[NikoS]

Well I am on to my fourth pre-construction unit and honestly it seems that developers are not held accountable. Its hard to find information on a developers performance, items such as build quality, customer service, honestly/transparency, etc...

Does anyone know of sources (beside tarion) that can be a productive means to evaluate a developer? Or perhaps we should create a developer review?

 

[Ramako]

Well I am on to my fourth pre-construction unit and honestly it seems that developers are not held accountable. Its hard to find information on a developers performance, items such as build quality, customer service, honestly/transparency, etc...

Does anyone know of sources (beside tarion) that can be a productive means to evaluate a developer? Or perhaps we should create a developer review?

A great resource is the real estate forum on this website, here: http://urbantoronto.ca/forumdisplay.php?14-Real-Estate-General-Discussions

 

[Observer Walt]

^ Good advice from the previous two posters. But why write off Tarion (if that's what you are doing)? That site is a good source of information.

 

[NikoS]

Thanks. Sifting through the information is great but I guess I'm just missing stuff... I don't seem able to find much info on Tarion unless there have been claims and a lot of developer issues do not result in Tarion warranty claims.
For instance
-two condo floor plans I purchased were changed and I wasn't told because they were not considered material. So be it but why wait until the PDIs to let people know?
-I have heard horror stories of swapping finishes, poor workmanship, lack of sound proofing.... etc. Consumer product usually have reports available but housing developers seem to be immune from poor reputations... Hell, I was at edge on triangle park and those units are almost completely sold out even after the westside gallery lost fiasco...

Maybe we just get what we pay for?

 

[Observer Walt]

Get a lawyer to look over your Agreement of Purchase and Sale. For instance, a floor plan should not be changed after purchase, and this can be avoided by inserting a copy of the floor plan into the Agreement, along with legal language saying that if the end product differs from the plan, the agreement becomes invalid. The same applies to the quality of finishes. You can't prevent everything, but doing homework in advance can reduce risk. In the end, you do assume some risk when you buy "sight unseen", and if this is completely unacceptable, you should be in the resale market.

 

[nhincompoop]

Builders know that buyers stand to profit handsomely from price appreciation in a hot market and will often use that to their advantage. This includes changing floorplans to accommodate unforeseen building issues, which normally would qualify as a material change, rending the agreement of purchase and sale as null and void. In a market where years pass between initial purchase and occupancy, an invalid agreement is a big blow to a buyer who's had thousands of dollars and intangible emotional investment tied up in the project. If the buyer walks away, they lose time and opportunity cost, and the builder can re-sell the unit at current market value for greater profit. If the buyer keeps it, the builder still makes money. It's like gambling in Vegas - the house always wins.

 

[interested]

This held historically. Not so sure this will be the case going forward however.
But you are right, builders would be only too happy to let you out of a contract signed 3 years ago and pocket an increased price,especially if the project is mostly sold.