Use a legal Separation Agreement to Re-finance Your Matrimonial Home in Nova Scotia for More

Use a legal Separation Agreement to Re-finance Your Matrimonial Home in Nova Scotia for More

For most families, the matrimonial home is the most significant asset they own. Deciding how to deal with it after the breakdown of the relationship is an important decision with long term consequences. Did you know, when refinancing as part of a separation, the spouse keeping the home may qualify to refinance at a higher percentage of the value of the home than the standard maximum. The standard maximum is 80%, but the maximum for a spousal buyout can be as high as 95%.

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How to Register a Builder’s Lien in Nova Scotia

How to Register a Builder’s Lien in Nova Scotia

Placing a Builder’s Lien in Nova Scotia is an option available to contractors like roofers, plumbers, electricians, landscapers and carpenters who have done work to improve a property and are concerned that they are not going to get paid. A Builders’ Lien is not available in all circumstances, but the definition is pretty broad. You do not even have to have completed the work you contracted to do to place a Lien.

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What is a Nova Scotia Power of Attorney?

What is a Nova Scotia Power of Attorney?

A Power of Attorney is a document in which you appoint an “Attorney” who can exercise certain authority on your behalf. For example, you might sign a Power of Attorney authorizing someone to sign an agreement on your behalf because you are out of the country when it needs to be signed. It is important to note that “Attorney” in this context does not mean “Lawyer”. Your Attorney under your Power of Attorney can be anyone that you know and trust.

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Why Should My Nova Scotia Contracts Be in Writing?

Why Should My Nova Scotia Contracts Be in Writing?

Verbal contracts are technically enforceable. You can go to court and obtain a judgement against someone who doesn’t respect a verbal agreement. So why bother getting it in writing? Here are a couple of basic reasons why everyone should use a written agreement instead of relying on a verbal agreement:

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Why Do I Need a Will in Nova Scotia?

Why Do I Need a Will in Nova Scotia?

Why do I need a Will?

It is important to explain the general purpose of Wills before outlining the reasons why you should consider getting one. A Will is your opportunity to decide what you would like to happen with your assets at your death. Generally, your Will can provide for an immediate distribution of your assets to your chosen beneficiaries (friends, family, and charities) or the distribution can be delayed using “Trusts” (a topic for another day).

There are four primary reasons why you should have a Will:

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Are You Really Approved? The Difference Between a Nova Scotia Mortgage Pre-Approval and Approval.

Are You Really Approved? The Difference Between a Nova Scotia Mortgage Pre-Approval and Approval.

Getting pre-approved for a mortgage is a great first step in your home shopping process. It will give you an idea of how much you qualify to borrow, which in turn gives you a budget to work with when you are looking. This is a number to work with before you decide on a certain property. It is important to note that there is a difference between pre-approval and final approval for your mortgage.

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Date of Separation – What does it mean for Nova Scotia couples?

Date of Separation – What does it mean for Nova Scotia couples?

In most cases, people can agree on the date of separation. When my clients ask me how to decide when they were separated I ask them when they stopped acting like a married couple. There is no one thing that marks a separation definitively (although one person moving out is usually a pretty good indication).

 

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Who Has to Pay Child Support in Nova Scotia?

Who Has to Pay Child Support in Nova Scotia?

Because each family and every situation is different, family law can be a unpredictable area of law. There are lots of grey areas and not very many things are carved stone. Child support proves to be the exception to this uncertainty because it tends to be clear cut by comparison.

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Copyright Tips for Small Business in Nova Scotia

Copyright Tips for Small Business in Nova Scotia

One of the items on my ever growing “To-Do” list was to write a blog post outlining the copyrighting issues that the average small business owner should be aware of.  And like a gift, sent directly to my inbox, came this exceptionally well written guest blog post by my colleague Corinne Boudreau of Legal Essentials Inc. via my subscription to Linda Daley’s blog ‘Work better, not harder’. As the saying goes, there’s no point trying to re-invent the wheel so instead of attempting to write basically the same thing, I decided to share her post instead:

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Consequences for Your Loved ones if you Die Without a Will in Nova Scotia

Consequences for Your Loved ones if you Die Without a Will in Nova Scotia

A common (and troubling) statistic is that approximately 50% of adult Canadians do not have a valid Will.  The reasons why people haven’t yet prepared their Wills are varied but I’ll suggest one of the more important is that they don’t understand the consequences of dying without one.

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Prevent Heartache By Having a Lawyer Review Your Nova Scotia Commercial Lease – The Rent Increase Control Clause

Prevent Heartache By Having a Lawyer Review Your Nova Scotia Commercial Lease – The Rent Increase Control Clause

I recently came across a story in the news highlighting the unfortunately common situation where a small business owner is facing financial disaster as a result of terms in their commercial lease they didn’t fully understand when they signed.  Cash flow challenges are reality for most small business, particularly those in the start up phase.  As a result, many view spending money to have a lawyer review what appears to be a standard lease is a luxury they can’t afford.

