Consumer Protection: New Homeowners Have Spoken

By NextHome Staff
April 21, 2017
New home owners have spoken.They’ve told us how their builders measure up, and they’ve chosen a select few who they believe should be recognized for excellent customer service.Yes, once again it’s that time of year when Tarion presents the Homeowners’ Choice Awards — the only awards that give Ontario’s new home owners the power to have their builder recognized for outstanding performance.I’ve certainly seen over the years how the experiences of new home buyers have had a powerful impact on the new home buying experience. Award winners set the industry standard for customer service, and that benefits home buyers across the province who rightly expect the same from their builder.The Homeowners’ Choice Awards are an important way to acknowledge that important relationship between consumer and home builder and to celebrate those builders who drive higher standards for customer service in Ontario and have such a positive impact on the building industry reputation generally.While our experience is that most builders take tremendous pride in their contribution to building healthy and vibrant communities, we know that there are a few builders who make this an extraordinary commitment year after year. In the process, they set a tremendously high bar for customer service.This year, Tarion has added a new award to help recognize these accomplished builders.With the inaugural Ernest Assaly Award, Tarion recognizes a few builders who not only receive high marks from their customers, but have also established a long and stellar building record, and demonstrated a commitment to building innovation and community involvement.This new award is named after Mr. Ernest Assaly, Tarion’s first Board Chair from 1976 to 1988. Assaly was also a leader in Ontario’s residential construction industry and a highly respected, award-winning builder who was a passionate voice for the builder’s warranty program.Ontario has more than 5,000 registered builders. Thirty-eight met our challenging eligibility criteria and were invited to make a full submission to Tarion. The finalists and recipient will be honoured in April this year alongside those builders recognized by their own customers for a Homeowners’ Choice Award.Both of these awards celebrate excellence in the industry and raise the bar for all builders.They showcase industry leaders who pour their heart and soul into the customer experience and the communities in which they build and live.The finalists for the Homeowner’s Choice Awards are: Small Volume Category (5-20 possessions per year):
  • Davenport Homes, Peterborough
  • Greene Homes, Kingston
  • JF Homes Construction Ltd., Strathroy
  • Lockwood Brothers Construction, Oxford Station
  • Luxart Homes Inc., Carleton Place
  • Macgregor Enterprises Ltd., Kincardine
Medium Volume Category (21-100 possessions per year):
  • Hayhoe Homes, St. Thomas
  • Klemencic Homes, Trenton
  • Neilcorp Homes, Almonte
  • Opus Homes, Vaughan
  • Talos Custom Homes Ltd., Richmond
  • Wrighthaven Homes Limited, Elora
Large Volume Category (More than 100 possessions per year):
  • Arista Homes Ltd., Vaughan
  • Mountainview Homes, Thorold
  • Tamarack Development Corp., Ottawa
  • Tartan Homes, Ottawa
  • The Daniels Corporation, Toronto
  • Tribute Communities, Pickering
High-Rise Category (More than 100 high-rise possessions per year):
  • Menkes Developments Ltd., Toronto
  • Onni Group, Toronto
  • Pratt Homes Barrie, Barrie
  • The Conservatory Group, Markham
  • The Daniels Corporation, Toronto
  • Tridel, Toronto
The finalists for the Ernest Assaly Award are:
  • Granite Homes, Guelph
  • Lockwood Brothers Construction, Oxford Station
  • Pinnacle Quality Homes, Mitchell
HOWARD BOGACH is president and CEO of Tarion Warranty Corp., a private corporation established to protect the rights of new homebuyers and to regulate new home builders.Tarion.com

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