Cost of ownership

A woman contacted us for help in correcting the ownership information for her deceased parents’ house, which had been in the family for close to 50 years but had mistakenly been left in the previous owner’s name at the time they bought it.

A woman contacted us for help in correcting the ownership information for her deceased parents’ house, which had been in the family for close to 50 years but had mistakenly been left in the previous owner’s name at the time they bought it. The error in the land registry documents resulted in the wrong name on their property tax bills – but the woman’s parents had simply continued to pay the taxes without attempting to change it.

The woman told us she tried for years to get clarification from her municipality about the incorrect property tax bills. She said for lack of answers, she stopped paying them. The municipality warned her it could put the home up for auction if she did not pay.

Result: We raised her case with provincial officials, who explained she could apply to correct the land registry documents to show the current owner. We also raised the issue with the municipality, which agreed to work with the woman on a plan to pay her overdue property taxes.