloOntario Linkedin: SOLO Ontario Landlord Tik Tok: @SoloOntario Legal Professionals This recommended professional list is for information only. SOLO Landlords must exercise due diligence and check the professional's references before making a decision to hire them. Just like screening a tenant. SOLO Inc. will have no involvement nor will assume any liability arising in any private contract between the independent parties. To keep the list as reflective of the services received feel free to give us feedback on how the service rendered was. Phone numbers and email addresses below are clickable links. Columns can be sorted by clicking on a header. Search Name Phone Email Licence Municipality Bita Di Lisi 416-937-2766 info@stonegatelegalservices.ca Paralegal North York Bruce Parsons 289-207-9833 paladinparalegal@gmail.com Paralegal Ontario Cassandra Weatherston 705-331-0591 cassandra@ Midland, Orillia areas Charlene Lewin 416-881-7937 charlenelewin@sympatico.ca Paralagel Richmond Hill/GTA Dan Schofield 888-398-0121 dan@sfglegal.ca Paralegal Toronto Elaine Page 905-763-7922 elaine@pageparalegal.com Paralegal Markham Ian Shemesh 647-531-3655 shemeshparalegal@gmail.com Paralegal Richmond Hill Lorrie McCullough 613-743-7272 lorrie@ Pearl Karimalis 416-461-7051 inquire@paralegalonbroadview. Samantha F. Glass 1-888-398-0121 x101 sglass@sfglegal.ca Paralegal Ontario Sarah Teal 905-670-4212 sarahteal@sarahteallegal.com Paralegal Brampton Teri Landriault 705-716-7109 teri@landriautlegal.com Paralegal Ontario Vijay Shah 647-905-9246 denaliparalegal@gmail.com Paralegal Ontario Wendy J Burgess 647-498-0757 info@wjburgesslegal.com Paralegal Toronto Yvan Pilon 705-562-7596 Pilonlaw@gmail.com Paralegal Sudbury/Ontario https://linktr.ee/Sriskanda @Sriskanda Lawyer candidate, property manager, Realtor and advocate for Ontario landlords. VARUN@SRISKANDA.COM or 647-570-KVS1 Book a Meeting IN THE MEDIA: BlogTO - Forged documents and credit scores IN THE MEDIA: Storeys - The LTB is Prioritizing AGI Applications IN THE MEDIA: CBC News - Months-long delays at Ontario tribunal crushing some small landlords Hey Martin McDermott I just called Trust that Kevin J. Johnston and Dougy Boy Ford have no clue what you are talking about but the First Canadian Title people, the Fidelity minions and many lawyers and cops know I certainly do. ---------- Original message ---------- From: Premier of Ontario | Premier ministre de l’Ontario <Premier@ontario.ca> Date: Fri, 21 May 2021 21:01:17 +0000 Subject: Automatic reply: Hey Martin McDermott I just called Trust that Kevin J. Johnston and Dougy Boy Ford have no clue what you are talking about but the First Canadian Title people, the Fidelity minions and many lawyers and cops know I certainly do. To: David Amos <david.raymond.amos333@gmail. Thank you for your email. Your thoughts, comments and input are greatly valued. You can be assured that all emails and letters are carefully read, reviewed and taken into consideration. There may be occasions when, given the issues you have raised and the need to address them effectively, we will forward a copy of your correspondence to the appropriate government official. Accordingly, a response may take several business days. Thanks again for your email. ______ Merci pour votre courriel. Nous vous sommes très reconnaissants de nous avoir fait part de vos idées, commentaires et observations. Nous tenons à vous assurer que nous lisons attentivement et prenons en considération tous les courriels et lettres que nous recevons. Dans certains cas, nous transmettrons votre message au ministère responsable afin que les questions soulevées puissent être traitées de la manière la plus efficace possible. En conséquence, plusieurs jours ouvrables pourraient s’écouler avant que nous puissions vous répondre. Merci encore pour votre courriel. Higgs, Premier Blaine (PO/CPM) <Blaine.Higgs@gnb.ca> Fri, May 21, 2021 at 6:05 PM To: David Amos <david.raymond.amos333@gmail. Hello, Thank you for taking the time to write. Due to the volume of incoming messages, this is an automated response to let you know that your email has been received and will be reviewed at the earliest opportunity. If your inquiry more appropriately falls within the mandate of a Ministry or other area of government, staff will refer your email for review and consideration. Merci d'avoir pris le temps de nous écrire. En raison du volume des messages reçus, cette réponse automatique vous informe que votre courriel a été reçu et sera examiné dans les meilleurs délais. Si votre demande relève plutôt du mandat d'un ministère ou d'un autre secteur du gouvernement, le personnel vous renverra