masoncgy
09-24-2010, 07:00 PM
A bit of a situation has popped out of the woodwork now that I am in the midst of finalizing the sale of my old home and the purchase of my new place in BC.
It would seem that an encroachment issue that should have been dealt with by the previous owners was never addressed and of course now I am on the hook for an encroachment agreement fee with the City.
According to my lawyer, the real estate purchase agreement has a clause that states that the seller has to ensure that the property meets all zoning/plot guidelines, etc. Encroachment issues are part of that clause.
I am paying the fee to address the matter now as I don't have the time to deal with it given we're moving to BC on Monday.
Is there any responsibility lying on the original closing lawyer for not having the matter addressed at that time or am I out of luck? My lawyer indicates the previous owner should have dealt with this as they had the RPR done just prior to me signing the closing documents and my original closing lawyer should have noticed the issue.
In the end, I'd like to be reimbursed for the agreement fee with the City.
It would seem that an encroachment issue that should have been dealt with by the previous owners was never addressed and of course now I am on the hook for an encroachment agreement fee with the City.
According to my lawyer, the real estate purchase agreement has a clause that states that the seller has to ensure that the property meets all zoning/plot guidelines, etc. Encroachment issues are part of that clause.
I am paying the fee to address the matter now as I don't have the time to deal with it given we're moving to BC on Monday.
Is there any responsibility lying on the original closing lawyer for not having the matter addressed at that time or am I out of luck? My lawyer indicates the previous owner should have dealt with this as they had the RPR done just prior to me signing the closing documents and my original closing lawyer should have noticed the issue.
In the end, I'd like to be reimbursed for the agreement fee with the City.