153 replies to this topic

[pherthyl]

Because there is absolutely no chance that one day a single-family home may require repairs that you can't afford to make.

 

You say it sarcastically but it's pretty much true.  The things that can go wrong with a house are pretty easy to check, and most of the unpredictable ones are covered by insurance.  Also you can decide whether and when to perform repairs.  

 

Back to strata fees, it seems they are not that high here.  Friend of mine lives in a 90s 1BR condo in Ottawa and pays over $500/month, which he says is pretty standard.

Edited by pherthyl, 01 January 2014 - 02:30 PM.

[jklymak]

^ Maintenance, heat, etc are a lot more expensive in Ottawa.  

 

Also, some condos have goofy amenities, like pools, that cost big $.  Maybe its worth it to some people to have a pool in-complex, but I'd even do w/o our building's exercise room.

[Mike K.]

^ sellers are still legally responsible for passing this info on. Glad it worked out for your friends

Oh man, they were LUCKY and dodged quite the financial bullet.

 

Isn't there a regulation that requires owners to provide an x number of years worth of minutes (something like five?) but when it comes to engineering reports they must be divulged regardless of age, no?

[MarkoJ]

Oh man, they were LUCKY and dodged quite the financial bullet.

 

Isn't there a regulation that requires owners to provide an x number of years worth of minutes (something like five?) but when it comes to engineering reports they must be divulged regardless of age, no?

 

If you are putting in an offer on a strata titled property you should ask at minimum for the following....(24 months of minutes is the average numbers I see in my dealings).

 

- A copy of the completed Property Disclosure Statement for Strata Properties.

- A copy of the Registered Strata Plan, with respect to the property, and any amendments and resolutions dealing with changes to the 

common property / limited common property and / or the strata lot.

- A copy of the Bylaws and financial statements of the Strata Corporation.

- A copy of the minutes of the last two Annual General Meetings, any Special General Meetings, and all meetings of the Strata Council, of 

the last __________months. 

- Copies of any correspondence directed to the strata owners by the Strata Council during the 12 months preceeding the date hereof.

- A copy of a Section 59 Strata Property Act, Form B Information Certificate, and a copy of any Rules.

- Information regarding any building warranty that may be applicable.

- A copy of any available Building Envelope Inspection Reports or any Remediation Reports and Engineering Reports, and all relevant 

related documents.

[MarkoJ]

You say it sarcastically but it's pretty much true.  The things that can go wrong with a house are pretty easy to check, and most of the unpredictable ones are covered by insurance.  Also you can decide whether and when to perform repairs.  

 

Back to strata fees, it seems they are not that high here.  Friend of mine lives in a 90s 1BR condo in Ottawa and pays over $500/month, which he says is pretty standard.

 

I don't know about "pretty much true."  I've seen a lot of homes in the last year suffer drain tile failures costing anywhere from $8,000 to $15,000.  That is just one system.  

 

Also, not sure if you can decide when whether and when to perform repairs when your sewer main collapses and crap is backing out of your toilet.  Also, something like your sewer main collapsing is not easy to check during your due diligence period when purchasing a home. 

[Holden West]

 

 

Isn't there a regulation that requires owners to provide an x number of years worth of minutes (something like five?) but when it comes to engineering reports they must be divulged regardless of age, no?

 

Correct me if I'm wrong but I don't think the seller is obligated to provide minutes or documents of any sort. The minutes are provided by the management company or whoever maintains those records and the Realtor obtains them on behalf of the prospective buyer. Any documents the seller has aren't considered official.

 

I mean, seriously, would you trust documents provided by the seller? Oops, I totally, accidentally forgot to include that page that mentioned the leaky stucco repairs.

Edited by Holden West, 01 January 2014 - 10:58 PM.

[MarkoJ]

Correct me if I'm wrong but I don't think the seller is obligated to provide minutes or documents of any sort. The minutes are provided by the management company or whoever maintains those records and the Realtor obtains them on behalf of the prospective buyer. Any documents the seller has aren't considered official.

 

I mean, seriously, would you trust documents provided by the seller? Oops, I totally, accidentally forgot to include that page that mentioned the leaky stucco repairs.

 

Either management company or the strata corporation in the case of self management, at the seller's expense. 

[Redd42]

I don't know about "pretty much true."  I've seen a lot of homes in the last year suffer drain tile failures costing anywhere from $8,000 to $15,000.  That is just one system.  

 

 

As the potential future purchaser of an older home, how does one know when the perimeter drains need to be fixed? Do some much older homes even have perimeter drains?

[MarkoJ]

As the potential future purchaser of an older home, how does one know when the perimeter drains need to be fixed? Do some much older homes even have perimeter drains?

 

Several options for inspection (approx. $200).

 

i. Roto-Rooter Plumbing & Drain Services http://www.rotorooter.com/

ii.  RainTek Drainage & Irrigation http://www.raintek.c...ction-cleaning/

 

Drain tiles are probably the most difficult component of my job when it comes to deficiencies post inspection (I do a lot of old house deals).  It is extremely subjective.  For example, the buyer takes the stance of, "the drain tiles are original 1950s concrete and falling apart and it will cost $10,000 to repair/replace."  The seller comes back with, "well, I've been here for 25 years and haven't had any moisture issues in the basement during that time, why would I concede $10,000 for something that hasn't been a problem?"  

 

I've been on both sides many many times.  Even the experts differ.  I had buyers in November do two different inspections and three quotes on drain tiles an it ranged from $3,000 repair to $15,000 replacement.

