Strengthened protections for buyers and owners of new homes will benefit residents in Sarnia-Lambton, according to the president of the local real estate board.
The province introduced a new code of ethics for builders and vendors of new homes on July 1. Ontario also clarified warranty and protection claim processes for defects and the mediation process for homeowners disputing warranty claim assessments.
Real Estate Board President Rob Longo thinks it's a good thing.
"This will affect every new build in the province of Ontario," said Longo. "The nice thing in Sarnia-Lambton is we have a really good group of local builders where we don't see as many issues. Obviously in larger centers, like Toronto, when you have thousands of home builders it can be a different scenario."
Longo said all new homes come with a seven year transferable warranty, as part of the new build purchase.
The board reported $97.4 million in real estate sales in June.
"It wasn't a record, but it was still a very busy month for us. Sales are still very strong. Homes are still selling very quickly when they come on the market. On average they're selling in about eight days."
There were 185 sales locally and the median sale price for a home was $435,000 in June.
"We still feel very confident in Sarnia-Lambton's market and that $435,000, we think, is still very affordable for a lot of people and definitely an attractive option for anybody looking throughout southwestern Ontario."