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Tax Savings - What Canadian Real Estate Agents Recommend to their Children

Best Option for Tax Savings for First Time Home Buyers 

This blog and video came about mainly surrounding the advice I am giving my 19 year old daughter. I am writing this after I made another video with Phil Jungworth trying to get more of a gauge on a quick guide on what people can afford (that blog will also be coming soon), but the point is that this new generation is going to need all the help they can get to be able to afford buying a home.

Last year the Canadian government released the FHSA. Which stands for First Time Home Savings Account. This can still be used together with using money from your RRSP and you can come back and see the information on using RRSP money and how that works for First Time Home Buyers here: https://dkeet.ca/blog.html/tax-savings---what-canadian-real-estate-agents-recommend-to-their-chil-8273044

For my daughter she is eager to walk in my footsteps. Her current plan is to buy a 3 bedroom townhouse and have a few friends rent rooms and cover her expenses so that she can live for free. So at the moment she is putting as much as she can into an FHSA (expecting to hit the max $8,000 per year. This not only saves her the pressure of acting like most people her age and spending money on things that wouod not be considered investments by anyone's standards, it also is expected to be an asset to help her future where ever that may take her.

Deduct What You put into the Account from your Taxable Earnings for the Year 

The FHSA acts in the same way as the RRSP in that the government allows you to deduct the amount you put in against your earnings for the year. For example if you made $48,000 during the year and you put $8,000 into the FHSA then the government subtracts the $8,000 from your taxable income.  This means that you are not taxed on the $8,000 plus you reduced your taxable income so hopefully this can bring you down a tax bracket and the rest of the money you made will be taxed in a lower tax bracket as well.

Invest and Not Pay Taxes on your Earnings

The FHSA also acts in the same way as a Tax Free Savings Account (TFSA) in that you don't pay taxes on the interest or earnings that you make inside of the FHSA account. That means that if you invest in stocks or any other available investments from the account and make money, that money is not taxed. 

Of course benefits are reversed by Revenue Canada if you do not use the money to buy your first home.

Using a Low Fee Trading Platform

A good option for opening an FHSA is Questrade.

I am not an affiliate by any means but I think that using the low fee stock trading platforms is usually smart if you have are somewhat knowledgable.

I have found that most of the major banks tend to kill you with fees when you trade or make investments with them. At the moment Questrade is the only low fee platform in Canada that offers the FHSA account to trade/buy stocks from. Here is the link to Questrade: https://cutt.ly/veY27Gtp . (From that page, choose FHSA)

If you end up getting a Questrade account and want to use my daughter's referral code, the code is: 566531184468069

I am fairly sure it does not give you an added benefit but costs you nothing if you use this when signing up.

Who can Benefit/Open a First Home Savings Account (FHSA)?

To create an FHSA, you must:

  1. Be aged between 18 and 71.
  2. Be a current Canadian tax resident.
  3. Not have resided in a property owned by you or your partner during the present calendar year or any of the preceding 4 calendar years.

Other Points to Consider

  1. The annual contribution cap is $8,000, and any unused contributions can be carried forward to the next year. So, that means if you put in $6,000 this year that means you can put in $10,000 next year.
  2. The lifetime contribution limit is $40,000.
  3. Annual contributions are eligible for tax deductions when you file your income tax, similar to the process for an RRSP (Registered Retirement Savings Plan). But the difference is that you don't need to pay it back like in the case of using RRSP money it needs to be paid back within 15 years. With the FHSA you can just use the money when you buy your first home and then the account is finished and then closed.

Why are People in Edmonton Special?

Naturally they have Derek Keet there to help them buy and sell real estate.  

I'm half joking...

As it pertains to the FHSA, having a $8000 a year and $40,000 a year limit seems to be set based on the Toronto/Vancouver prices and my feeling is that the government would never had given this high of a limit for First Time Home Buyers to use if this account was only made for Edmonton.  So with Edmonton being having the lowest priced housing for a big city in Canada this is especially advantagous for First time home buyers in Edmonton.

It is always a good idea to contact your financial advisor and make decisions that will be best for your family.  I hope that this can make you think and take advantage of what you can though.

When you or your family are ready to invest into your first home, feel free to reach out.

