Homeowners

As of January 5, 2022, Ontario will be moving into a modified version of Step 2 of the Roadmap to Reopening for at least 21 days. The public health restrictions include guidance for businesses to have their employees work from home as much as possible. In keeping with this guidance, Tarion has extended builder repair periods by 21 days to allow builders to comply with these new restrictions.

Once the restrictions are lifted, if builders require additional time to complete work , they must request it under the extraordinary circumstances provisions detailed in Registrar Bulletins 01 and 02.

The repair period extensions do not apply to emergency situations which must be addressed as soon as possible. If homeowners or builders have any questions about their specific circumstance, they should contact Tarion’s customer service team at 1-877-982-7466 or email covid19@tarion.com.

If the current public health restrictions are lifted on January 26th (after the 21-day period has lapsed), builder repair periods will resume. At this time, Tarion will advise impacted homeowners and builders of the revised builder repair periods.

Once builder repair periods resume, if there are circumstances that prevent a builder from completing repairs, they should contact Tarion to request an extension.

If homeowners or builders have any questions about their specific circumstance, they should contact Tarion’s customer service team at 1-877-982-7466 or email covid19@tarion.com.

Homeowners can contact their builder and Tarion regarding any concerns with health and safety issues or other emergency concerns.

For homeowners: Homeowners are advised to follow the emergency procedures outlined on Tarion.com here.

For condominium corporations: Condominium corporations are advised to follow the emergency processes outlined in the Condominium Corporation Information Package and Registrar Bulletin 02.

For vendors/builders: Builders are advised to follow the emergency processes outlined in Registrar Bulletin 01 (formerly Builder Bulletin 42) and Registrar Bulletin 02 (formerly Builder Bulletin 49).

If homeowners or builders have any questions about their specific circumstance, they should contact Tarion’s customer service team at 1-877-982-7466 or email covid19@tarion.com.

If you are not comfortable allowing outside workers in, or builders’ representatives or trades have safety concerns about entering your home, you can enter into a written agreement with your builder to identify how and when the repairs can be completed. Those agreements should be provided to Tarion so that the timelines can be formally adjusted. 

If you and your builder are unable to come to a written agreement, then your builder is encouraged to contact Tarion and request an extension. The request should be submitted to covidextension@tarion.com at least 10 days before the expiry of the applicable repair period. The following information should be provided with the request for extension:

• The enrolment number(s) for the home(s) affected;
• The warranty form(s) affected;
• A complete explanation of the builder’s circumstances (i.e. why additional time is required to complete the repairs);
• The length of additional time being requested.

Tarion will review the information provided and will contact the builder if additional information is required. Tarion will then confirm with you and the builder whether additional time will be granted and, if so, the length of the additional time. For more information on the process for requesting extensions, refer to our Guidance on Repairs during COVID19 advisory.

Once builder repair periods resume, Tarion will advise impacted homeowners of the date that they can request a conciliation. Once the builder repair period has expired, you have 30 days in which you can contact Tarion to request a conciliation.  You can also schedule a conciliation through your MyHome account. Please note that homeowners have a 10-day grace period on the 30-Day and Year-End request for conciliation periods. If homeowners or builders have questions about a specific home, they should contact Tarion’s customer service team at 1-877-982-7466 or email covid19@tarion.com.

Tarion will proceed with scheduled conciliations, claim inspections and common element meetings but will conduct them virtually wherever possible. If it is necessary to conduct them in-person, all health and safety protocols will be followed. More information on these protocols is available in our Advisory

Tarion will proceed with scheduled conciliations, claim inspections and common element meetings but will conduct them virtually wherever possible. If it is necessary to conduct them in-person, all health and safety protocols will be followed. More information on these protocols is available in our Advisory

If a new home is in the midst of construction at this time, it is very possible that the pandemic will cause delays in the delivery of the home. Under the unavoidable delay provisions of the Addendum (which forms part of the purchase agreement), the builder may be entitled to unilaterally extend critical dates. However, the builder must follow the rules set out in the Addendum to do so. To learn more about COVID-19 and delayed closings, click here.