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What is Title Insurance for Nova Scotia property, and why do you care?

What is Title Insurance for Nova Scotia property, and why do you care?

What is Title Insurance?

First things first: the word "title" refers to your legal right to own, use, mortgage and sell real property. Title Insurance is there to protect your legal interest, and often that of your lender, in your property.

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What happens when your real estate deal in Nova Scotia falls through?

What happens when your real estate deal in Nova Scotia falls through?

Failing to close on a purchase or sale obviously isn’t anyone’s Plan A, but it does happen. What does Plan B look like?

Some of the reasons that a deal might fall through on closing day include, financing issues, a buyer purchasing a home on the condition that their previous home sold, major issue arises on inspection or pre-close walk through that cannot be resolved.

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Inspection and the Final Walk-through for real estate purchases in Nova Scotia: Bring it up on or before closing day or forever hold your peace.

Inspection and the Final Walk-through for real estate purchases in Nova Scotia: Bring it up on or before closing day or forever hold your peace.

One major piece of the picture when buying your home is inspecting the property to decide A) what issues there are and B) how they will be addressed OR if you are willing to live with them.

Professional Inspection

One of the first steps after you have signed an agreement of purchase and sale is a home inspection. It is always a good idea to use a professional home inspector come in and do an inspection of the home you are considering buying. Their job is to flag any issues that may change your mind about purchasing the property, or the price you are willing to pay for it.  The inspection is the opportunity to raise issues that will need to be addressed. As a result there may be further negotiations with the seller to either take care of the issue prior to closing, or sell at a lower price so you will have the money to fix it. You should look for an inspector that has both liability AND errors and omissions insurance. This protects you not only from any damage they might cause while on the property to do the inspection, but also provides you with possible recourse if they miss something important on the inspection.

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How to find the best Nova Scotia mortgage broker for you.

How to find the best Nova Scotia mortgage broker for you.

It can be hard to decide who is best to help you find the right mortgage.  What makes one broker a better fit for you than another? While the search can seem overwhelming, it is worth taking the time to find the right broker for you. A few tips to help you make this choice:

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How long does it take to get a Divorce in Nova Scotia?

How long does it take to get a Divorce in Nova Scotia?

Ask almost anyone who has been through it and they will say “too long!” Joking aside, it can feel like a long process, and the justice system is not exactly known for its speed, even at the best of times. The hardest part of a divorce is coming up with the terms of divorce, especially as it relates to custody, property division and support payments. This can be done through negotiation, or a judge can make the decision.  A negotiated settlement is almost always faster than waiting for the court to order the terms of your divorce. So, what exactly takes so long with court?

 

The hardest part of a divorce is coming up with the terms of divorce, especially as it relates to custody, property division and support payments. This can be done through negotiation, or a judge can make the decision.

 

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should I hire a realtor to help buy or sell my home?

should I hire a realtor to help buy or sell my home?

Thinking of buying or selling your home? You should enlist the services of a real estate agent to complete the transaction. Buying or selling your home is one of the largest transactions you will complete in your lifetime. Its important to get it "right".  A real estate agent can help you do this in anumber of ways.

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Looking to move out of an apartment, but may not be able to afford a mortgage? There may be a solution.

Looking to move out of an apartment, but may not be able to afford a mortgage? There may be a solution.

Are you interested in moving out of an apartment, or building equity instead of paying rent, but a traditional mortgage isn’t the best choice for you? There may be a solution out there for you that you were unaware of. Foxwood Village is a new development in Hubley that is taking what some might consider an unconventional approach to creating their development. If you buy a home in Foxwood Village, you are buying the house itself, but you will lease the land it sits on.  You pay a monthly rental fee for the land. The rental fee and collateral mortgage payments would still be less than the average traditional mortgage payment.

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Ever wonder why some people have a ‘slip and fall’ and get a big payout?

Ever wonder why some people have a ‘slip and fall’ and get a big payout?

Ever wonder why some people have a ‘slip and fall’ and get a big payout from the business owner where the fall happened, but some people, and sometimes those hurt far worse, don’t get anything? 

Most often these situations are governed by the Occupiers Liability Act, although the common law rule of negligence may also apply. Under the Act, the ‘occupier’, defined as the person who essentially has control over the premises (whether because they own it, rent it or for any other reason have physical control over the premises), has a duty to ensure that any person who legally enters the premises will be reasonably safe.  The key word there is ‘reasonably’.  Obviously no owner/occupier of a property can prevent every potential accident from happening, so the law draws a line between injuries that are as a result of unavoidable, unfortunate accident and which injuries should have been prevented by some action by the owner/occupier. 

 

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