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February 20, 2019

Calgary condo owners, facing millions in repair bills, find out their builder isn’t who they thought it was

As reported on Yahoo News, leaky roofs, windows and walls and defective balconies — all symptoms of the shoddy construction of four condominium buildings in northwest Calgary, according to a civil lawsuit filed in Alberta Court of Queen’s Bench.

You may be thinking that you’ve heard this leaky condo story before, but this one may be different. It includes a cautionary tale about who is marketing your condo, who is going to build it and who’s accountable if things go sideways.

The people who bought the 288 units at the Panorama West project are facing massive bills. And they’ve been told to keep quiet by the people whose job it is to protect them: their condo board and their lawyer. They were told in writing that speaking out could jeopardize any potential settlement.

On top of all that, the company many of them thought built the complex isn’t named in the $6.5-million lawsuit.

Cardel Homes, the company that marketed the project and the company many thought developed and built it, created a separate company and a limited partnership to oversee construction.

The lawsuit lists Panorama West Ltd. and Panorama West Limited Partnership as two of the 21 defendants.

Leaving the parent company out of these types of projects is a common business practice for tax and legal liability purposes, according to experts in business law.

“It’s smart for a variety of reasons beyond the liability. The other layer is there’s financial incentives from a tax perspective to do so,” said Jeff Bone of the University of Alberta’s school of business.

Cardel Homes and a subsidiary, Cardel Lifestyles, would not comment on the lawsuit or the allegations because of pending litigation. A lawyer representing Cardel would also not comment when asked to explain why a separate company was set up to develop the project.

The other defendants in the lawsuit include architects, engineers and tradespeople.

Keep reading on Yahoo News


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