votre courriel pour examen et considération. If this is a Media Request, please contact the Premier’s office at (506) 453-2144 or by email media-medias@gnb.ca S’il s’agit d’une demande des médias, veuillez communiquer avec le Cabinet du premier ministre au 506-453-2144. General Information For general information and answers to common questions on novel coronavirus please visit: GNB/COVID-19 or Canada.ca/coronavirus information line 1-833-784-4397. Safety Issues For safety issues regarding place of employment/employer please call WorkSafe NB 1-800-999-9775. Compassionate requests Please call the Canadian Red Cross 1-800-863-6582. Non-health questions Please call 1-844-462-8387. The email address is helpaide@gnb.ca. For questions related to travel restrictions during COVID-19 Please call 1-833-948-2800. MENTAL HEALTH CHIMO Helpline 1-800-667-5005 Hope for Wellness Helpline 1-855-242-3310 Canadian Border Services Agency CBSA has instituted a COVID-19 hotline regarding border crossing concerns/questions at 1-800-461-9999. Employment Insurance Hotline Please call 1-833-381-2725. Renseignements généraux Pour obtenir des renseignements généraux et des réponses aux questions les plus fréquentes sur la COVID-19, veuillez consulter le site GNB/COVID-19 ou Canada.ca/coronavirus ou composer le 1-833-784-4397. questions de sécurité Pour les questions de sécurité concernant les lieux de travail ou les employeurs, communiquez avec Travail sécuritaire NB au 1-800-999-9775. DEMANDES POUR RAISONS DE COMPASSION Veuillez téléphoner à la Croix-Rouge canadienne au 1-800-863-6582. Questions non liées à la santé Veuillez composer le 1-844-462-8387 ou envoyer un courriel à l’adresse helpaide@gnb.ca. Questions liées aux restrictions de voyage pendant la pandémie de COVID-19 : Composez le 1-833-948-2800. SANTÉ MENTALE Ligne d'aide CHIMO : 1-800-667-5005 Ligne d’écoute d’espoir : 1-855-242-3310 Agence des services frontaliers du Canada L’Agence a mis en place une ligne d’information sur la COVID-19 pour les questions concernant la traversée de la frontière, le 1-800-461-9999. LIGNE D’INFORMATION SUR l'assurance-emploi Composez le 1-833-381-2725. Office of the Premier/Cabinet du premier ministre P.O Box/C. P. 6000 Fredericton New-Brunswick/Nouveau- Tel./Tel. : (506) 453-2144 Email/Courriel: premier@gnb.ca/premier. David Amos <david.raymond.amos333@gmail. To: mmcdermm@gmail.com, "freedomreport.ca" <freedomreport.ca@gmail.com>, premier <premier@ontario.ca>, "Bill.Blair" <Bill.Blair@parl.gc.ca>, "Brenda.Lucki" <Brenda.Lucki@rcmp-grc.gc.ca>, "hugh.flemming" <hugh.flemming@gnb.ca>, MRichard@lawsociety-barreau. <serge.rousselle@gnb.ca>, kevhache@nb.sympatico.ca, "greg.byrne" <greg.byrne@gnb.ca>, krisaustin <krisaustin@peoplesalliance.ca "David.Coon" <David.Coon@gnb.ca>, "blaine.higgs" <blaine.higgs@gnb.ca>, Patrick.Windle@snb.ca, windlejim@rocketmail.com Cc: motomaniac333 <motomaniac333@gmail.com>, "claude.poirier" <claude.poirier@snb.ca>, "john.mcnair" <john.mcnair@snb.ca>, Erin.Hardy@snb.ca, "alan.roy" <alan.roy@snb.ca>, "rob.moore" <rob.moore@parl.gc.ca>, "Ross.Wetmore" <Ross.Wetmore@gnb.ca>, "robert.gauvin" <robert.gauvin@gnb.ca>, "robert.mckee" <robert.mckee@gnb.ca>, "andrea.anderson-mason" <andrea.anderson-mason@gnb.ca> https://www.bitchute.com/ The Kevin J. Johnston Show Update on Chris Sky's Illegal Arrest with Guest Martin McDermott Kevin J. Johnston 3713 subscribers Update on the Illegal Arrest of Chris Sky and More Information on how your property is being stolen. At 1 hour 58 minutes 33 seconds is your business card 519 774 1515 correct??? https://tworowtimes.com/ What Ontario Land Registry? March 16, 2016 By Jim Windle BRANTFORD – Not very many people living in Ontario are aware that there is no such thing as the Ontario land registry, which registers and records all land transactions in the province. It’s all been sourced out to a private corporation. About 15 years ago the province hired Teranet, a private firm, to digitize, register and transact real estate deals and titles, both old and new. Martin McDermott was caught on the horns of this beast while dealing with land in Ancaster once owned by his now deceased mother. He believes the change in the Ontario land registry system and its software is or could be just as easily used to unfairly deal with certain Six Nations land claims and title issues. Jim Windle is a veteran news and sports reporter who has been published in a number of mediums and publications. contact Jim: windlejim@rocketmail.com Interesting name perhaps the Windles are cousins EH Higgy? ... [Message clipped] View entire message | |
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