 

I've sold two 1910s homes without any drain tiles, dry as a rock inside.  It all depends on the position of the home and drainage in the area.  If you are at the top of a hill with rock all around drainage might not be an issue.  If you are at the bottom of the hill on clay you might have greater potential for problems.

 

In conclusion, get the tiles inspected, collect as much information as possible and try to make a call from there.

[14 West]

Those reports can only tell you so much though, so take them with a grain of salt. I once paid Roto rooter to send a camera down my drain tiles and then into a "pipe" to tell me if it was connected to the sewer prior to buying a home. They said it was, so a year or two of renos later I finally connected said pipe to a toilet in a detached suite I had built to live in while I rented the house, several weeks after that the carpet started to get wet in the closest room in the main house. After some more investigation it turned out I was flushing my sh_t directly into the footing of the house for the last couple weeks. The pipe terminated in the footing, so the effluent was going straight into the insulation of the pony wall and down the footing seeping out into the underlay and carpet - no idea how roto-rooter thought pink insulation and the back of drywall meant it was connected to a sewer pipe but ah well it was more than a year later so no recourse I could think of! My tenant wasn't too stoked when I told him what had happened, and it led to one nasty weekend emergency reno, but hey, at least it was my own sh_t I had to clean up!

[sebberry]

That's why I like to hire people who let me look over their shoulder from time to time while they're working.  It's worked out well a few times.

[lanforod]

Several options for inspection (approx. $200).

 

i. Roto-Rooter Plumbing & Drain Services http://www.rotorooter.com/

ii.  RainTek Drainage & Irrigation http://www.raintek.c...ction-cleaning/

 

Drain tiles are probably the most difficult component of my job when it comes to deficiencies post inspection (I do a lot of old house deals).  It is extremely subjective.  For example, the buyer takes the stance of, "the drain tiles are original 1950s concrete and falling apart and it will cost $10,000 to repair/replace."  The seller comes back with, "well, I've been here for 25 years and haven't had any moisture issues in the basement during that time, why would I concede $10,000 for something that hasn't been a problem?"  

 

I've been on both sides many many times.  Even the experts differ.  I had buyers in November do two different inspections and three quotes on drain tiles an it ranged from $3,000 repair to $15,000 replacement.

 

I've sold two 1910s homes without any drain tiles, dry as a rock inside.  It all depends on the position of the home and drainage in the area.  If you are at the top of a hill with rock all around drainage might not be an issue.  If you are at the bottom of the hill on clay you might have greater potential for problems.

 

In conclusion, get the tiles inspected, collect as much information as possible and try to make a call from there.

 

Thanks for that. I need to get mine checked out. Several homes in my neighbourhood got their drains redone last year, they all had the old concrete tile drains that were 'gone', and one neighbour keeps warning me about it. The wife is freaking out about it. I'm not overly concerned, as there is no sign of moisture in the basement.

 

There seems to be a LOT of perimeter drain companies in Victoria. Is there a specific time of year that is best for inspecting perimeter drains?

[lanforod]

Back on topic, I tend to think of Strata fees as you get what you pay for. Makes a big difference if your heat and water are included or not, and what ammenities are included.

For what it's worth, the apartment I own in New West is at about 35 cents/sq ft. Wood frame, relatively new, no major amenities like a gym or pool, but building up the contingency and a lot of landscaping. Includes water but not heat/electric.

From what I'm seeing here, it's inline with many buildings here.

[phx]

 Is there a specific time of year that is best for inspecting perimeter drains?

 

Yes, summer is best.  Do not do anything to your drains during wet weather unless you have to.

 

[sebberry]

This is not a great option. A roof wears out or paint fades over a long period of time and then it's fixed all at once. It's not fair to dump the entire cost onto merely the residents unlucky to live there right at the time the bill needs to be paid.

 

So if a single-family house needs a new roof or paint, is it still not fair for the owner at that time to bear the entire cost?  The previous owner doesn't leave $10,000 in an envelope for you to cover the 10 years of roof wear while he was there. 

[D.L.]

Any necessary maintenance that isn't covered by a contingency fund should simply lower the market value of a unit in the building. That's fair

[pherthyl]

So if a single-family house needs a new roof or paint, is it still not fair for the owner at that time to bear the entire cost?  The previous owner doesn't leave $10,000 in an envelope for you to cover the 10 years of roof wear while he was there.

Depends. Sometimes that's exactly what happens. You make an offer, inspection turns up needed short term maintenance, and you negotiate the cost as a discount from the purchase price.
Same with condos. Older building with inadequate contingency fund? Lower price unless you find a sucker that didn't think to check this kind of stuff.

Edited by pherthyl, 08 January 2014 - 03:32 PM.

[Bernard]

The problem happens when a strata does not keep good records, which is much more common that should be allowed

[MarkoJ]

Depends. Sometimes that's exactly what happens. You make an offer, inspection turns up needed short term maintenance, and you negotiate the cost as a discount from the purchase price.
Same with condos. Older building with inadequate contingency fund? Lower price unless you find a sucker that didn't think to check this kind of stuff.

 

A lot more difficult to execute on condos.  On a home predicting how much it will cost to replace a deck or roof, for example, is a relatively simple job.  Predicting costs on a strata building is difficult especially if the strata has not fielded any quotes.

 

What you can do on a condo thought is ask for a certain amount of money to be kept in trust to cover upcoming repairs.

[Mike K.]

What you can do on a condo thought is ask for a certain amount of money to be kept in trust to cover upcoming repairs.

Can you elaborate on this?