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8 economist sunsuntribune saturday march u 2006 bereaved fainiltes of ontario 9058986265 york region bfpyrbellrietca wwwbfoyrcom an association of families who have experienced the death of a loved one this message brought to you asa community service of the economist sum homeowners can exercise vigilance us to cut down on real estate fraud rouge valley retirement residence our services include freedom youre still going to live life your way and were here to help if you need us i 1 1 iiiw 11 n mi 111 1 swing concert saturday march 1 1th 700pm 830pm enjoy a wonderful evening with stellar performances by brian rose little big band rouge valley retirement residence 5958 1 6 ave markham on call 9052941114 a chartwell y seniors housing reit wwwchartwellreitca by linda johnson staff writer a home is the most valuable asset youll ever own in a home you have an investment you can rely on when you retire or as a source of money in an emergency problem is fraud artists also know this real estate title fraud is very real and it puts credit card fraud on the backburner once extremely difficult to perpetrate its a scam that began a few years ago as a major prob lem for banks and mortgage companies but the biggest loser is the homeowner who may suddenly be saddled with a huge phony mortgage typically in this form of iden tity fraud the thief forges a trans fer deed registers it in his own name discharges the mortgage and then borrows against the fully paidup house title fraud took off with the introduction of electronic regis tration toronto real estate lawyer sheldon n silverman said in the old days someone would come in and have to sign an affidavit of execution and you would see them he said now these transactions are conducted by a law clerk who has a password to teranet a pri vate company that holds a monopoly on the registration of land tides in ontario most of the registry offices are now computerized so the clerk has access to deeds and discharges of mortgages just through the computer mr sil verman said its too easy theres a tremendous room for fraud sometimes the fraud is per petrated in person in one prominent case the lawyer recalled a man who had bought a house with his wife returned 20 years later wanting to take out a mortgage his girlfriend posed as his wife and the lawyer unable to remember the wife carried out the request the lawyer was sued success fully for not knowing his client in rare cases the fraud artist aims to sell the house said william g tatham a real estate lawyer with tatham pearson in scarborough a prime target here are home owners who are absent for long periods such as snowbirds first the thieves figure out the house is not being monitored by friends or relatives the mail is piling up or the snow is not being shovelled then they set about the process of actually selling the house posing as the owners they gain access show it to prospective purchasers sell it and away they go with the money so the surprised snow birds come back to find some one living in their house he said to avoid that banks and lawyers have tightened up pro cedures requiring a copy of a drivers licence with a photo on it as well as a copy of a credit card i think theres going to be a lot less title fraud the lawyers have wised up alot theres more vigilance mr silverman said an easy and not too expen sive way to protect yourself is to buy title insurance a concept that came to canada 15 to 20 years ago the main insurers are first canadian tide stewart title chicago tide and the only canadian provider tide plus provided by the law society of upper canada the insurer hires and pays for a lawyer and investigator who will try to determine what hap pened in almost all cases the insured ones end up with their tide restored said susan leslie vicepresident of claims and underwriting at first canadian tide the village grocer 6th year presenting sponsor of 3r two decades evan macdonald and his family have been a stabilizing presence at the village grocer in unionville its a social meeting place where neighbours and friends reconnect while choosing from some of the finest products available when you have the choice of an impersonal big box store or the attentive customer service of an established communityminded business the choice is easy and when the choice includes a tempting array of fresh flowers produce spe cialty products baked goods fine meats and prepared foods theres no comparison macdonalds motherinlaw doreen parker has added to her repertoire of famous recipes with an expanded range of fresh and frozen pre pared foods it may be a sign of the times when the popularity of convenient dishes indicates a busy lifestyle but chances are most customers just enjoy her delicious cooking macdonald followed in his fathers footsteps as a butcher but his love for all kinds of great food helped him to fill the shelves of a whole store what makes the store unique is that most prod ucts are made fresh on the premises son thomas now works parttime at the village grocer and macdonalds wife cathy and his other two children kate and dylan are always popping in and out with more man 100 employees at the village grocer youre sure to get much more than a personal greet ing for the sixth year in a row the village grocer is the presenting sponsor of the markham stouffville hospital foundation gala macdonald along with his buddy kevin thistle of angus glen golf course are cochairs on the auction committee and are in charge of auction excitement at the kit kat gala this year last year the premier mystery package was so full of prizes including a trip for two to the masters golf tournament by pri vate jet that macdonald says the winners may have considered retiring just so they could find the time to take advantage of it all this year there will be at least four different mystery packages each with a different theme bring your wallets says macdonald we want to raise at least 50000 and were not leaving until we do teaser ads will wet appetites but the full con tents of each mystery package will not be revealed until the night of the auction macdonald suggests that it may be a good idea to start forming alliances with friends and co workers since there is so much loot in each package to share it might serve to increase your bidding power with a team effort macdonald tackles every project he undertakes with gusto but his family and business are his top priorities plans are still in the works to relo cate the village grocer the new store will be somewhat larger and much better according to macdonald currently the kennedy road loca tion serves up a variety of specialties and the assortment is always changing and being updat ed macdonald admits hes a real flower guy and is looking forward to an expanded botanical area the pace for moving to the new store has been slower than macdonald would like but as with all good things- itll be well worth the wait b iviarkham stouffville hospital to order your tickets for friday april 7th 2006 or for sponsorship opportunities call 9054727373 ext 6705 bgb