Invalid Tax Sale

[Pasmoso]

Hello,
I'm looking for some advice about a tax sale that I was involved in. The June 15th Ontario Gazette listed some properties in Central Elgin (30 minutes outside of London). The strange thing about the notice was that the offers had to be in by 3pm Monday, June 17th. It seemed strange that the properties would be listed in the gazette 2 days before the sale.
I found a house that looked interesting and spent the next 2 days doing the due diligence that is often discussed here. I got my offer in at 2pm on the Monday.
Two weeks later, I received a letter from a lawyer representing the municipality saying that the tax sale was invalid because the properties weren't advertised for the correct amount of time. My deposit was included with this letter.
Have any of you had to deal with this? If so, do I have any options in terms of fighting this?

Thanks in advance.

[ErnestBidder]

 A phone call to the treasurer would have saved you the rushing around. There is a minimum time period for advertising in the Gazette, and 2 days is not sufficient. You'll have to pick a new number for your next bid, but you will have to do some extra checking to make sure something new has not been registered against the property.
  Good luck.

[LarasDad]

Everyone interested in this "hobby" would be wise to avail themselves of the relavent legislation (which you can find at this link:

 http://www.e-laws.gov.on.ca/html/repealedstatutes/english/elaws_rep_statutes_90m60_e.htm ).

The specific dictum in this case is:

Advertisement
(2) (d) advertise the land for sale once in The Ontario Gazette and once a week for four weeks in a newspaper that, in the opinion of the treasurer, has such circulation within the municipality as to provide reasonable notice of the sale or, where there is no such newspaper, the treasurer shall post notice in the municipal office and one other prominent place in the municipality and the advertisement shall be in the prescribed form. R.S.O. 1990, c. M.60, s. 9 (2).

[As an aside to Ernest, it would appear that the Gazette listing was not the issue, since the legislation doesn't specify a time period -- I too was under the mistaken impression that the ad had to be listed at least 1 week in the Gazette, until I re-read 2.d above.]

[David1010]

Just for reference, the above link is to the repealed version.

The current version (April 2013)  is: http://www.e-laws.gov.on.ca/html/statutes/english/elaws_statutes_01m25_e.htm#BK439

[Rob]

Interpretation

371.  (1)  In this Part,

?cancellation price? means an amount equal to all the tax arrears owing at any time in respect of land together with all current real property taxes owing, interest and penalties thereon and all reasonable costs incurred by the municipality after the treasurer becomes entitled to register a tax arrears certificate under section 373 in proceeding under this Part or in contemplation of proceeding under this Part and may include,

(a) legal fees and disbursements,

(b) the costs of preparing an extension agreement under section 378,

(c) the costs of preparing any survey required to register a document under this Part, and

(d) a reasonable allowance for costs that may be incurred subsequent to advertising under section 379; (?co?t d?annulation?)

?environmental site assessment? means an investigation in relation to land to determine the environmental condition of the land, and includes a phase one environmental site assessment or phase two environmental site assessment, both within the meaning of Part XV.1 of the Environmental Protection Act; (??valuation environnementale de site?)

?mobile home? means a dwelling that is designed to be made mobile and that is assessed under the Assessment Act as part of the land on which it is situate; (?maison mobile?)

?municipality? means a local municipality; (?municipalit??)

?notice of vesting? means a notice of vesting prepared under section 379 and includes the title conferred by the registration of the notice of vesting; (?avis de d?volution?)

?public sale? means a sale by public auction or public tender conducted in accordance with this Part and the prescribed rules; (?vente publique?)

?real property taxes? means the amount of taxes levied on real property under this Act and the Education Act and any amounts owed under the Drainage Act, the Tile Drainage Act and the Shoreline Property Assistance Act with respect to the real property and includes any amounts deemed to be taxes by or under any other Act and any amounts given priority lien status by or under any Act; (?imp?ts fonciers?)

?spouse? means spouse as defined in subsection 1 (1) of the Family Law Act; (?conjoint?)

?tax arrears? means any real property taxes placed on or added to a tax roll that remain unpaid on January 1 in the year following that in which they were placed on or added to the roll; (?arri?r?s d?imp?ts?)

?tax deed? means a tax deed prepared under section 379 and includes the title conferred by the registration of the tax deed. (?acte d?adjudication?) 2001, c. 25, s. 371 (1); 2002, c. 17, Sched. A, ss. 72 (1), 73; 2006, c. 33, Sched. Z.3, s. 17.