Pubdate: Tue, 06 May 2014
Source: Winnipeg Free Press (CN MB)
Copyright: 2014 Winnipeg Free Press
Contact: http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/opinion/send_a_letter
Website: http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/502
Author: Murray McNeill
Page: B4

REGISTRY OF GROW-OP HOMES URGED FOR PROVINCE

REALTORS want the province's help to protect home buyers from 
unwittingly purchasing a property that once housed a marijuana 
grow-op or drug lab.

The Manitoba Real Estate Association said Monday it has requested a 
meeting with the government to discuss the establishment of a central 
registry where police would list properties that have been used as 
drug-production sites. It also wants the province to establish 
remediation standards for cleaning up such properties.

"A drug-production-site registry is a classic example of good use of 
public authority - to provide standardized information that enables 
citizens to make informed judgments," Claude Davis, chairman of the 
MREA's grow-ops task force, said in a statement.

The association said indoor drug-production sites are being found on 
a weekly basis in Manitoba. It said grow-ops and synthetic drug labs 
can create a health or safety hazard due to the presence of mould, 
toxic residues and gases in the home.

MREA spokesman Lorne Weiss said there also have been instances where 
holes were drilled through the foundation wall to add a power line to 
the house to circumvent the hydro meter, and holes were drilled in 
the roof to provide additional ventilation, creating potentially 
dangerous structural issues.

"So it's not unreasonable (in cases like that) to expect tens of 
thousands of dollars in repairs to bring a house back up to 
acceptable standards," he added.

Tom Fulton, broker/owner of Re/Max Performance Realty in Winnipeg, 
said he'd welcome the establishment of a central registry.

Fulton said his company currently has a new listing for an older 
Winnipeg bungalow that housed a grow-op in 2005. Although the home 
has sold twice since then, that fact was never disclosed prior to 
either sale. The current owner only learned about it in 2012 from a 
neighbour, and it's likely going to reduce the price he gets for the home.

"Obviously the house had been cleaned up nicely. During both 
(earlier) listings, it had shown well, with no indication of there 
having been grow-op activities," he said. "It illustrates the problem 
of not having a registry and not having a way to easily check that."

The MREA said although the RCMP and the Winnipeg Police Service 
collect information and compile lists on such properties, the details 
are scattered in various files and databases and not fully accessible 
to the public in a clear, up-to-date way. The WPS's list, for 
example, only dates back for one year. And while real estate agents 
are required to disclose if they're aware a property has been used as 
a drug production site, "without accurate and timely information, 
doing so is not always possible," the association said.

Weiss said the association would like to draw up an action plan this 
summer and have legislation introduced as early as this fall.

"There's no advantage to delaying this. Other provinces are working 
towards it."

The Manitoba government issued a statement saying it was looking 
forward to meeting with the MREA to discuss its concerns. It also 
said it was already planning to introduce legislation to better 
protect consumers, including regulating home inspectors. But it 
didn't say when legislation might be forthcoming.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom