She helped us buy the house. Before signing the purchase documents, I asked her many detailed questions. She told us that the house was very well-maintained, needed no repairs at all, had never had pets, all the windows were in good condition, there were no air leaks in any windows, the house was not humid, and it was in move-in ready condition. She pointed to a water stain on the first-floor ceiling and said there had been a leaking issue, but it had been fully fixed. I asked about gaps or cracks in the exterior window caulking, mortar cracking or missing on the window sills, and other potential issues. She said, "That's nothing, and there's no need to do anything." We trusted her judgment and knowledge. She advised us that there was no need to inspect the house because no problems would be found. We insisted on an inspection, so she highly recommended an inspector, claiming he was a very good friend of hers and the best inspector in Ottawa. We trusted her again. The final inspection report we received listed no significant issues, except for a minor one that could easily be fixed by us for less than $20. After moving in, however, we discovered that the inspector never included the following problems in the report: a broken toilet that caused leaks to the first-floor ceiling and surrounding tile cracks, mold, a nonfunctional return air vent, a broken exhaust fan, deteriorating exterior window caulking, falling mortar on the window sill, broken masonry joints, broken casement window operator, a leaking kitchen faucet that caused damage under the laminate, cracked garage floor with an uneven surface, cracks in the garage foundation, loose covers on light switches and outlets, an exterior door with a large gap in its lower section, the furnace and air conditioner are approaching the end of their life expectancy, grading issue. Before buying the house, we clearly told the agent that our biggest concerns were the house being 'dirty' and 'broken.' We emphasized this to her many times, both verbally and in writing. We made it clear that the house needed to be deep-cleaned and that no repairs should be necessary. She acknowledged this throughout the process. Before closing, we accidentally discovered on our own that the water heater's monthly rental fee had not been paid by the seller but by the previous owner. This shocked us, and I told the agent that the seller must reimburse the previous owner to avoid future conflicts. She assured us that the seller had already promised to do so. On closing day, we moved in and found that one of the toilets on the second floor was wobbling. I called the agent immediately, and she told us the transaction was complete and that we would have to repair it ourselves. We were extremely stressed. The house was filthy—grease and dirt everywhere, and animal hair was attached to everything. I developed a severe allergic reaction and scratched my body badly. We were shocked by how many house centipedes there were on the second floor, as we had never encountered them in our previous home. This was my first time in my life seeing these bugs. We did our best to clean the house and also hired a cleaning company, but even after that, we still found animal hair here and there. Later, we called a plumber, who found that the flange under the toilet was cracked into two pieces, causing the toilet to no longer be secure. The wood around the area had been fully soaked with water, and some parts of it had turned blackish-brown. This explained the water stain on the first-floor ceiling. The agent had lied when she said the leaking had been fixed. A few months later, I contacted the previous owner, and they confirmed they had never received the money from the seller. Before the closing date, I had once confronted the agent about her dishonesty, and she cried hard in front of the seller’s house, which shocked me. She said that if I felt sorry, I should send her an apology by text, which I did. I didn't realize at the time that this was part of her trick until later, when I filed a complaint with RECO. The neighbor argued with us, claiming they had never agreed to build a fence and that the seller had known this, which I should have known before buying the house. However, the agent had lied and told us that the neighbor was happy and willing to build a fence. We are still working on various repairs. When the outside temperature drops, we see heavy moisture between the window panes. The agent had lied when she said there was no air leak issue with all the windows. We also found that one of the exterior wall vent covers had its mesh chewed through by animals. Sometimes, we hear scratching sounds inside the house. Many of these repairs cost anywhere from a few thousand to several thousand dollars each if done properly. Agent said one of their friends who owns a landscaping company could help us fix the grading issue with gravel and soil for only $800. Later the owner of the landscaping company confirmed with me that the agent had lied about the fact that $800 only for material, $2000 plus is what the actual cost for our work. We have already spent a lot of money addressing some problems, but many remain. Every time I think about what happened to us and what is still going on, it boils my blood. I filed a complaint with RECO. Aside from the agent pushing all the blame onto the inspector, she used my words against me and denied everything she had said verbally. What I learned from this agent and RECO is that, for anything important, conversations with the agent must be in writing, or she will later deny everything she said verbally. If she refuses to put things in writing or offers excuses (e.g., "too busy to write it down"), then you should know something is wrong or being hidden. And don’t trust the agent until you’ve interviewed at least a dozen. If the agent asks you to say something positive about her, be extra cautious—she may use those words against you if you later discover the ugly truth about the house you bought. - CJ