Answer: The Wills and Succession Act provides that, to be valid, a Will must: i. be in writing; ii. have the Testator’s signature evidencing on the face of the Will that the Testator intended to give effect to the dispositions in the Will; and iii. the Testator must sign in the presence of two witnesses who are both there at the time the Testator signs the Will and each witness must sign the Will in the presence of the Testator.

Answer: You can only determine what remedies will be available in each situation by considering the specific terms of your mortgage and the current law of mortgages. For example, some mortgages will contain a mechanism called an “Acceleration Clause.” The way an Acceleration Clause works is that upon default in any of the mortgage terms by the borrower the lender may usually enforce an Acceleration Clause which makes the outstanding principal amount of the mortgage interest and costs due and owing on default. Most Acceleration Clauses are exercisable at the lender’s option, although depending on the specific terms of your mortgage; the borrower may be relieved from the consequences of acceleration by paying the amount in arrears, together with costs. Also take note that CMHC, Gemworth and other high ratio mortgages have their own rules regarding personal liability that are different from conventional mortgages.

Answer: When a real estate transaction occurs, both the vendor and the purchaser must pay their share of property taxes to the relevant municipality. The Property tax amount paid to the municipality may increase or decrease the cash-to-close required to complete the transaction. For example, if the vendor pays monthly, the taxes owed will be adjusted to the actual closing date of the sale. If the vendor pays annually, and has paid for the entire year, the property tax adjustment in favor of the vendor would likely be a higher amount than when contrasted with a monthly payment plan paid by the vendor. Meaning a purchaser may have to reimburse a vendor for that portion of taxes the vendor has already paid for that year. The opposite is also true, in that if taxes have not been paid by the vendor, the cash to close owed by the purchaser would be reduced by the that amount of taxes owed by the vendor.