There are essentially three justifications for not proceeding with a real estate transaction. Here’s a famous quotation about caveat emptor in Fraser-Reid (1980 SCC).
“…..Notwithstanding new methods of house merchandising and, in general, increased concern for consumer protection, caveat emptor remains a force to be reckoned with by the credulous or indolent purchaser of housing property.
Lacking express warranties, he may be in difficulty because there is no implied warranty of fitness for human habitation upon the purchase of a house already completed at the time of sale.
The rationale stems from the laissez-faire attitudes of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries and the notion that a purchaser must fend for himself, seeking protection by express warranty or by independent examination of the premises.
If he fails to do either, he is without remedy either at law or in equity, in the absence of fraud or fundamental difference between that which was bargained for and that obtained.”
Basically, this leaves us with:
- Fraud,
- Misrepresentation, and
- Fundamental difference.
It’s #3 which is often missed. But, just what is it?
However, whatever it is, is a justifiable reason not to complete your purchase!
Brian Madigan LL.B., Broker