THUNDER BAY – It may be the most expensive purchase most people ever make, but often they’ll do more research buying a new cell phone than they will spending hundreds of thousands of dollars on a new home.
And they’re all too willing sometimes to cut corners in search of savings, not understanding the consequences that may arise from a lack of a warranty, shoddy construction or a builder who simply disappears without completing the work – but cashing the cheque nonetheless.
It hasn’t stopped would-be homeowners in Thunder Bay from seeking out non-registered builders to construct their home.
In the past five years inspectors have opened 48 investigations covering 62 homes in the city, laying 26 charges for illegal building. Twenty-one of the cases led to convictions.
It’s not worth the risk, said Siloni Waraich, Tarion’s vice-president of stakeholder relations, whose organization is charged with regulating the Ontario New Home Warranties Plan Act and backstops warranty coverage.
It’s against the law for a builder to construct a home without first registering with the not-for-profit Tarion, completing a builder competency education program and assessment and also undergoing a financial business viability analysis.
“We want to make sure if they’re putting down that much money that they’re getting what they deserve to get, which is a home which is built to the building code, built by a builder that has a past history of great customer service and has the technical knowledge because they’ve been through our licensing process,” Waraich said.
There are several red flags to look out for, she added.
If a builder says a Tarion warranty isn’t necessary because they offer their own, think twice, Waraich said. The same goes if the builder says he or she built the home to live in themselves, but decided to sell it instead, or inform the customer they don’t need a warranty if they leave the builder’s name off the building permit.
John Simperl said it’s too much money to spend without being fully able to rely on a builder’s expertise and the protections that come with registration.
“You can’t just drive up in a half-tonne with some tools. The builder now is required to go through mandated courses that have information on the construction of the home and after-service to the consumer, so the consumer when they’re buying a product are aware it’s been built to a certain standard,” said Simperl, president of the Thunder Bay Home Builders’ Association.
“When you have a quality builder you know he’s been through a procedure to qualify him to be a licensed builder and that he has some wherewithal building capacity and the financial stability that if there are any issues he has the ability to deal with it.”
