35Failure to complete purchase or construction

##### 35 Failure to complete purchase or construction (1) This section applies where assistance has been paid in respect of a dwelling whose purchase or construction had not been completed on the date on which the application was made. (2) Where: (a) in the case of a dwelling the purchase of which had not been completed on the date on which the application was made: (i) the purchase of the dwelling is not completed within 3 months after the date specified in the application as the date on which it was expected that the purchase would be completed or, if no date was so specified, within 3 months after the date of the first payment of assistance; or (ii) the contract for the purchase of the dwelling is discharged otherwise than by performance of the contract; or (b) in the case of a dwelling the construction of which had not been completed on the date on which the application was made: (i) the construction of the dwelling is not completed within 6 months after the date specified in the application as the date on which it was expected that the construction would be completed or, if no date was so specified, within 6 months after the date of the first payment of assistance; (ii) if the dwelling was being, or was to be, constructed by a building‑contractor—the contract for the construction of the dwelling is discharged otherwise than by performance of the contract; or (iii) before the expiration of 12 months after the prescribed date, the applicant, in the case of a sole applicant, does not become the owner, or none of the applicants, in the case of joint applicants, becomes the owner, of the dwelling; and the Secretary is not forthwith notified in writing of the fact, then the sole applicant, or each of the joint applicants, as the case may be, is guilty of an offence punishable, upon conviction, by a fine not exceeding $1,000 or imprisonment for a period not exceeding 6 months, or both. (3) Subsection (2) is an offence of strict liability.