Derek Keet

If you are looking to buy a property in Edmonton, Sherwood Park, or need advice on the current market contact Derek!

Derek is licensed for residential, commercial, and rural real estate, plus has many years of personal and business experience to be able to understand your needs.

If you are interested in buying or investing in Edmonton or the surrounding areas, click here to set up your own detailed search: https://dkeet.ca/map-search.html

Click here for more information on Derek Keet: https://dkeet.ca/about.html

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Mortgages - How much do I need to make? How much do I need to have?

I want to buy a home in Edmonton! how much do I need to make? How much money do I need to have saved? What about debt? Minimum Credit score? What does this mean for the Edmonton housing market?

Today we dive into these questions and give you a general calculation you can do at home.

Lately we have had a lot of buyers either go to their bank or to their mortgage broker and have been surprised at what their bank had to say. Either they didn't qualify, or they had to jump through hoops when they figured it would be a simple acceptance.

Today we try to narrow down what to expect if you are in a certain income bracket, how debt can change the formula, etc.

Income needed to buy a home

Lenders look at several things, but if they are looking strictly at income, a 5% to 10% down payment, then you are looking at roughly 4 times your income.

For a $300,000 home = roughly an income of $75,000.

This is with zero debt.

For debt, lenders look at payments. 

Debt Payments

Roughly for ever $100 monthly interest payment, you are lowering the mortgage amount you would get accepted for by about $10,000.

So that means if you had an income of around $75,000 with a $400 monthly payment, then the would be $300,000 acceptance amount goes down to about $260,000.

Condo Payments

In Edmonton when you get down to the $260,000 priced homes you are looking more at apartment condos or town house condos, which makes it tricky because then the bank looks at the condo fee payments as well.

What Credit score is needed?

Generally, lenders expect to see at least a 680 credit score.

If you are under 600 you should work on getting that score up.

Or at least have 20% down.

What Credit is needed?

Especially for first time home buyers, expect to have at least 2 forms of credit.

For example, two credit cards, a credit card and a car loan, a credit card and a line of credit, etc.

More than 5% down?

Good news is that if you are putting at least the 20% down then there are more programs and options to make things work.

If you are putting 20% down, then you are looking at 

Roughly 5X your income.

This would mean that the $300,000 home would need an income of $60,000.

So, with the average Edmonton Single family home at roughly $490,000, with 20% down you would need an income (or combined income) or roughly $100,000.

or if you are looking at 5% down you would need roughly $125,000 for your household income.

Of course, this is not set in stone and it is always good to check with your mortgage broker. That said, these are great general calculations you can do at home.

Please visit the following page to get Phil's details (Be sure to tell him that you found him through Derek's video)  https://dkeet.ca/guest-speakers.html

If you are looking to buy a property in Edmonton, Sherwood Park, or need advice on the current market contact Derek!

Derek is licensed for residential, commercial, and rural real estate, plus has many years of personal and business experience to be able to understand your needs.

If you are interested in buying or investing in Edmonton or the surrounding areas, click here to set up your own detailed search: https://dkeet.ca/map-search.html

Click here for more information on Derek Keet: https://dkeet.ca/about.html

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Steps for Buying a Home - Lawyer's Guide

What does a Real Estate Lawyer go through when processing the sale from the Buyer's perspective?

Whether you have done the process before or it is your first time buying a home, understanding when and how the process works when the Real Estate Lawyer gets involved is important.  Being based in Edmonton Alberta, this information is specific to Edmonton and Alberta, but I assume the process will be similar in other areas as well.

If you are looking to sell rather than buy, or simply want to see that version you can see our blog/video from the Seller's perspective here: https://dkeet.ca/blog.html/steps-for-selling-your-edmonton-home---lawyers-guide-8273049

Before I get started, I want to share a personal story. I decided I would process my own title change when I bought my own property. At that point I did not need a lender and the seller was family so I thought it would be a good learning experience.  There are many things that a lawyer protects you from but in this case the title was supposed to be clear, and the seller assured me it was clear. But, in the end, it wasn't and later when I went to get a line of credit I had to go through a long, frustrating experience trying to get a lien removed from my title. I would not have had to do that if I had gone through a lawyer. On top of that there was a small error on the paperwork I submitted, and the titles office sent this back to me through regular mail. I didn't check my post box and the deadline passed.  Luckily the ladies at the Edmonton titles office were very nice and I just needed to make the small correction and bring it back downtown to resubmit it, but it could have been worse. The other point was that even though I processed my own title transfer I still needed a lawyer to sign the documents in front of, and I also needed to pay the titles office as well, so it wasn't as big of a savings that I had originally thought. I guess the point is that just because you have the right to process things like this yourself, you may not want to.

