In order for us to accurately and effectively find a solution to your current situation, we may request that you provide to us certain documentation pertaining to your foreclosure, your property, or your financial situation. Below is a definitions glossary of documents that we may request from you, or that you may receive throughout the foreclosure process.
General Documentation
Mortgage Statement – This is a statement provided by your lender (or through online banking) outlining the current amount owing on your mortgage and the amount paid to date.
Demand Letter – This is a letter received from your lender, or from the foreclosure lawyer the lender has hired to represent them. This is a notification to you that your mortgage is in arrears. Demand is made for payment by a specified date to avoid account foreclosure and further legal action.
Mortgage Renewal or Non-Renewal Letter – At or near the end of your mortgage term, your lender will provide you a letter for mortgage renewal or, in some cases, a non-renewal. A mortgage renewal letter letter outlines the terms of your renewed mortgage. In the case of a non-renewal letter, your lender will inform you of their decision not to renew your mortgage, and will call the full amount remaining on the mortgage or loan due.
Notice of Assessment (NOA) – A notice of assessment is a statement mailed to you from the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) on a yearly bases after a you file your tax return. The purpose of the notice of assessment is to notify the taxpayer of the amount of tax they have already paid, the amount of tax they owe, amount contributed to RRSPs, and any tax credits received.. In short, it provides you with a summary of income claimed, deductions made, and credits issued to you in the previous year.
The notice of assessment is a typically a pink (if you owe further taxes) or blue (if you are owed a tax refund) 2 page document that will normally arrive in the mail come May or June if your taxes were filed on time by April 30th. If there is a refund owing, a refund cheque will usually be included with the notice of assessment; if there is an amount owing, payment instructions will be enclosed.
Letter of Employment – This is a letter that you may request from your employer stating that you are currently employed with their company. This letter will outline your position within the company, your wage or salary, and the length of time you have worked there. This letter must be provided on the company letterhead.
Real Property Report (RPR)– A real property report is a map of your house in relation to your neighbours’ houses. It shows property lines, and if applicable shed and deck perimetres. A real property report cannot be used if there have been changes made affecting any dimensions to the property, such as additions or changes made to a deck or fence or shed. The real property report must be less than 20 years old. If changes have been made, or the report is too old, the closing lawyer can order a new, updated one for you.
Title – A title is a legal document that is registered and filed with land titles that conveys ownership or interest in a property and lists encumbrances. Whenever there is a change on the title to your property you should receive a pink copy of the updated title from land titles via mail.
Legal Documentation
Statement of Claim – A Statement of Claim (SOC) is the legal document filed in court by the Plaintiff (lending institution) that formally commences a lawsuit. The SOC outlines the remedy sought by the plaintiff against the defendant (borrower).
Statement of Defense – After receiving the SOC, you have the option to file a statement of defence (within 20 days of receiving the SOC) to defend against the lawsuit. You will need to provide reasons why the lender should not proceed in their action. If you do decide to file a statement of defence, you will need to be involved in all the steps of the process, and it will increase the time and costs. In most cases, a statement of defense will not stop a lawsuit by the lender because they have records showing that you once signed for the mortgage and they did indeed advance money to you. If you have other reasons to believe you should file a statement of defense this would be the stage to identify those reasons.
Affidavit of Default – This court document is filed by the plaintiff (ie: the lender’s lawyer) to provide the court with specific evidence as to the timeline of events, and an exact amount of principal, interest arrears and other costs that are due and owing.
Affidavit of Value – This court document is filed by the plaintiff to provide the court with evidence of the value of your property.
Application for Redemption Order – This court document is filed by the plaintiff to provide the defendant (ie: the homeowner/borrower) the opportunity to plead a case to the court prior to the court awarding the plaintiff a Redemption Order, which is the next stage in the foreclosure process.
Redemption Order – The Redemption Order (RO) agreed to by the court specifies the time to be allotted for the defendant to pay the full sum owed to the plaintiff. If the amount ordered to the plaintiff is not paid by the ‘redemption date’ , the court will allow the plaintiff to list the property for sale to reclaim the debt/arrears owed. Depending on the amount of equity remaining in the property (as determined for the Affidavit of Value), the listing could be advertised and completed quickly by the Court itself (termed Judicial Posting), or it could be longer via a more traditional 3 month listing on the MLS system using a lender appointed and court supported realtor.
