Building and Zoning

A letter is by your solicitor sent to the Building and Zoning Department together with a copy of the survey for the property to reveal the full particulars of zoning by-laws and restrictions relating to the distance from the street and side and rear lines, type of construction, lot areas and building areas, lot frontage and depth requirements and permitted uses. This letter also requests information regarding any occupancy permit or completion certificate requirements, full particulars of any outstanding work orders or similar requirements, whether all subdivision agreements and similar agreements have been complied with and fully carried out.

Each Building and Zoning Department has a set fee for providing this information in the form of a Building Compliance letter and this fee is paid by your lawyer on your behalf and shown as a disbursement on your account. It is important that you provide your lawyer with a copy of the survey for the property as soon as possible if you have received one from the vendor or real estate agent. If no survey is available, it is important that you let your lawyer know so that they can advise how your interests can best be protected.

If your transaction is being title insured it is likely that your lawyer will not order Building and Zoning searches as these are typically covered by the insurance. Transactions involving title insurance can close without a survey. Building and Zoning searches can be quite costly (sometimes $200) and take a while to get back - meaning they can slow down your closing. Because of that, many lawyers will recommend a title insurance policy as being in your best interest. Further, the responses provided by most Building and zoning Departments are usually qualified in that they are marked "E & OE" -which means Errors and Omissions Excepted. In a lawyer's mind, that means that there is an issue as to whether the report should be relied upon. Many lawyers prefer title insurance because of the certainty of coverage.

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