Oklahoma Offer in Real Estate Explanation By Brian Madigan LL.B.What is an Oklahoma Offer!Actually, it's a simple form of real estate fraud. There are variations depending upon how many parties are involved and who is the intended victim.So, let's look at two examples, in the first the victim i...

11/30/2009

Canada's Recession is Over

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Canada's Recession is Over By Brian Madigan LL.B.Officially, Canada's recession is over. Canada's economy as measured by its gross domestic product actually grew in the third quarter of 2009.Now, it only takes two consecutive downward quarters to start a recession, but only one upward quarter t...

11/30/2009

Chimneys and Maintenance

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Chimneys and Maintenance By Brian Madigan LL.B.It's that time on year again, and I wanted to provide you with some information about chimneys. This information comes courtesy of a friend of mine, Jim Walker a home inspector in the Greater Toronto area:What's the difference between a masonry chi...

11/29/2009

Should You Buy Real Estate Now or wait?

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Should You Buy Real Estate Now or Wait? By Brian Madigan LL.B.Don't wait to buy real estate; buy real estate and wait!That is a much better strategy. It is the long term that is important. Look to the next 10 years. Don't look at the situation, month to month. If you do you will always find eno...

11/29/2009

Maintain Excellent Financial Books and Records

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Maintain Excellent Financial Books By Brian Madigan LL.B.If you are in business you should keep good financial records. It just makes sense, but so many small businesses neglect this tedious and somewhat time-consuming task. Careful records take time. And, if you don't really have the time your...

11/29/2009

Joint Tenancy and the Resulting Trust

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Joint Tenancy and the Resulting Trust By Brian Madigan LL.B.While there are some advantages to joint tenancy, there are also some problems. The primary advantage is the ease of administration of a deceased's estate. It is simple and uncomplicated, nothing more than the registration of a death c...

11/28/2009

Is Joint Tenancy a Poor Man's Will?

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Is Joint Tenancy a Poor Man's Will? By Brian Madigan LL.B.Question: I am concerned about my mother. Ten years ago, she married a man who now seems to be in ill health. He has operated his own business for over thirty years. Their only real asset is the house. He refuses to make a Will and claim...

11/28/2009

Everyone Has a Will

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Everyone Has a Will By Brian Madigan LL.B.Everyone has a Will. The problem is that most people don't know where it is. They have never seen it, they never signed it and they don't know what it says.The Ontario Government has written out a generic Will for everyone. It's set out in the Successio...

11/28/2009

Solicitor's Opinion: The Gold Standard

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Solicitor's Opinion: The Gold Standard By Brian Madigan LL.B.When it comes to conveyancing practice, the solicitor's opinion is the gold standard, not a title insurance policy.Let's have a look at the policy and determine where it fits in.First, it is an insurance policy. Historically, insuranc...

11/25/2009

Lawyers' Opposition to Title Insurance

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Lawyers' Opposition to Title Insurance By Brian Madigan LL.B.For years, lawyers were strongly opposed to title insurance. In common law jurisdictions, the normal conveyancing practice was to obtain a title opinion.Sure, you could buy a property yourself and accept all associated risks, but, if ...

11/24/2009