Dower Act is one of the most important topics in real estate and is a crucial topic for someone who is looking to become a Real Estate Agent in Alberta.
Dower Act is the regulation by the Real Estate Board of Canada that safeguards the rights of the untitled spouse in a matrimonial home. Practically, Dower Consent is a section that you see in most Real Estate Agreements and Contracts. It gives the right to exercise dower act to the untitled spouse in a matrimonial home.
Let’s understand the concept of Dower Act and Dower Consent with reference to where we use it, how we use it and why we use it!
What is Dower Act?
We can define Dower Act as –
Dower Act protects the rights of the untitled spouse in a matrimonial home.
It means if there is one person on the title and that person is married, the rights of the other spouse that is not on the title will be protected with Dower Act. The titled spouse i.e., the person who is listed on the Certificate of Title of the property will not be able to dispose off the property. In other words, they will not be able to sell, mortgage, or lease the property without the consent of the untitled spouse.
Titled and Untitled Spouse
Titled and Untitled Spouse refers to married/common-law partners that are either titled in the property ownership document, otherwise known as the Certificate of Title.
When you are listed as an owner (or a co-owner) in the Certificate of Title, you are considered to be a Titled Spouse. An Untitled Spouse is the one who is not listed as an owner or a co-owner in the Certificate of Title document.
In case of married or common law partners, either both or anyone can be on the certificate of title. The law requires at least one of the names to be listed on the certificate of title.
Dower Consent and Dower Release
Dower Consent and Dower Release options under the Dower Act that allows you to exercise your dower rights in a matrimonial home.
Both of the options are used in many of the Written Service Agreements used in Real Estate transactions. The example shown in the video shows an example of a Seller Representation Agreement and a Purchase Contract where dower rights were exercised, and Dower Consent was used as there was only one owner in the Certificate of Title for the property.
Let’s understand the example again to see how the Dower Consent was used in the Seller Representation Agreement as well as in the Purchase Agreement with the situation explained in the video.
Hope this helps you to understand the concept of Dower Act and the use of Dower Consent in Real Estate transactions.
We also have other important videos including where we share a glimpse of our Training Sessions. One of them is – Understanding Seller Representation Agreement. Check it out here!
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