Chestermere Lakefront Owners Can Purchase Land Adjoining Their Lots.
In Chestermere Lake there has been an ongoing dispute regarding the ownership of the land between the lakefront owner's lot and the waters edge. When the land was sold the buyers understood they were getting the land to the lakefront, however when the land was surveyed, it was not surveyed to the waters edge. The WID came back to the lakefront owners and offered to sell them the land under various conditions and prices. Sometimes the WID threatened lakefront owners that they would knock down boathouses and docks if the owners did not purchase the land. It has been most unpleasant and most unsettling to existing and potential lakefront owners. Now the Town of Chestermere has stepped in and offered to buy the lands adjoining these properties and sell them back to the residents. This is our response to the offer made by the town to the Lakefront Owners.
Anytime there is uncertainty with a property, the market will be impacted in a negative way. For years this unresolved issue with the W.I.D. has kept land values lower than they should have been. It has always astounded us that property in Sylvan Lake and Invermere should be worth more than properties at Chestermere Lake. Should the issue be resolved it should positively impact the salability of lakefront properties. In general we have been able to explain the situation to buyers, and for the most part, they have proceeded with the purchase of the property, understanding that they do not own the property right to the water's edge. In fact when this agreement goes through, Chestermere will be one of the few places where you will own waterfront right to the shore.
If you missed the December 18th meeting a copy of the power point presentation can be viewed at http://www.chestermere.ca/living_in_chestermere/hot_topics_in_town/chestermere_lakefront_owners)
One thing that concerns us regarding the draft purchase agreement with the town is that the town is requiring residents to apply for title consolidation. (This document can be downloaded from http://www.chestermere.ca/living_in_chestermere/hot_topics_in_town/chestermere_lakefront_owners). There is no guarantee that the town that the town will grant the consolidation. So you are unsure of what exactly you are paying for. Can you use the land to increase your building envelope or not?
Recently we had a purchaser that wanted to buy a property in the 800 block of the west side. Now this particular strip of lakefront homes had a reserve that belonged to the town. The homeowners bought the land from the town. It was never consolidated into their titles. The buyer needed more building envelope and went to the town to see what could be done. The town would not let them use both pieces of land and he could not build the home that he wanted to. He did not proceed with the sale. This happened in late 2008.
At the December 18th Lakefront Owners Association Meeting, residents were assured that the titles would be consolidated. This document does not guarantee that.
We are also concerned that this document does not address the issue of boathouses. Many residences on the lake have boathouses, they are an asset to the property. No where is that mentioned. After signing the agreement and paying your money, will you be allowed to continue to enjoy your boathouse which would be located on the land that you are purchasing? Or would you be required to tear it down? This should be made clear.
For these reasons we do not like the draft purchase agreement. If consolidation is guaranteed, we believe that the purchase of the land adjoining lakefront properties will be good for all lakefront owners. If the agreement is signed the way it is you really do not know what you are buying, nor do you know what your rights are.
We believe that the negotiated price is good; providing you can consolidate your titles and that you as owner can use the land as any homeowner would expect to use their entire lot. If your titles cannot be consolidated and you do not have the full rights of ownership, the price is probably not a good deal. Again we don't know because that has not been spelt out for us.
Anytime you are purchasing property, you must read and understand the document and any promises from the vendor must be on the document. It does not matter what they say, what is in the written document is what matters.
In our opinion there is still work to be done by the Lakefront Owners Association in making sure that the Lakefront Owners are getting the rights and privileges that should go with owning the property that they are being approached to purchase. Otherwise we may be trading one problem for another, with no benefit and at a substantial cost to each property owner.
Marjorie and Doug McKay
Realtors and Lakefront Residents.
RE/MAX Lakeside.
