Owning Your Own Home
The Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) provides housing information to newcomers in 7 languages on the following topics:
- buying your first home
- what to look for when buying a home
- making an offer and closing the deal
- choosing the right mortgage
- what to do if you are having trouble making mortgage payments
They also provide a workbook called Home Buyers Checklist. These are some of the topics the workbook covers:
- what kind of home you want
- how much you can afford
- where to get advice
For more information, visit cmhc-schl.gc.ca and click on the links in this order:
- consumers
- buying a home
- newcomers
- choose your language
Property Taxes
All property owners pay municipal taxes. Depending on where you live, you may have to pay separately for these services:
- fire
- police
- sewer
- solid waste such as garbage, compost, and recycling
You can pay your tax bill through your bank as part of your mortgage. Or you can pay it separately. Tax bills are usually sent once or twice a year.
Water and Sewer
If you live in town, your water and sewer services are managed by your town. You pay for these services separately. You may need to create an account to pay your water bill, depending on where you live.
Not every municipality offers water services. Some rely on well water. If you have a well on your property, you need to know where it is. You also need to know if it is a drilled or a dug well. If you are not connected to a municipal sewer system, you should have a septic system on your property. You need to know what kind of septic system you have and where it is.
Many residents of the Municipality of the County of Colchester use well water and septic systems.
Waste Management
Colchester Waste Resource Management (CWRM) collects residential waste every two weeks. This includes garbage, recyclables, and compost.
What Goes Where?
You must sort your waste before putting it out for collection. You can download a free app that will tell you these things:
- what goes where
- what gets picked up when
- It will also remind you when to put your waste out.
To find out more, visit colchester.ca/sorting-guides