Let's dive into the process with the lawyer that you go through when you are buying.

The first point is that conditions should be removed before the lawyer would get involved.  Generally, conditions would include options like having an inspection, confirming with the bank that they will give you a mortgage, and in the case of a condo often buyers will want to have a professional review the condo documents. Basically, these are steps that if you don't like what you see (or cannot get the financing) then the buyer can decide to not go through with the purchase of the home.

Conditions have dates attached to them. Two weeks would be a normal amount of time that a buyer would take to confirm and 'waive" these conditions.

So, conditions are waived/removed.  In realtor terms, the home is now SOLD! Yeah!

Then the Lawyer gets involved.

The Lawyer gets a copy of the (Offer to Purchase) contract.

When an offer is made on a property it includes all of the details and timing of the purchase including things like the amount, the date the buyer would take possession/move in, what is included, all of the property details, etc.

Also, any other relevant documents like Dower Rights documents (when a spouse has lived in the property but is not an owner on the title).

The lawyer must also receive any mortgage instructions

If the buyer is using financing to buy the property, then this should be confirmed. In the case the money is coming from a bank then the lawyer would confirm the details with the bank.

The lawyer needs the actual formal instructions, so they know how to prepare the mortgage paperwork.

Next the Lawyer will do their initial searches and inquires, then prepare the documents for signing and have the buyer come to their office to sign. Generally, this happens 4 to 5 days before the closing date.

In the case there is a mortgage involved the buyer would still have a down-payment that needs to be paid. The balance of the downpayment would be the full down-payment amount (what ever the buyer is not getting finances for) minus the deposit that they would have made earlier when they made the offer (or shortly after).

There are also other costs. The legal fee and disbursements, which is often $1,500 to $1,600 which needs to be brought in together to the lawyer with the balance of the down-payment.

Also, there is a tax adjustment that is done. Taxes for the year are due on June 30th. So, depending on what has been paid already by the seller, the buyer will either receive money from the seller (and be responsible for paying it) or they need to pay back money to the seller if the seller has paid more than their share of the taxes for the year.

Often since the amounts are higher, Lawyers will not accept cash and the buyer needs to get a certified check or bank draft and bring that to the lawyer. Of course, the lawyer will let the buyer know the amount and breakdown of what needs to be paid before they go to their office.

Funds received must go into the trust account. Which is a separate bank account that cannot be mixed with other payments and is only for holding deposits. These accounts are government regulated on how they must be used to keep the money safe.

When there is a mortgage involved the Buyer's Lawyer needs to send an interim report to the lender. From there the lender will let the Lawyer know if there are any missing documents or any outstanding conditions.  

Next, the Buyer's lawyer notifies the seller's lawyer that they are ready to close.

The Seller's lawyer needs to hand documents to the buyer's lawyer, which includes a signed transfer of land. They are delivered between lawyers on the basis of a number of formal conditions called trust conditions restricting the buyer's lawyer, at the risk of losing their license, only being able to use those documents if they are ready to pay the balance of the purchase price on the closing date.

Then the Buyer's lawyer is able to take the documents and submit the application to the Edmonton land titles office (so that they can process transferring the land ownership to the new buyer(s). For Alberta, there are two land titles offices. One is located in Edmonton which handles the northern area, and one is located in Calgary handling the southern area of Alberta. 

Once the Buyer's lawyer gets the updated title back from the land titles office then they can issue their final report.

Generally, the lawyer will make sure the payment is made to the seller's lawyer by noon on the closing/possession date. Once funds have been received and everything is complete the Seller's Lawyer will contact the buyer's realtor and let them know that the keys can be released.

From there the Buyer would get the keys to their new home.

