A real estate transaction refers to the process of buying, selling, or refinancing property. It involves legally transferring the ownership of real estate from one party to another. This can include residential, commercial properties, or vacant land. Real estate transactions encompass various legal and financial aspects and require careful attention to detail to ensure a smooth and successful transfer of property rights.

An attorney plays a crucial role in real estate purchases or sales. They provide legal guidance and ensure that all necessary steps and legal requirements are followed. For buyers, an attorney will conduct a thorough review of the property's title, assess any potential issues, and guide them through the negotiation and closing process. For sellers, an attorney will assist in preparing and reviewing contracts, addressing any legal concerns, and ensuring a smooth transfer of ownership.

 A title review is a critical step in any real estate transaction. It involves examining the history of the property's ownership and verifying that the seller has clear and marketable title rights to the property. By conducting a thorough title review, an attorney can help prevent potential legal disputes or complications down the line, protecting the buyer's interests and providing peace of mind.  

A real estate purchase lawyer in Ontario represents the seller's interests throughout the transaction process. Their role includes various tasks, such as preparing and reviewing the purchase agreement, ensuring compliance with legal obligations, and addressing any legal issues that may arise. Their objective is to protect the seller's rights, facilitate a smooth transaction, and ensure all legal requirements are met in accordance with Ontario's real estate laws.

When you decide to sell your home, we will do a title search on your home to make sure there are no defects. We will also draft the deed of the home for the buyer, calculate any closing costs you have to pay, and draft a Statement of Adjustments for you. On closing day, we’ll facilitate the financial transaction and wire you the funds for what’s leftover, after paying off anything you owed on your mortgage, your real estate agent’s fees, legal fees, etc.

If you’re buying a home, you’ll want to start working with a real estate lawyer as soon as you sign the agreement of purchase and sale. From thereafter, our job is to: conduct a title search, get title insurance in place, register the home in your name, draw up a Statement of Adjustments, and facilitate the financial transactions on closing day. Oh, and then we’ll give you the lockbox code to get your keys your new home!

If you’re refinancing, our job is to conduct a title search, to ensure it’s clear of defects; this protects both you and your lender. After that, we will register the new mortgage amount and facilitate the rest of the financial transaction. When you refinance, we draft up a Trust Ledger Statement instead of a Statement of Adjustments; it’s essentially the same financial document, but your transaction is only with the bank – not another buyer or seller.

Title registration is simply the process of changing the title of the home from the seller’s name to yours. Title insurance, on the other hand, is intended to protect you from liability should an undetected title defect be found. For instance, if there is a violation of the municipal zoning bylaws, an existing work order, property taxes in arrears or encroachments on adjoining property, this could affect your title. Both title insurance fees and registration fees are paid for on closing day.

Disbursements are essentially the expenses incurred by us working with you, and anything we have to pay ahead of time on your behalf; this can include couriers, banking fees, transaction levies, government filings, and any searches we have to complete that come with a cost attached. Legal fees are what you pay us. Disbursements are usually identical throughout law firms across Ontario as lawyers are prohibited to profit from them.

For buyers and sellers, you’ll want to call contact us as soon as you have a signed agreement of purchase and sale. We will explain all the legalese in plain terms. You’ll need to talk to us again on closing day, to finish the transaction. If you’re refinancing, as soon as you get a new mortgage commitment signed with your new lender.