Toronto is the only municipality in Ontario where a buyer pays land transfer tax twice, and a city where the condominium status certificate is a central part of the legal review alongside title. We close purchases and sales across the city.
Our office sits just north of Steeles, minutes from North York and a straight run down Yonge or the 404. Clients can sign with us in person at our Thornhill office, or remotely if you prefer.
Every residential owner files an annual occupancy declaration, including owners who lived in the home all year.
The Vacant Home Tax requires an annual declaration from every residential owner, whether or not the home was ever vacant, and an unfiled declaration can result in the property being treated as vacant. It belongs on the closing file rather than the mortgage file, and it is far easier to handle before closing than after.
On a condominium purchase the status certificate is a central part of the review, alongside the title search.
A large share of the city's transactions are condominiums, where the status certificate is an important part of the legal review alongside the title search. It shows the reserve fund's health, any special assessment on the horizon, whether the unit is in arrears, and what the declaration actually permits: pets, rentals, parking, and short-term occupancy included. Reading it properly takes time that a firm closing date does not always leave.
Encroachments, undocumented additions and unclosed permits are common, and cheaper to resolve before closing than on it.
Much of Toronto's housing stock predates modern surveys. Older properties bring encroachments, undocumented additions, laneway and garden suite conversions built under recent zoning changes, and work completed without a permit ever being closed out. Each of these is resolvable, and each is far cheaper to resolve before the closing date than on it.
Two land transfer taxes
Toronto buyers pay the provincial tax and the City of Toronto municipal tax on the same purchase. Both are due on closing.
A buyer in Toronto pays two land transfer taxes on the same purchase: the provincial tax that applies everywhere in Ontario, and the City of Toronto municipal land transfer tax on top of it. Both are calculated on the purchase price using a graduated structure, and both are payable on closing rather than billed afterward.
First-time buyers may claim a rebate against each of them. The two rebates are applied for separately and have their own maximums. Toronto also applies additional higher rates to residential properties above the top provincial threshold, so the gap between a Toronto closing and a York Region closing widens as the price rises.
We review your agreement before the conditions come off, search title, and carry the file through to the day you get the keys.
We answer the buyer's requisitions, arrange the discharge of your existing mortgage, and account for every dollar leaving the transaction.
Whether you are moving lenders, taking equity out, or adding a second charge, we handle the registration and the discharge that follows it.
Adding a spouse, removing a name, transferring to family, or updating title after a death. Each one carries tax and mortgage consequences worth understanding first.
Builder agreements are written for the builder. We read yours as early as we can, and where a statutory rescission right applies, inside that window, while there is still something you can do about it.
In-person signing at our Thornhill office is our standard approach, and remote identity verification and document signing are available if you prefer. Remote signing changes how you meet with us, not the lawyer-led legal work performed on your closing.
We review the transaction and tell you what we need.
Searches, lender work and closing documents are handled by our team.
Sign at our Thornhill office, or remotely if you prefer. We confirm when the transaction closes.
We act on transactions across the city and its former municipalities, including:
Yes. The provincial land transfer tax applies to every Ontario purchase, and the City of Toronto charges its own municipal land transfer tax in addition to it. Both are due on closing. We calculate them on your statement of adjustments so the total is known well before the closing date rather than discovered on it.
Owners of residential property in Toronto are required to declare the occupancy status of the property each year, including owners who lived in the home the entire time. A missed declaration can result in the property being treated as vacant and taxed accordingly. Where a property changes hands mid-year, we address the declaration as part of the closing rather than leaving it to the calendar.
Where your agreement makes the purchase conditional on a satisfactory status certificate, the review period is set by the agreement itself, and is commonly measured from the date the certificate is actually delivered. It is a short window. Send us the agreement as soon as it is signed so the request goes out immediately and the review is not compressed into its final day.
Our Thornhill office is available for in-person signing, or if you prefer, we can complete identity verification and document signing remotely. Remote signing changes how you meet with us, not the lawyer-led legal work performed on your closing.
As soon as it is signed, and ideally while conditions are still outstanding. Once an agreement is firm, the terms are the terms. Almost everything a lawyer can usefully change about a transaction happens before that point.
Send us the agreement and we will tell you what the closing actually costs, both land transfer taxes included.
