BUYING EX-POT HOME?

Real Estate Agents Needn't Tell

Did your suburban sanctuary once harbour a marijuana grow operation? You
might never know -- unless you chance upon toxic mould, odd holes in walls
or peculiar wiring.

Realtors do not have to tell buyers the home they want was a grow house.
That is, unless the agent believes the operation may have damaged the
property, said Doug Brown, Manitoba Securities Commission's director of
legal and enforcement. The MSC licenses real estate agents in Manitoba.

HONEST FASHION

"The law doesn't say 'thou shall disclose this or shouldn't disclose that,'
" Brown said. "What the law does say is to disclose things that are
relevant that may affect the property."

The agent has to represent the house in an honest fashion, he said.

Houses that contain grow ops are surfacing from the North End to Whyte Ridge.

The owner could put the property back on the market, said Garry Solkoski,
housing and buildings administrator for the city.

"The owner still owns the building. The city doesn't have the authority to
tap a homeowner on the shoulder and take their property," he said.

Sellers may not tell their agent everything. And a house's sordid history
may be several buyers in the past. Agents can't disclose what they don't
know, Brown said.

There are "definitive health connotations" for people who move into homes
that were grow ops, Solkoski said.

Those problems may not be obvious.

"Some of the mould and pesticide residue might not be apparent," he said.
"Chemicals can be absorbed into porous surfaces."

Grow op homes must be cleaned by professionals familiar with the problem,
said Jared Adams, spokesman for the Canadian Real Estate Association.

The Insurance Bureau of Canada estimates the average repair bill for a grow
op house is up to $80,000.

Adams said operators re-wire houses and monkey with hydro hook-ups to
provide power for hydroponic equipment, causing fire hazards.

Chemicals used to maintain the operation can be flammable, corrosive and
cancer causing, he said.

Operators may cut holes into walls for electrical lines and ventilation,
Adams said.

Some houses are booby-trapped by owners concerned their plants will be
discovered, he said.

Grow houses are an "extreme concern" for realtors, Adams said.

CREA released a 24-page book last year on how to recognize a grow op house,
or spot a customer who plans to build one.

"It's our most popular publication," he said.

Realtors are debating whether property values in a neighbourhood are
affected by the discovery of a grow op, Adams said.

"It would be better for me to say it's certainly a safety concern. Any
criminal activity is going to have an element of danger."