B.C. family moves to Edmonton, finds newly purchased home heavily damaged by fire
Global News
A Courtenay, B.C., family moved to Edmonton to find their newly purchased home did not come as advertised.
Joeline and Steven Dean had wanted to explore downtown Edmonton at some point. They never imagined they’d be living there, indefinitely.
“The littlest one keeps asking when we’re going home,” Joeline told Global News from the lobby of a Sandman Hotel on Monday.
Earlier this year, the Deans, who have three children, made the decision to move to Edmonton from Courtenay, B.C., for affordability and medical reasons.
“I was telling the kids, ‘It’s going to be a great adventure. We’re going to get daddy the help he needs,'” Joeline said.
The Deans scouted the market and settled on a home in the Alberta Avenue area, north of downtown. Their realtor even drove by the front of the home before the big move to check if everything was OK, and from the sidewalk, everything seemed fine. The realtor did not check around back.
The Deans arrived in the city Friday following a two-day road trip to find a notice from Edmonton Fire Rescue Services on their front door.
“We’re like, ‘Well, no one told us about fire damage. Is it a little damage or a lot of damage?’ We go in and it’s a lot of damage,” said Joeline.
“The kitchen is gone. There’s water damage in the bathroom because a pipe burst. What was supposed to be our son’s bedroom is gone.”