If your builder makes this type of request, you should seek legal guidance with respect to your contract. If you have a complaint or concern about the conduct of your builder during the home building or buying process,  you may wish to contact the Home Construction Regulatory Authority, the new regulator of new home builders in Ontario, which has responsibility for these matters.

Given the current public health situation, we do not consider it absolutely necessary that the PDI occur prior to a closing in the presence of both the builder and the homeowner. 

However, it is Tarion's position that:

• in-person PDIs can happen if participants adhere to provincial health and safety and physical distancing guidelines,
• both parties agree to the conditions under which the PDI would be carried out,
• if one or both parties do not consent to an in-person PDI, we recommend that builders and homeowners each conduct their own separate reviews of the home.

In order to assist homeowners and builders who wish to conduct an in-person PDI, Tarion has put together guidelines available here. Please note that this guidance provides basic information only and is not intended to take the place of public health advice, nor does it constitute legal advice. We recommend that builders and homeowners consult with their legal advisors for any questions regarding risk or liability, and that they monitor current health advice issued by the Government of Ontario.

In the event that one or both parties do not consent to an in-person PDI, we recommend that builders and homeowners each conduct their own separate reviews of the home. It is our expectation that builders give homeowners an opportunity to conduct their own “delivery” inspection as soon as reasonably possible after taking possession. The homeowner should document as best they can (including photos and or video) any missing/incomplete items or damages which they discover and believe were caused prior to when they took possession. 

The records of the homeowner and builder can serve as evidence of the state of the home close to occupancy and may be helpful in the event a dispute arises later as to whether an item of damage was caused by the homeowner or builder.

The PDI form is not a Tarion claim form, so if an item is not noted on the PDI form this does not necessarily impact your warranty coverage. If you note an item on your 30-day form which is not on the PDI form, the item you note will still form part of your warranty claim. The fact that it was not listed on the PDI form will be relevant if is an item of damage such as a chip in a countertop that may have occurred after possession. In this case, it will be helpful for you to show that you noted the damage as close to taking possession or occupancy of the home as possible as noted above, in the event that the claim is not remedied by your builder and the matter comes to Tarion for resolution.

We urge all parties to approach the occupancy of the home and handling of the PDI in a reasonable way in light of the current health situation in the Government of Ontario.

It depends.  The COVID-19 pandemic qualifies as an unavoidable delay event under the provisions of the Addendum. The builder may be entitled to extend timelines for delays caused by any applicable impacts upon the delivery of the home due to the pandemic. Builders must follow the rules in relation to such extensions. See Information Sheet for New Home Builders: COVID-19 Pandemic – Possible Effects on Construction Schedules for New Homes.

If your home was delayed prior to the outbreak, your builder should still have followed the provisions of the Addendum with regard to providing proper notice. For questions about your specific home, please contact Customer Service at covid19@tarion.com.

Due to business closures and associated layoffs, we know that some purchasers may face difficulties in obtaining mortgage financing or in coming up with the funds necessary to meet deposit schedules or other payments that may be due according to the purchase agreement. Tarion doesn’t have the authority to compel builders to provide deferrals of payments. Tarion is asking builders to consider the impacts of the outbreak on their purchasers to see if there’s a fair and reasonable agreement that can be reached to address any financial difficulties that a purchaser might be facing in completing their closing (e.g. extended payment terms, delayed closing). We would also suggest that you ask your lawyer to review your purchase agreement.

We understand that some new home buyers may be eager to close as they may have already sold their previous home and want to move in as soon as possible. In some jurisdictions there may be delays in completing onsite municipal inspections due to health concerns, which could affect the timing of an occupancy permit. As an occupancy permit is legally required before a purchaser can take possession, this may delay the closing. We encourage purchasers to talk to their builders to find out the type of delay they are facing and what impact it may have on the closing.

Closings are governed by the Agreement of Purchase and Sale and are a contractual matter between you and your builder. We would encourage you to discuss your concerns with your builder as they may be willing to delay the closing or find other ways to reassure you that the completed home is safe.