Legal warranty against hidden defects

After a long search, Myriam finally found the home of her dreams.
A single-family home, with garage and in-ground pool.
Once the inspection was complete, she signed the deed of sale and moved in with her two daughters.
A year later, all hell broke loose.
While having renovations carried out, she noticed that the house’s foundations were crumbling, that water was seeping into the garage and that the pool was leaking.
Repairs will cost tens of thousands of dollars.
However, these problems had not been brought to his attention at the time of purchase.

These may be hidden defects.
A hidden defect is one that was not apparent at the time of sale, was unknown to the buyer and existed at the time of purchase.

Did you know that Myriam is covered by the warranty against hidden defects?
In other words, it’s protected by law.
This warranty against hidden defects, also known as the “legal warranty of quality”, applies to the building and everything attached to it – in Myriam’s case, the garage and pool.
In principle, the seller is responsible for hidden defects discovered in the immovable, even if he was unaware of them at the time of sale.
Myriam can therefore ask the seller to correct the hidden defect, or obtain compensation to cover the cost of repairs to the building.

To do so, Myriam must notify the seller in writing of the discovery of the latent defect in the building, within a reasonable time of its discovery.

On the other hand, if the contract of sale indicated that it was a sale without a warranty of quality against hidden defects, Myriam would have no recourse against the seller.

If you are faced with such a situation, we invite you to contact us to find out more and protect your rights.