And that is the simple, yet not simple, process. Of course, there can be issues along the way the lawyer, and real estate agents like myself, would support and help.

If you have any questions, comments or have any suggestions on how we can explain this process a little more clearly, please comment below or contact me.

Please visit the following page to get Mark's details (Be sure to tell him that you found him through Derek's video)  https://dkeet.ca/guest-speakers.html

If you are looking to buy a property in Edmonton, Sherwood Park, or need advice on the current market contact Derek!

Derek is licensed for residential, commercial, and rural real estate, plus has many years of personal and business experience to be able to understand your needs.

If you are interested in buying or investing in Edmonton or the surrounding areas, click here to set up your own detailed search: https://dkeet.ca/map-search.html

Click here for more information on Derek Keet: https://dkeet.ca/about.html

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Mice & Inspects - knowledge from the Edmonton Property Inspector

Knowledge from the Edmonton Property Inspector

Today we dive into mice and insects. (Or inspects)

This is something that has come up with buyers when they get the property inspection. Should a buyer run away?

I think knowledge helps, many years ago if I saw water leaking from a toilet I might have thought that the house has a huge plumbing issue, where now I am not happy to see something like this, but knowing that if you take two bolts off, take the toilet off and put a new wax seal on it is a $10 fix makes a huge difference.

Getting back to the question, should you run. First, how bad is it? How could it be fixed? Follow that closely with can you buy something without such problems for the same price? If not, how much could you save or negotiate off the price?

First, how bad is the mice or insect problem?

If the main beams in the house are almost hollow because of bugs, it is probably not safe being in the house and you may just want to look at the lot value. While on the other hand if 10 years ago there was a couple mice that were there, left some droppings that can be vaccumed out, you may not want to demolish the house.

If you see one running around there is probably a few. If you see 10, then call an exterminator.

For things like cockroaches or bedbugs, those are usually immediate issues that will generally only get worse.

How could the mice or insect problem be fixed?

First, mice are attracted to food. So, if there is food, whether it is bags of rice they can easily get at, bird feed or just kids that leave food under the stairs, then the chances of them coming and staying increases. Make sure there is no food for them.

Josh mentions bounce sheets around an RV and steel wool if you have a mouse hole or space of some kind that you think they may get in from.

On Amazon you can find different traps with different ratings, from humane traps where they fall into a bucket and later you can figure out what to do with them.

Or some people may just get a cat, snake or a ferret (note that some cats won't be effective and having a snake in your walls might be a worse issue).

I had a place that I was selling that had old mice droppings and the buyer demanded an inspector come. The cost was $150 plus tax for them to come and inspect. They didn't find any mice (only old droppings that were then vacuumed up) and the issue was solved.

What to do if you find Mold?

In a similar sense to mice, it is going to depend on how much.

Some companies make a good amount of money profiting from people's fear. Josh mentions that there are many types of mold and most are not toxic for humans.

That said, most grow and should be cleaned up.  If there is a little mold, some bleach or a cleaner can easily get rid of it. Wearing a mask and using rubber gloves can't hurt.

That said, usually it is not the mold clean up that is a huge concern (unless they pull the baseboards off and find the walls are full of it). A little mold can easily and safely be cleaned.

It is important to understand WHY there is mold. Is all the ventilation closed off with no air movement? a leak or reason for too much moisture? Overuse of a humidifier? Stopping the issue is important.

Can you buy something without such problems for the same price?

If you can, obviously don't be bothered and buy the other place.

How much could you save or negotiate off the price?

I guess the point here is questioning, what is it worth? Let's say you can negotiate a lower price or that your competition is walking away, and you are getting the place for $20,000 less than what you would of.  Or, if it is going to cost you $500 on an exterminator but you are saving $10,000. Is that worth it?

For some people, maybe not. Maybe just the thought of thinking that mice was once living there would not be worth it. Other people might say, bring on the mice poop!

Special thanks to Josh Born from Canadian Residential Inspection services here in Edmonton. If you are interested in hiring Josh, Please visit the following page to get Josh's details (Be sure to tell him that you found him through Derek's video)  https://dkeet.ca/guest-speakers.html

If you are looking to buy a property in Edmonton, Sherwood Park, or need advice on the current market contact Derek!

