Theresa Boyle recently reported on the investigative activities of Tarion Warranty Corporation’s Enforcement Department.

The article begins with an account from Dave Roberts, Tarion’s Director of Enforcement, which underscores the seriousness of illegal building in Ontario. Mr. Roberts describes how a builder tore down the home of an elderly couple in northern Ontario, then failed to build them a new one. “[The building of the new house] never went ahead, so they ended up stuck in the winter in an insulated garage,” Mr. Roberts recounts.
 
As the article explains, part of Tarion’s role includes being the industry “watchdog” for new home buyers, and this includes ensuring that builders register with Tarion as well as enrol each new home prior to construction. For failing to follow these rules, Mr. Roberts and his enforcement team recently brought about the conviction of Toronto builder Mohammad Khaleghi-Ghadiri, who was fined $37,500 and barred from building homes in Ontario for a year. Boyle reports that in 2004, Tarion identified 5,792 unenrolled homes in Ontario which resulted in the recovery of $2.8 million in enrolment and registration fees and the collection of $520,000 in fines.

Working with municipalities, building officials and home builder associations, Tarion’s enforcement team investigates illegal builders; the court may then impose fines up to $100,000 and in some situations, builders may be given jail time. In fact, two repeat offenders served jail time last year. In the previous 27 years only one illegal builder had received a jail sentence, and this reflects the more aggressive enforcement approach that has been adopted by Roberts’ team. The article reports that Tarion is also stepping up the communication of these convictions to the industry and to the public.

The article concludes by stating that if readers suspect illegal building is taking place in their community, they can make an anonymous phone call to Tarion at 1-800-786-6497 or send an e-mail to enforcement@tarion.com.