Ontario's Most Affordable Real Estate Lawyer — Flat $999 Legal Fee

Most Ontario real estate lawyers charge between $1,500–$2,500 in legal fees alone for a standard home purchase — before disbursements, government fees, or land transfer tax. At Cheap Home Closings, our legal fee is a flat $999 for purchases, sales, and refinances up to $1M. Our disbursements are fixed at $540, so your controllable closing costs are always under $1,624. No surprises on closing day.

Disbursements are out-of-pocket costs your lawyer pays to third parties on your behalf — such as title searches, writ searches, courier fees, and wire transfer fees. Traditional firms often pass these through with variable markups, leading to surprise line items like "photocopy fees" or "admin charges." Our disbursements are fixed and capped at $540 — regardless of how many searches or transfers your file requires.

Yes. Our flat $999 legal fee applies to purchases, sales, and mortgage refinances. The fee applies to transactions up to $1,000,000. For properties above $1M, the fee increases by $50 per additional $100,000 — our calculator above calculates this automatically for your specific situation.

Our calculator covers all standard closing costs. Two optional third-party items may apply depending on your transaction: a Unity Software fee ($240) — used by certain lenders for mortgage instructions — and a government ID verification fee ($30) required in some closings. We always disclose these before your closing if they apply to your file. There are no surprise charges added after you retain us.

Ontario Land Transfer Tax (LTT) is a provincial tax paid by every home buyer in Ontario. It's calculated on a sliding marginal scale:

• 0.5% on the first $55,000
• 1.0% on $55,001 – $250,000
• 1.5% on $250,001 – $400,000
• 2.0% on $400,001 – $2,000,000
• 2.5% on amounts over $2,000,000

For a $700,000 home, your Ontario LTT would be approximately $9,475. Our calculator computes this in real time. First-time buyers can claim a rebate of up to $4,000.

If you buy a property within the geographic boundaries of the City of Toronto, you pay a second land transfer tax — the Toronto Municipal Land Transfer Tax (MLTT) — on top of the provincial Ontario LTT. The MLTT uses the same rate brackets as the provincial tax. Toronto also charges a municipal administration fee of $102.56 + HST ($115.89 total).

Buyers in Mississauga, Brampton, Vaughan, Markham, Richmond Hill, Etobicoke (former city), and all other GTA municipalities outside the City of Toronto do not pay the MLTT. First-time buyers in Toronto can claim an MLTT rebate of up to $4,475.

To qualify for the Ontario first-time homebuyer LTT rebate (up to $4,000), you must: (1) be a Canadian citizen or permanent resident; (2) be 18 years of age or older; (3) never have owned a home anywhere in the world; (4) occupy the home as your principal residence within 9 months of closing. If you are purchasing with a spouse or partner, they must also be a first-time buyer to claim the full rebate — otherwise the rebate is proportional. Our lawyer will confirm your eligibility during the closing process.

Title insurance is a one-time insurance premium that protects you and your mortgage lender against losses resulting from defects in the property's title — including title fraud, forgery, encroachments, unknown liens, zoning violations, and unpaid property taxes not found in searches. In Ontario, virtually all mortgage lenders require title insurance as a condition of funding your mortgage. Even cash buyers benefit significantly from the fraud and encroachment protection it provides.

Our current rate: $200 + HST for properties up to $750,000, then $0.75 per $1,000 of purchase price above $750,000.

Title insurance typically covers: (1) Title fraud — someone fraudulently mortgaging or selling your property; (2) Unknown encumbrances — liens, easements, or claims against the title not discovered before closing; (3) Encroachments — structures that violate boundary lines or setback requirements; (4) Zoning non-compliance — existing uses that violate local zoning bylaws; (5) Survey errors — mistakes in the legal description or survey; (6) Unpaid utility bills or property taxes that become a lien after closing. The policy remains in effect for as long as you own the property.

Yes. We offer fully virtual closings for Ontario real estate transactions using Law Society of Ontario-approved video conferencing and digital signing platforms. You can review, sign, and complete your closing package from anywhere in Canada — or internationally — with a valid government-issued ID and a stable internet connection. The entire process from receiving your APS to getting your keys can be completed without visiting our office.

You will typically need to deliver your closing funds — your down payment balance plus all closing costs (legal fees, disbursements, land transfer tax, title insurance) — 1–2 business days before your closing date. Funds must be delivered as a certified cheque, bank draft, or wire transfer to our trust account. We will provide you with a detailed Statement of Adjustments showing the exact amount owed, well before your closing date.

The Statement of Adjustments is a formal financial document prepared by your real estate lawyer that shows the exact net amount of money you owe (as a buyer) or receive (as a seller) on closing day. It includes the purchase price, your deposit, property tax adjustments, condo fee adjustments (if applicable), and all credits or debits between buyer and seller. This document is the definitive "final bill" for your closing — and it must balance to the cent.

Closings can be delayed for several reasons — lender delays in funding, title issues, missing documents, or failure to satisfy conditions. If a closing is delayed by one party, the other party may be entitled to compensation for carrying costs, storage, or accommodation. Your lawyer plays a critical role in communicating with all parties to resolve the delay and, if necessary, protecting your legal interests. We monitor closing day status actively and notify you of any issues as soon as they arise.

Ideally, as soon as your offer is accepted. Your lawyer needs time to review the Agreement of Purchase and Sale, conduct title searches, receive and review mortgage instructions from your lender, and prepare closing documents. Most transactions give you 30–90 days from offer acceptance to closing day — but the earlier you retain a lawyer, the more time there is to address any issues that arise. We can be retained and begin work within 24 hours of your offer being accepted.

In a mortgage refinance, your lawyer: (1) receives the mortgage instructions from your new lender; (2) reviews the terms of the new mortgage and prepares the security documents; (3) discharges your existing mortgage from the title; (4) registers the new mortgage against your property in the Ontario land registry; (5) coordinates with the new lender to ensure funds are advanced; and (6) provides a reporting letter confirming everything is complete. We handle refinances across Ontario for a flat $999 legal fee.

Yes, in some cases. Major chartered banks (TD, RBC, Scotiabank, CIBC, BMO) typically use standardized mortgage instruction platforms that are simpler to process. Non-bank lenders — including credit unions, monoline lenders, and private mortgage companies — often have more complex or unique instruction packages that require additional processing time. For this reason, our legal fee increases by $100 for transactions involving non-major-bank lenders. Our calculator reflects this automatically.

As the seller, your lawyer: (1) reviews the Agreement of Purchase and Sale and advises on your obligations; (2) prepares the Transfer/Deed to transfer title to the buyer; (3) discharges any existing mortgages from the property title using your sale proceeds; (4) pays out the Law Society Levy ($73.45) — a mandatory fee on every Ontario sale; (5) receives the sale proceeds from the buyer's lawyer and deposits them to our trust account; (6) pays out the mortgage lender and all adjustments; and (7) sends you the net proceeds and a full reporting letter.

The Law Society Transaction Levy is a mandatory fee of $73.45 charged on every real estate sale in Ontario, payable to the Law Society of Ontario. It is not a lawyer fee — it is a regulatory fee required by the governing body of Ontario lawyers. Every real estate seller in Ontario pays this, regardless of which lawyer they use. It is included as a line item in our Sale calculator.