Derek is licensed for residential, commercial, and rural real estate, plus has many years of personal and business experience to be able to understand your needs.

If you are interested in buying or investing in Edmonton or the surrounding areas, click here to set up your own detailed search: https://dkeet.ca/map-search.html

Click here for more information on Derek Keet: https://dkeet.ca/about.html

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4 Investment Tips for Real Estate

Today, We dive into a bunch of areas. I hope that you can follow along and walk away with at least a new idea or two.

Building a Rental Portfolio, and have other people pay off your mortgage

The idea is to add a new house, apartment, or rental to your portfolio every couple of years.

Many people feel that the bank won’t give them money to buy a “second home”, but using this strategy works much better with the banks. 

Getting a mortgage for a rental property is more difficult than getting a mortgage on your primary residence. So, if you buy a new place hoping to rent it out, it gets a little trickier.

But, if you buy a house, live in it for a couple of years and then buy a new house to live in and rent out your old house, then you have the bank giving you a mortgage on your primary residence. On your primary residence you can also get away with putting 5% down, where it isn’t usually possible to get a mortgage on a second property with only the 5% down.

I am going to make another video on ways to get the best mortgage rates and what the banks want in more detail, but often you will need a higher deposit and the bank will be strict on buying a second property for just renting out.  

Points to consider. When you get a mortgage with less than 20% down you sign an affidavit saying that you will live in the home for a period of time, so check that out and make sure you are living in the house for long enough before you plan to move to a new primary residence.

But after that, if you have at least the 5% cash for a second home that you can move into then this is how this moving and acquiring properties can work. 

The advantage of this plan is that when you rent out your original home you get rent that you can use as income. You also essentially have someone else paying your mortgage.

The downside of this investment plan is that you would become a landlord (or you need to find a company to manage it). I will try to get into more landlord type video in the future, bringing in specialists and giving my experience over the last 10+ years as a landlord. If this is a financial path you wish to take you will also need to learn the ins and outs of bring a landlord.

Buying and selling during the correct times in the market cycle is important but building a portfolio of rental properties can be a lower risk option compared to most investments. 

Using Line of Credits to lower Bank Penalties 

Save $3,000 or $4,000 Easy

We get into porting and assuming mortgages in another video, but if you are in the position where you are going to need to break your mortgage and want to reduce the fees, most mortgages have a prepayment option to allow for you to pay down 15% or 20% of the mortgage. Generally, the penalty is based on the amount owing, so using a line of credit or Home Equity line of credit to bring down the amount owing can greatly reduce the fees.

Once you sell the home you just use that money to pay off the amount you borrowed from the line of credit.

You only do this if you are going to sell your home and refinance as you want to use the money from the sale to pay off that amount borrowed from your line of credit. 

Co-Buying

When I think of Co-Buying, I automatically think of the young generation.  Maybe it has been explained to me that co-signing is basically now co-buying in that the co-signer is no longer just a name on file that could help the bank in the case that you don’t pay, a co-signer is now tied with their credit and shares the risk, basically making them a co-buyer.

I have heard many people say that the new generations will never be able to afford their first home. I disagree. Maybe I have more faith in them.  I think that any young person with some financial knowledge can do small investments, save up and be able to handle the down payment needed.  Especially if they get past the temptation of spending and lock saving into things like an FHSA (see our blog on FHSA here).

Maybe there are relatives that would be interested in investing if you are going to care for the place and cover the expenses sharing the house with their trusted friends.  Thinking outside of the box can help you a lot.

Co-buying is also attractive for people who want to go big.  If you hear of people that own 1000 units, they likely have worked together with other people to have such a portfolio. 

It is important to watch who you go into business with, but many people who dream of business never do anything.  Co-buying and partnering with knowledgeable people can change your life. It can also make great relationships, motivate you by being around likeminded people and if you have the chance to Co-buy and you trust the other people/person it may be well worth it.

For businesspeople co-buying may also be of interest if your company has money but you realize that the bank isn’t as nice with small to medium companies.  If you have friends or family that can easily get the bank’s attention, then deals that wouldn’t have happened could become a reality. 

HELOC – Home Equity Line of Credit (see our other video on HELOCs here) 

For investors having a Home Equity Line of Credit can be extremely helpful.

