The Toronto Vacant Home Tax Becomes a Lien, and Buyers Inherit It
Toronto’s Vacant Home Tax is 3% of assessed value. Fail to declare by April 30 and the property is deemed vacant. Unpaid, it becomes a lien the purchaser inherits.
What Title Insurance Does Not Cover, Which Is the List That Matters
Title insurance protects your ownership, not your house. Known defects, survey issues, contamination, zoning breaches you created and physical condition are all excluded.
Joint Tenants or Tenants in Common: The Line on Your Title That Overrides Your Will
Joint tenancy carries a right of survivorship that your will cannot override. It can be severed unilaterally, and separating does not sever it automatically.
The Condo Status Certificate: Six Things to Read First
Ontario condo corporations must produce a status certificate in 10 days for $100. What it discloses, the six checks that matter, and why waiving it is a bad trade.
Selling a Tenanted Property in Ontario: What Changed in September 2026
The tenancy survives the sale. Vacant possession needs a genuine s.49 purchaser, 60 days and one month’s compensation. Landlord own-use rules changed September 21, 2026.
The Bank of Mom and Dad Comes With a Catch
Bank of Canada research: 11% of Canadian mortgages are now co-signed by a parent, and 74% of those borrowers would not have qualified alone. The risks nobody discusses.
What a Legal Basement Apartment Actually Requires in Ontario
Ceiling height 1.95m, fire separation, egress windows, interconnected alarms and a permit. Bill 23 made three units as-of-right on most lots, and the code changed in 2025.
Divorce and the Matrimonial Home in Ontario: Four Rules That Surprise People
Neither spouse can sell a matrimonial home alone, both have equal possession rights, and you cannot deduct its date-of-marriage value. What Ontario’s Family Law Act actually says.
Selling a House After a Death in Ontario: The Order Things Actually Happen
Probate, the Certificate of Appointment, Estate Administration Tax and the 180 day return. The first $50,000 is exempt, which most online calculators still get wrong.
What Actually Causes Mortgage Arrears in Canada. It Is Not Rates.
Bank of Canada research finds the labour market, not interest rates, is the main causal driver of mortgage arrears. A 1 point rise in unemployment lifts arrears 0.1 points.