Selling FAQs

Please contact your realtor and ask that he/she send to our office a copy of the Offer to Purchase to us via email at jeremy@jmflc.ca 

When we receive the Offer to Purchase, we will contact you to let you know that:

We are in receipt of the Offer to Purchase; and

That we have begun our due diligence process

We will then contact you, approximately 10-15 calendar days prior to possession, to set up an appointment for you to come in to sign the required sale documents. 

You will need to bring the following:

TWO (2) forms of Identification: 

Valid Government Issued Photo Identification e.g., Passport/ Driver’s License. 

Other accepted types of identification are birth certificate signed credit card, SIN card. 

*You must provide at least ONE (1) form of photo identification listed above. 

A void cheque for an account in which we can direct deposit funds

Survey and Zoning Certificates- Most contracts for sale require the person selling property to provide these to a buyer “if available”. Please bring these to the meeting if you have these otherwise there is generally no obligation to provide these documents

One spare key for the property being sold (if applicable)

The legal fees and disbursements can vary from file-to-file as they depend on a wide-range of factors. For a fully customized estimate please contact me directly at jeremy@jmflc.ca or by phone directly at 204-417-6086. Our fees generally start at $995 plus GST and PST.

Please note: We do not require any funds from you in advance and we only get paid when you receive your funds!

Best case scenario: We can pay out your file within a few business days from the date of possession.

Typical scenario: We can typically finalize sale files within 5-10 calendar days from the date of possession. 

*Worst case scenario: It can take up to 3-4 weeks from the date of possession to receive your net sale proceeds. 

*Please note – this is an unusually long period of time and is quite rare.

There are a number of factors which can influence the speed by which we can pay out your file including how quickly the purchaser’s lawyer is able to obtain mortgage funds, how quickly the buyer’s lender provides funds to the other lawyer, how quickly the buyer’s lawyer sends funds to our office, whether or not we need an updated payout statement from your existing lender once we receive the funds, whether we need to pay out any property tax arrears, whether or not the property you have sold is being sold with the use of a Power of Attorney or is an estate sale. These are just a few factors! The good news is that we will pay out your file immediately once we have everything we need to do so.

Mortgage payments may continue to be withdrawn from your account between the date of possession and the date that the mortgage is paid in full. In the event any payments are taken from your account during this period before the finalization of the sale you are to notify us. 

Many clients ask us why? How is it that the Buyer has possession of our house but we have to continue to pay the mortgage? There are two answers: (1) Your existing lender is entitled to take payments for so long as the mortgage is outstanding regardless of who is living in the house; and (2) The Offer to Purchase contemplates this scenario in allowing the mortgage funds to be provided by the Buyer, with interest, after possession.

In the event payments are withdrawn from your account after possession it will reduce the principal amount owing on your mortgage payout however the interest component of your mortgage payment is always due and owing and is not recoverable. 

A bridge loan is a short-term loan from your lender (or other source) to allow you to complete your purchase before the funds from your sale are available.

This applies to anyone selling a house and also buying a house at the same time. In the event you are relying on the proceeds of the sale of your home to help pay for the purchase of your new home you will need a bridge loan. Please contact your mortgage professional to make these arrangements.

Example: You have purchased a home with a possession date of June 1st and you are selling your property with a possession date of June 10th. The funds from your sale will clearly not be available before the possession date on your purchase so your lender gives you a “bridge loan” by lending to you enough money to complete your purchase until the sale funds are available (after June 10th). We obtain the bridge loan funds from your lender to complete your purchase and then pay the bridge loan back to your lender from your sale proceeds.

In the event you are selling a property and buying a property there is always a chance that you may be making mortgage payments on your new property and your existing property at the same time. Please discuss this possibility with your mortgage professional and be prepared for it in the event it happens as we have no control over what your mortgage lenders do with your mortgage payments.

Please let us know whether there are any outstanding Manitoba Hydo Loans for windows, air conditioning or the furnace. The lawyer for the Buyer will require that we ensure these are paid in full as part of the sale process. We will need a current statement from you for any of these loans. Once we can finalize your sale file we will send in payment in full for any of these loans.

The following are some tips we recommend to our Sellers:

Remove all items not included in paragraph 1(a) of the Offer to Purchase. These items have been excluded specifically by the written agreement between you and the Buyer so please ensure these items are removed prior to possession;

Please leave behind all items included in the transaction in paragraph 1(b) of the Offer to Purchase. You and the Buyer have agreed that the Buyer is entitled to these items as part of their purchase of your property.

Please ensure that the property is reasonably clean on possession for the Buyer. Most offers to purchase only require vacant possession which is different than clean possession. A good rule of thumb is to leave the property as clean as you would want it to be if you were the Buyer. Unclean homes are another regular Buyer complaint on possession.

Video-tape your appliances in working order. Disputes regarding appliances probably represent 4/5 complaints by a Buyer after possession. We recommend a 10-15 second video, to the extent possible, of each appliance working as close to possession as possible. This may be the best and only evidence you will have to prove that the appliance(s) you have left behind were working and possibly avoid the need for you to replace any appliances after possession.

Leave behind additional keys, garage door opener(s) and anything else required under the Offer to Purchase in one place (usually on a counter) and take a picture of what you are leaving behind. Buyers will sometime claim that you failed to leave behind x, y or z and one picture is worth a thousand words!

Read the water meter and hydro meter as close to possession as possible. Take a photo of each meter so that there cannot be the possibility of any discrepancy. Please provide an updated water meter reading as close to possession as possible to the City or R.M. This is important as we need to ensure that water bill is current up to the date of possession. 

Report the sale of your property to CRA when you file your income taxes. CRA has created a new rule which requires this reporting even of principal residences. This does not mean that you need to pay taxes on your sale however please discuss this requirement with your tax professional.

Water billings run with the land/property so that’s why we have to ensure it is paid. The other lawyer will make it a requirement on closing that we take care of this. Alternatively, you can read the meter, call it in and then send us a final bill along with a receipt showing the water bill is paid in full up to the date of possession.

We will send you a full report, by email or otherwise as you direct, which will include copies of correspondence and documents from your file. This called the Final Report. The Final Report will also include a completely itemized accounting showing, to the penny, all the funds we have collected on your file and all the funds we have paid out. The accounting will include your net sale proceeds which we can direct deposit into your account for your convenience!