You don’t pay until you use it, but it is ready whenever you need it. 

Maybe in my life the market has not been completely predictable, but more so now, it seems that the market can be completely unpredictable.  If there was to be a big crash, having money for investments will be a huge advantage.

If you are using line of credit for down payments, you may also be looking at alternative lending (see our other video on Alternative Lending). 

There can also be some tax benefits as you can generally write off the interest from the Home Equity Line of Credit as well. 

Having that money there just in case, is also an amazing way of reducing stress.  Even if you don’t use it, if you have several properties or investments there is a high chance you will have a sudden big expense sometime, or there is a crash, etc.  Peace of mind is a good thing.

When you get your next mortgage, ask your bank about attaching a HELOC to the mortgage so that as your mortgage is paid off, a HELOC amount grows, and you have access to these funds.

Please visit the following page to get Phil's details (Be sure to tell him that you found him through Derek's video)  https://dkeet.ca/guest-speakers.html

If you are looking to buy a property in Edmonton, Sherwood Park, or need advice on the current market contact Derek!

Derek is licensed for residential, commercial, and rural real estate, plus has many years of personal and business experience to be able to understand your needs.

If you are interested in buying or investing in Edmonton or the surrounding areas, click here to set up your own detailed search: https://dkeet.ca/map-search.html

Click here for more information on Derek Keet: https://dkeet.ca/about.html

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Porting & Assuming a Mortgage - How NOT to pay mortgage penalties!

Porting & Assuming a Mortgage - How NOT to pay mortgage penalties!

Waiting for your current mortgage to end so that you can buy a new home?

Don't want to pay the bank's mortgage cancellation policy for cancelling early?

This video gives some options which will not only help you avoid such bank fees but also give you advantages if you currently have a mortgage and want to sell your home or buy a new home.

The first option you have is:

PORTING a mortgage

Porting is where you take your current mortgage (when you sell your home) and port/transfer that mortgage to your new home.

This is especially beneficial if you currently have a great interest rate.

See the video above on some of the related questions on porting, but the main question peopole ask about porting is what happens when you need more money to buy your new property than you have left on your mortgage.

Phil mentions that your bank (or mortgage broker) will be able to work with your situation a little better but normally this is possible and not an issue to get an amount above your current mortgage amount.

ASSUMING a mortgage

Assuming a mortgage is used when you are not looking to buy another property and don't need to port.

This would happen in the case you are selling a rental property or a property where you aren't planning on buying right after.

Having a new/another buyer who wants to buy your property assume your mortgage is a great way idea in this case.

The Buyer who is buying your property will be happy if that allows them to pay a lower interest rate. It also allows for more buyers to qualify as the numbers are better (and the bank is able to give out more) in the case the interest rate is lowered, which helps to qualify more buyers.

This means that offering to have a buyer assume their mortgage will be a benefit in the case the original mortgage's interest rate is lower.  

If it is not, then it will not necessarily be a benefit to the buyer but depending on the market this may be a requirement that a seller can expect the buyer to accept.

Please visit the following page to get Phil's details (Be sure to tell him that you found him through Derek's video)  https://dkeet.ca/guest-speakers.html

If you are looking to buy a property in Edmonton, Sherwood Park, or need advice on the current market contact Derek!

Derek is licensed for residential, commercial, and rural real estate, plus has many years of personal and business experience to be able to understand your needs.

If you are interested in buying or investing in Edmonton or the surrounding areas, click here to set up your own detailed search: https://dkeet.ca/map-search.html

Click here for more information on Derek Keet: https://dkeet.ca/about.html

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Way to Transfer my Property Title in Edmonton

Title Transfers

First quickly, what is a title?

What is a Property Title?

A title is essentially a piece of paper that is assigned to the owner of a property in the province of Alberta. Also, properties across Canada all have titles attached to them.

The title indicates:

- The registered owners; their names and contact address

- Encumbrances against the title (like a mortgage), utility right of way (so that the owners can get things like electricity to their home)

- In Alberta the titles are held by the Land Titles office.  The Northern areas are handled by the land titles office in Edmonton, while the Southern areas of Alberta are handled by the Land Titles office in Calgary.

