Can Renos Void Your New Home Warranty?
Published on 29 August 2022, 07:22:56 AM
Buying or building a shiny new home can be a dream come true. Don’t mess it up by making changes that could cancel your new home warranty protections.
A Tarion warranty comes with every new home in Ontario. Your new home warranty covers most defects or deficiencies for one, two, or seven years. What happens if you undertake repairs or renos yourself is something else.
Only a complete teardown can void your new home warranty altogether. Still, Tarion may not look kindly on substantial changes that affect the building envelope, or construction worthiness of your new domicile.
Axess Law suggests reading your warranty first, before you pick up that hammer.
Google “myhome tarion” to log in to your new home warranty.
When to Use Your Ontario New Home Warranty
Now every new home buyer knows owning a home is expensive, way more so than renting or couch surfing with family forever. That’s just the high price of homeownership.
Hidden costs of buying a new home.
And you also know waiting for your new home or condo to be built can seem to take forever. By the time you have the keys, home fashions may have come and gone.
How many times can a builder delay closing in Ontario?
Once the dust settles though, a change of mind about the way the place looks could place your “myhome Tarion” warranty in jeopardy. Manufacturers’ warranties for fixtures you take for granted — like so-so kitchen and bathroom faucets, that noisy HVAC (heating, ventilation, air conditioning) system, or windows you’d like to replace — can be voided by home renovations.
Cutting a hole in a wall, or removing entire walls to open up the floorplan, can pierce the building envelope. Wooden support beams, insulation and plastic vapour barrier covering it, or electrical and plumbing lines can be damaged or altered. You guessed it: your Tarion new home warranty may no longer be effective for parts of your home your renovations touched.
Even repainting could be an issue next time you call Tarion about a warranty issue. You may just wind up covering repaired surfaces yourself. That can get time consuming!
How to Make the Changes You Want
Buying a new home from a builder in Ontario is a major investment. So let’s review how to protect your new home warranty and get the changes you want. Tarion.com recommends:
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Waiting for warrantied items to expire.
Removing a support wall to open up the living room could cause a second storey floor to sag, making the home “unfit for habitation”. Being liveable is a condition of your one-year new home warranty. To prove a sagging storey was the contractor’s fault, not your own, avoid undertaking major renovations while a warranty period is still in effect.
Secrets of new home construction.
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Hiring an expert for renovation projects.
Adding a wine cellar to the basement can cause all kinds of problems, from mould and mildew to covering up foundation cracks you might otherwise have spotted. Hire an experienced home renovator for ambitious projects that could affect your home’s underlying structure. They understand Tarion new home warranty coverage, and what a renovation could mean for yours.
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“Look before you leap.”
Putting in a swimming pool as an afterthought can be appealing on those long, hot summer days. Woe be to you if changes to your lot’s grading cause water to penetrate your home. How your lot slopes after the pool is in the ground is no longer your new home builder’s problem. Altering the slope or grading is not covered by a Tarion new home warranty.
Buying a resale home before the Tarion warranty expires. Why you need a professional home inspection?
Why You Need a Real Estate Lawyer
Buying a new home in Ontario doesn’t have to be fraught with worries when you use an Axess Law real estate lawyer to review your home build home agreement of purchase and sale. We check for clauses that compromise your ability to complete the sale. Acceptable builder delays, or conditions that attempt to alleviate your builder of responsibility for potential deficiencies, are crucial to understanding:
- when to reasonably expect your home to be done
- your rights if delays occur
- and what conditions are unacceptable under your new home warranty.
Ontario’s Consumer Protection Act and Contractor’s Lien Act may apply to your new home construction contract. Our licensed real estate lawyers ensure your contract is in writing, and that you have a signed, witnessed contract before going any further.
How to discharge a mortgage when you change homes in Ontario.
If you’re buying up from another home, Axess Law can discharge your current mortgage, and prepare the legal documents your mortgage lender needs for your new home financing. Your Axess Law real estate lawyer connects with your lender to ensure mortgage documents are ready on time.
Getting a private home inspection can give you extra assurance your new home is free from patent (visible) defects. Mind you, it may not find everything that’s wrong with your home — that’s what Tarion new home warranty is for. Read up on why wording of home inspection clauses is so important.
Affordable Legal Services for New Home Buyers
Axess Law is Ontario’s affordable real estate lawyer service. Flat fee legal services keep home buying expenses in line when your budget is modest, or the hidden costs of buying a new home are more than you expected.
Buying a home in Ontario is $999.99 and up plus HST when you use Axess Law’s virtual real estate lawyers or in-person legal services (when and where available). Sell your current home for $799.99 and up plus HST, or add a family member to title to a property for $649.99 and up plus HST.
Make Appointments Yourself or Call Us to Book Today
If time is at a premium, go online to book appointments yourself. Our online booking form is easy to use. It takes just minutes of your time to find dates and times convenient for you.
Talk to a live operator for personal assistance by dialing our 647-479-0118 lawyer line. Toll free calls are accepted at 877-402-4207. Axess Law’s virtual real estate lawyers are available throughout Ontario for remote video conference closings. You can e-sign online, or we courier legal documents to the location of your choice.
Pop by our law offices next time you’re in Ottawa or the Greater Toronto Area. We’ll arrange an appointment time that fits your schedule, day or evening, 7 days a week. Axess Law has onsite parking, and easy transit access.
