Edmonton Real Estate Blog

http://money.ca.msn.com/investing/news/breaking-news/canada-housing-agency-trims-insurance-offerings

EDMONTON- A new mandatory warranty program designed to protect people buying new homes across the province comes into affect this weekend.

The government calls the New Home Buyer Protection Act the strongest consumer home warranty protection plan in Canada.

“This legislation will help protect the single largest purchase that most people make…a home,” said Minister of Municipal Affairs Ken Hughes.

Ninety per cent of homes built in Alberta already have new home warranty, but the new legislation will require all builders to provide more comprehensive home warranty coverage for all new homes and condominiums built in the province.

At minimum, all new homes will have the following warranty protection:

• one year labour and materials – this covers the way the home was built or the materials it was built with, such as flooring and trim;
• two years distribution systems – this covers the labour and materials related to heating, plumbing and electrical systems;
• five years building envelope protection – this covers the exterior shell of the home, including the roof and walls, and includes a requirement for the warranty provider to offer the consumer the option to purchase two additional years of building envelope coverage; and,
• ten years coverage for key structural components, including its frame and foundation.

“Reputation is very important,” said Tally Hutchinson, vice president of the Canadian Home Builders’ Association, Edmonton Region. “And we will continue to build homes with best practice and we think that this initiative is very, very important for the consumer and for the industry.”

However, not everyone is convinced. Homeowner Meaghen Allen took possession of her home over four months ago and says she’s still fighting with her builder over several issues.

“The side of our house stairwells, we didn’t have an exit there. The garage, the electrical to the garage, lighting fixtures. Just the quality of work, the stairs, the paint,” she said. “And just too, they were building properties next door to us.”

Allen says going through warranty hasn’t worked, either.

“My experience with New Home Warranty is that they don’t do anything,” she explained. “I have dealt with New Home Warranty (on) three different houses, and three different houses, nothing out of it.”

However, the province maintains it will hold builders and warranty companies accountable. In order to crack down on negligent builders, fines of up to $500,000 can be handed out. The Superintendent of Insurance will also investigate consumer complaints against warranty providers.

“Our new home buyer protection office has compliance officers who will monitor compliance,” said Ivan Moore, assistant deputy minister, Public Safety Division, Municipal Affairs.

The Act will only apply to homes with a building permit applied for after Saturday, Feb. 1.

The New Home Buyer Protection Act was passed in November 2012, and was originally supposed to come into effect last fall. However, that date was pushed back to Feb. 1, 2014 to give warranty providers more time to prepare, the government said.

For more information on the Act, including access to warranty information, visit the Government of Alberta’s website.

Source: GlobalNews.ca

‘Mom’ has a big meaning for every family. A ‘mom’ can be many things: a spouse, common-law partner, sister, aunt or mother; your family’s primary or secondary wage earner; a stay-at-home parent who cares for young children and manages or co-manages your household; a small business owner; or even an empty-nester who may be financially alone.
If something happened to ‘mom’ – an accident or illness, a disability or even death — what would you do? Insurance may be the solution.
Life insurance could provide tax-free funds at a critical time to pay your mortgage or other household debts or as a source of investment income to replace mom’s income.
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Term life insurance can be a good ‘starter’ option for younger couples but gets more expensive over time and does not allow you to renew after age 75 or 80.
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Permanent life insurance stays ‘in force’ for a lifetime and the premiums are set at the time of purchase and depending on the policy acquired may never change.
If ‘mom’ is a business-owner, life insurance could be used to repay business debt or a co-owner could obtain ‘key person’ insurance on ‘mom’ and use it to buy out mom’s interest in the business.
Mortgage insurance will cover your mortgage debt. You can get mortgage insurance from your lender but the more flexible option is renewable term insurance that allows your named beneficiaries – probably ‘dad’ if mom is insured – to use the proceeds to pay off some or all of the mortgage or other pressing expenses.
Disability insurance can provide a source of income should ‘mom’ become unable to earn a living or manage your household for an extended period.
Critical illness insurance provides a lump-sum of money that can be used to pay for the replacement of ‘valuable’ services and/or the costs of medical care.
Long term care insurance pays the costs of medical and home care including respite care that allows a caregiver to take a break. It protects your family’s existing financial assets and helps ensure a surviving spouse or children will receive an undepleted estate.
Today’s “moms” can usually be found at the wheel of a minivan full of hockey skates and ballet slippers, birthday parties at local amusement centers and running a business or career all at the same time. Whether that describes one person or a combination of family members, high activity – high ‘life value’ contributors can and should be protected by insurance. Your professional advisor can help you make the right insurance choices for your family.

Feel free to contact me or visit my website for more information.

The type of life insurance you need is dependent upon your unique needs, stage of life and can change over time. There are two types of life insurance in the marketplace: term and permanent. Yet, they are very different. Your Investors Group Consultant can sit down with you and conduct an insurance need analysis to help you select the right combination of insurance coverage that best fits your plan.

Feel free to contact me or visit my website for more information.