Edmonton Land Titles Registrations: lto@gov.ab.ca

John E. Brownlee Building (Land Titles Office North)
Mezzanine Level
10365 97 Street NW
Edmonton, Alberta  T5J 5C5

Calgary Land Titles Registrations: ltos@gov.ab.ca

Land Titles Office South
710 4th Avenue SW
Calgary, Alberta  T2P 0K3

When is a title usually transferred?

The transfer of Land title happens when the home is sold. Usually the lawyer will do this and the new title will have the names of the new owner on it.

Also, when the generation above us, like our grandparents, aunts/uncles want to do Estate Planning and give a gift to the next generation or their children. They will also consider transferring the title.

How long does it take?

Covid was crazy and it will depend on the market. At the moment the website says "You can expect a 10 to 12 business day turnaround time for registration of land title survey documents."

How do you know when your document should be ready?

I learned that if you go to https://alta.registries.gov.ab.ca/spinii/logon.aspx

In the top right hand corner it shows the documents that they are processing, so if you know the date that you submitted the application you should have a good idea if it being processed or if the date is past then your application is probably finished processing.

How can you check?

There is a fee, but on https://alta.registries.gov.ab.ca/spinii/logon.aspx

You can pull property titles if you know the information for the property.

Can you transfer the title without a lawyer?

Yes,  for sure. For Alberta, you can find out more information here:

https://www.alberta.ca/change-land-title-ownership

That said, the challenge that a lot of people have is that this is the only transfer of land that they may fill out in their lifetime. The document itself is created, generally speaking, by the land transfers act, and is effected by about 3 or 4 other pieces of legislation so without training and background and understanding these things, you can fill out the forms and hope it is done correctly.

Can you get help from the clerks at the Land Transfer office?

Yes, they will let you know if something is off in the paperwork, but they may not hold your hand if you need them to walk through each part with you.

Normally you pay the fee, and the clerks expect just to receive the document. I know in Edmonton, with Covid there was actually no one at the office that you could speak to and just a drop off slot for dropping off completed applications.

Do you Trust the people transferring the title to you?

When transferring the title, with a real estate transaction, the lawyer only transfers or has the name of the owner of the title changed after the funds are confirmed.

If you are transferring it and there is money involved then do you pay first and hope it is transferred well, or does the transfer happen and expect that the money is paid correctly.  To look at just the title change without a lawyer being involved, you would really need to trust the other party.

Things to watch out for if you want to do it yourself

Personally, I have done it myself. It was a transfer between family before I was a real estate agent. Because it was between family there was full trust there.

There were a few things that could have gone better.

You still need a lawyer/notary as you need to sign the document in front of them.  Their fee would be less, but they would still charge for the meeting for you both to sign the documents.  In our case the lawyer should have crossed out one line in the document because we were signing virtually. The clerks sent the document back to me (the applicants address) but I didn't check my mail in time before the date it needed to be corrected by so it was a bit of a stress wondering if the application was then cancelled and if I would need to redo the whole thing. Luckily, I was able to speak to the clerks and they helped me make the correction and accepted the document even though it was late.

There was a line of credit that was registered against the home. This was before I was a real estate agent, so now I would know better and would have checked the title but my father was sure he didn't have a mortgage so there was nothing against the home. I guess when they gave the Line of credit it was under a general credit offered by the bank and under that general credit was the line of credit, so when my father thought he had cancelled the Line of Credit it was not completely cancelled. Also, the bank didn't care to remove it from the title.

So, I had to fight with the bank to get them to figure out what the problem was. On top of that they wanted me to get a lawyer to remove the encumbrance from the title and when they finally did remove it, they told me that it would take up to three months.

On top of that, parking is paid near the Land titles office so having to go there, each time I needed to pay for parking. The first time I needed to find where the actual office was in the very large building. Plus, they have another form that you need to fill out there and submit together (like a cover letter) and I didn't think to bring a pen with me, so I needed to go and ask someone in the building to borrow a pen. Small things that added to the hassle.

Would I do my own title transfer again?

I am not sure. Since I basically understand it now, it would be a lot easier and less stressful than when I did it last time. I guess it depends on how busy I am at the time and how quickly I need it done


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