November 16, 2009

Should I get a home inspection when I buy a condominium? I don’t like to discourage anyone from getting a Professional Home Inspection, but when it comes to a condominium purchase, the case against spending about $ 400 on a home inspection can be made. Here are a few thoughts in that regard: First, there is a good case to be made for inspecting a townhouse style condo or a unit in a small condo corporation such as one with 4 or 5 units in a large restored house. There is usually no professional management in a smaller corporation and maintenance issues are often handled on a more informal basis. In an apartment style condo building, the argument for a full inspection is less convincing.

In an apartment style condominium building with more than 11 units there is a statutory requirement to get a Reserve Fund Study every five years. This is usually done by an engineering firm which is given the job of identifying upcoming maintenance issues and providing a maintenance schedule and cost analysis for any work to be done. In your Agreement of Purchase and Sale there should be a clause stating that the Seller will provide you with the latest Reserve Fund Study. This will give you information on when various components, such as the roof and windows, need to be renewed and what that will cost. It will also tell you if the current Reserve Fund and the ongoing contributions to the fund are sufficient to pay for the contemplated improvements. Further, you will get an Estoppel Certificate signed by the president of the condominium corporation in which he or she is required to disclose any contemplated repairs or deferred maintenance issues. Anything deemed to be a “common element” is the responsibility of all the owners in the building. This includes the roof, windows, lobby area, parking areas and exterior walls and doors.

Since your inspector won’t be looking at the common elements, what will they be inspecting? Quite simply, not much. They can look under the kitchen sink, check for signs of water penetration from outside - but this would be a corporation responsibility – and make sure the appliances are in good working order. This type of inspection is hardly worth the $ 400 plus charged for a single family home where the inspector has to go up on the roof, crawl around in the attic and spend time in the basement checking the electrical panel and checking for leaks among other things. So, if you choose to order a Home Inspection of an apartment style condominium, at least ask for a discounted rate from any home inspector you engage. The professional inspectors will recognize the limited scope of their inspection and the shorter time frame required and give you a better rate for the service.

November 14, 2009

Mortgage Rates Are Still Going Down! O.K., at least when my predictions are wrong it’s usually good news. Rod MacInnis just sent me his latest rate card and here are a few highlights: 1 yr. closed, fixed rate – 2.55%, 5 yr. – 3.99%, 10 yr. – 5.35%. I like the 10-year rate; no worries about fluctuating rates for ten years!  And remember that rates could go to double didgets once the recession ends and inflation becomes the economic enemy.

Don’t forget to shop around for mortgages when buying or re-financing. Just because you are happy with your current bank doesn’t mean you shouldn’t comparison shop. I have known of people who went to their branch and got a rate quote (the posted rate is usually the case) and  then went to a mortgage officer representing the same bank and received a much lower quote. If you are going shopping, here are three of my favourite mortgage professionals: Rod MacInnis of The Mortgage Centre – 422-6707, Shawna Snair at Scotiabank – 448-2007 and BMO Bank of Montreal’s Andrew Gibson who can be reached at 421-3429. Happy shopping.

November 10, 2009

The Dartmouth Heritage Museum has just received some great news; HRM Council has just approved the Old Dartmouth City Hall as the new home of the Museum. Obviously, there are many details to be worked out including the source of the several million dollars required to upgrade and convert the building for the new Museum. Councilor Gloria McCluskey must be congratulated for championing the cause of the Museum. Currently there are thousands of artifacts and photos in a warehouse and they need a place to be displayed. In essence, what The Halifax Regional Municipality is doing is returning the building to its rightful owner, the citizens of Dartmouth. Speaking of Heritage issues, the Council recently approved a gift of Dartmouth Common land to Metro Transit for a new terminal. A way to help fund the Museum might be to determine the value of that land – being used for the benefit of the entire municipality – and put that amount towards the building conversion. I dare say that if part of Point Pleasant Park were expropriated for Metro Transit use the citizens of the Peninsula would expect to be compensated. Just a thought.

November 10, 2009

Mortgage Rate Update. In the last sentence of my November 5 post in referring to mortgage rates I said, ” But we do know they will not likely go down”.  Oops! Scotia Bank’s Shauna Snair must have read that post and decided to prove me wrong. Good thing I inserted the word “likely”. Here are Shauna’s latest best – and, yes, lower – mortgage rates: 1 yr. – 2.55%, 3 yr. – 3.70%, 4 yr. – 4.09% & 5 yr. – 4.09%. Open variable – 3.05% & closed variable 2.25%. Shauna can be reached at 448-2007 or shawna.snair@scotiabank.com for more information.