Please send all real estate documents to: realestate@goadandgoad.com
We handle a broad range of property law and real estate transactions. We take a practical, business-oriented approach to our clients’ needs and value the many long-term client relationships we have built over the decades we’ve been in practice. We are grateful for the trust our clients place in us and understand the responsibility that comes with that trust.
Our clients include businesses, individual property owners, property managers and a range of public and private sector entities.
We have a significant practice in residential real estate. We are often in the enviable position of representing clients for their very first (and often both worrisome and exciting) experience of purchasing their first home. On the other end of the spectrum, we assist clients with purchasing their dream home, cottage or condominium.
Similarly, we represent individuals and corporate entities with the sale of their homes, cottages and condominiums and/or businesses.
You will be required to produce 2 pieces of valid Identification (ID): The first being a valid piece of photo ID, when you attend at our office to sign up your real estate documents. The photo ID may be a valid driver’s license, valid passport or a landed immigrant card. The second ID can be a social insurance card, credit card or similar. Your ID must be produced and will be photocopied by our staff when you attend our office for your appointment, in order for your transaction to be completed. If you have any questions with regard to appropriate ID, please contact our office immediately to clarify.
When you buy land or an interest in land in Ontario, you pay Ontario's land transfer tax. Land includes any buildings, buildings to be constructed, and fixtures (such as light fixtures, built-in appliances and cabinetry).
Feel free to use our Land Transfer Tax Calculator to provide you with an estimate of the tax payable by you for your next purchase.
The following information originates from the Ontario Ministry of Finance website and is provided for informational purposes: http://www.fin.gov.on.ca/en/tax/ltt/
When you acquire a property or land, you pay land transfer tax to the province when the transaction closes.
Land transfer tax is normally based on the amount paid for the land, in addition to the amount remaining on any mortgage or debt assumed as part of the arrangement to buy the land.
In some cases, land transfer tax is based on the fair market value of the land, for example, where:
If you are a first-time homebuyer, you may be eligible for a refund of all or part of the land transfer tax.
Read: Land transfer tax refund for first-time homebuyers
Local municipalities charge a tax on the residential or business property you own. If you have questions about municipal property tax, contact your local municipality. If your property is located in an unorganized territory (an area without municipal organization) of Ontario, property tax is collected through the provincial land tax program administered by the Provincial Land Tax Office in Thunder Bay.
More about provincial land tax
The harmonized sales tax (HST) applies to newly constructed homes or substantially renovated homes, but does not apply to resale homes. Buyers of new homes may receive a rebate of up to $24,000 of the provincial portion (8%) of the HST. If you have any questions about the HST rebate please contact the Canada Revenue Agency at 1 800 959-1953.
Read: GST/HST New Housing Rebate
The tax rates calculated on the value of the consideration are:
The land transfer tax rate is the same for residents and non-residents of Canada.
Use the table below to calculate land transfer tax.
| For the Value of the Consideration | Formula | |
|---|---|---|
| up to and including $55,000 | LTT = VC × 0.005 | |
| above $55,000 and up to $250,000 | LTT = (VC × 0.01) - $275 | |
| above $250,000, for property other than residential | LTT = (VC × 0.015) - $1,525 | |
| above $250,000 up to $400,000, for residential property | LTT = (VC × 0.015) - $1,525 | |
| for residential property above $400,000 | LTT = (VC × 0.02) - $3,525 |
Where a construction contract is entered into as part of the arrangement relating to the purchase of a vacant lot or lots, the value of the consideration is calculated on the:
All monies must be expressed in Canadian dollars. The land transfer tax statements must set out the value of the consideration in Canadian dollars. The date of currency conversion should be the:
Read on: Calculating land transfer tax
Ontario's land transfer tax is payable when the transfer is registered.
If the transfer is not registered within 30 days of closing, you must submit a Return on the Acquisition of a Beneficial Interest in Land form to the Ministry of Finance, along with the payment of tax within 30 days after the closing date.
Download: Return on the Acquisition of a Beneficial Interest in Land [PDF - 1.81 MB]
Some person(s) do not pay land transfer tax on certain transfers of land. The exemptions include:
A deferral of land transfer tax may be available when land is transferred between affiliated corporations, and notice of the transfer is not registered on title.
Bill 14 Building Opportunity and Securing Our Future Act amended the Land Transfer Tax Act to set out a general anti-avoidance rule. This rule applies to transactions that are completed after May 1, 2014. It also applies to transactions that occurred on or before May 1, 2014 if they are part of a series of transactions that is completed after May 1, 2014.
If you overpaid land transfer tax, you can ask the Ministry of Finance for a refund. Here’s how:
There is no time restriction where a refund is requested for land transfer tax paid on registration of a notice or caution where the transfer contemplated in the agreement referred to in the notice or caution did not take place.
First time homebuyers refunds requests must be made within 18 months after the date of the transfer.
All other refund requests must be made within 4 years after the date of payment of the tax.
Read: Refunds of land transfer tax
Land transfer tax refund for first-time homebuyers
Affidavit, re. Conveyance to Family Business Corporation - LT101
Authorizing or Cancelling a Representative
Ontario Land Transfer Tax Refund Affidavit for First-Time Purchasers of Eligible Homes
Return on the Acquisition of a Beneficial Interest in Land
Effect of the Harmonized Sales Tax on the Value of the Consideration
Land Transfer Tax and Fractional Ownership Resorts