Since their peak in 2022, home prices in the GTA have declined by more than 24% coupled with the lowest volume of home sales in years. The decline has led to builders being unable to obtain project financing causing years-long construction delays, and home buyers receiving a home value appraisal before closing that leaves them with a mortgage shortfall. For purchases of pre-construction homes, home buyers and sellers are now facing a real risk that their purchase and sale of a home will not close, raising the threat of a legal dispute. Navigating a party’s potential early exit from a purchase and sale agreement of a pre-construction condo or house can be a challenging and stressful financial event. Common scenarios that lead to a party considering an early exit include: appraisal or re-appraisal of the property value delayed construction by the builder buyer shortfall in mortgage financing changes to the … Read More
Court of Appeal Reiterates Limited Scope of Judicial Intervention to Set Aside Arbitral Awards
In the recent Court of Appeal decision of Mensula Bancorp Inc. v. Halton Condominium Corporation No. 137, the Court of Appeal overturned a lower court decision setting aside an arbitrator’s award, on the basis that the approach taken by the learned application judge was contrary to that mandated by Alectra Utilities Corporation v. Solar Power Network Inc., 2019 ONCA 254, 145 O.R. (3d) 481, leave to appeal refused, [2019] S.C.C.A. No. 202 (Alectra). Background The Halton Condominium Corporation 137 (HCC 137) located in Oakville has 82 residential units and 166 parking units located within it’s parking garage, along with common elements such as a lobby and elevators. The parking units comprise of parking for the residential unit owners (the Residential Parking) along with 43 commercial parking units (the Commercial Parking) owned by the defendant Mensula Bancorp Inc. (Mensula), Mensula does not own any residential units and its business is located … Read More