Title Search in Ontario: Protect Your Purchase

Updated: February 2026

Written by Françoise Pollard (Sales Representative) and Keith Goldson (Broker), Keith & Françoise Real Estate Team, eXp Realty Brokerage, serving buyers across the Greater Toronto Area and Niagara Region.

A title search happens behind the scenes for most buyers. Your lawyer handles it as part of the closing preparation, and if everything is clean, you may never think about it. That is exactly the point. The title search is the due diligence that prevents you from taking on someone else’s legal or financial problem without knowing it.

This article explains how the process works in Ontario, what your lawyer is actually checking, and what happens when something comes up. For the full buying process, see our complete guide to buying a home in Ontario.

What a title search actually is in Ontario

Title refers to your legal right to own and use a property. A title search reviews Ontario’s land registration system. It confirms the seller holds clear title and identifies any registrations that could interfere with your ownership.

In Ontario, licensed legal professionals access land records through the provincial land registry system via Teraview. Your lawyer pulls the parcel register for the property, which shows the full history of ownership, registered charges, and any instruments affecting the land. They review the chain of title to confirm it is complete and unbroken. Anything registered against the property that needs resolution before closing gets flagged at this stage.

The standard Agreement of Purchase and Sale in Ontario requires the seller to provide good title. The title search is how your lawyer confirms that obligation can actually be met.

What lawyers are looking for

What the search covers

The title search covers more than just confirming who owns the property. Your lawyer is checking for registrations that could affect your ownership, your financing, or your ability to use the property as intended.

Ownership and registered charges

The first thing confirmed is that the seller is actually the registered owner. From there, the lawyer checks for mortgages, liens, and other charges registered against the property. The seller must discharge any existing mortgage on or before closing. Unpaid contractors register construction liens against the property, and those liens must clear before closing. Unpaid tax arrears can also show up as registrations.

Easements and rights-of-way

An easement gives another party the legal right to use part of your land for a specific purpose. Utility easements are common, hydro or gas companies often have registered rights to access part of a property. Shared driveway agreements may also be easements. These do not prevent the purchase, but they affect how you can use the land and what you can build on it.

Restrictive covenants

Restrictive covenants are conditions registered on title that limit what you can do with the land. Some prohibit certain types of construction. Others restrict the type of dwelling you can build. Covenants from older subdivisions are common in GTA and Niagara communities and can affect renovation or addition plans in ways buyers do not expect.

Execution searches

A writ of execution is a court judgment that can attach to property owned by the debtor. Your lawyer runs an execution search against the seller to confirm no outstanding judgments would prevent the transfer of clear title. This is a separate search from the parcel register and is not optional.

Encroachments

An encroachment occurs when a structure sits on the wrong side of a property line. A fence, deck, or garage can extend onto a neighbour’s land or onto a municipal right-of-way without anyone realising it. These can prevent the lender from funding if not resolved and can cause disputes after you take ownership.

Off-title searches: what goes beyond the parcel register

The parcel register only shows what appears on title. Off-title searches look for issues that are real but have not (yet) made it onto title. Your lawyer orders these as part of due diligence on the property.

Common off-title searches in Ontario include municipal tax status, zoning compliance, building permit searches, and utility arrears searches. Each search targets liabilities not yet registered on title that could affect ownership or future use. In some transactions, a heritage property designation search or a conservation authority check may also apply.

Off-title searches matter for buyers planning renovations, secondary suite additions, or any use of the property beyond its current state. A property with unpermitted work may have open permits that affect your insurance, your lender’s willingness to fund, and your ability to resell.

Common title issues in Ontario transactions

Most title searches complete without significant problems. When issues do arise, they tend to fall into a few predictable categories.

Unreleased mortgages from prior owners are among the most common. A previous sale may have closed without anyone properly discharging an old mortgage. The registration stays on title until someone files a discharge document. Your lawyer will contact the prior lender to obtain a discharge before or at closing.

Construction liens are also frequent in properties where recent renovation work was done. Unpaid contractors and suppliers can register a lien against the property. The seller must resolve that lien before you can take clear title. Timing can be an issue, particularly in transactions where the seller recently completed work close to the closing date.

Boundary and survey issues come up when nobody has surveyed an older property in decades. Structures may have shifted over time. A fence that has stood for thirty years may sit in the wrong place. Some lenders require a current survey or a survey exception covered by title insurance before they will fund.

Restrictive covenants or easements that the seller was unaware of also appear in older GTA and Niagara properties. These require review by your lawyer to determine whether they affect your intended use of the property.

Fraud on Ontario titles: a real risk buyers should understand

Title fraud occurs when someone fraudulently transfers or mortgages a property they do not own, using forged documents. In Ontario, the land registry system is electronic and generally well protected. Title fraud still happens, though, and it can happen to unsuspecting buyers and homeowners alike.

The most common pattern is a fraudster impersonating an owner who holds a property free and clear. They register a fraudulent mortgage against it and take the proceeds. The fraudster takes the mortgage proceeds and disappears. The real owner discovers the problem when they receive correspondence from a lender they have never dealt with.

For buyers, the greater risk is purchasing a property where a fraud has already taken place, not falling victim to one directly. Your lawyer’s title search and title insurance together address this risk. Ontario’s Land Titles Assurance Fund lets innocent parties claim compensation when fraud affects title. Your lawyer can explain the protections specific to your property. Your lawyer can explain your protections specific to the property you are purchasing.

Insurance vs the search: two different protections

Title insurance and the title search work together, but they serve different purposes. Buyers sometimes assume that title insurance makes the title search unnecessary. It does not.

The title search is legal due diligence. It confirms the current state of the property’s registered title and identifies issues your lawyer must resolve before closing. It is your lawyer’s professional obligation.

Title insurance is a policy that protects against certain losses arising from title defects, fraud, or survey issues, depending on the policy terms. It covers risks no one could reasonably have discovered during the search, as well as problems that emerge after you take ownership. It does not cover known problems.

Both are necessary in a standard Ontario purchase. Your lawyer arranges title insurance as part of the closing process. For most residential purchases, the one-time premium runs $250 to $400 and forms part of your closing costs.

For a full breakdown of what title insurance covers and what it does not, see our guide to closing day in the GTA, which covers title insurance in the context of closing preparation.

When a title issue is found: what happens next

A real example from our files

We had a client going through a difficult divorce. Her husband had stopped paying property taxes for over a year, and neither she nor we knew it until her lawyer flagged the arrears just before closing. The marriage had turned acrimonious and he was making every step harder than it needed to be. She had to borrow the funds from a family member to clear the balance in time. The deal closed, but it was a scramble that should never have been necessary. It is exactly the kind of problem a thorough title search and early legal preparation can surface before it becomes a closing-day crisis.

How resolution works in practice

Finding a title issue does not automatically mean the deal falls apart. Many issues are routine and resolvable with time and communication between lawyers.

Your lawyer flags the issue to the seller’s lawyer and requests a resolution plan. For a dischargeable mortgage or lien, the seller’s lawyer typically undertakes to pay it from the sale proceeds on closing. That mechanism is standard in Ontario.

More complex issues take longer. An encroachment requiring a survey, a heritage designation affecting future construction, or an open permit for unapproved work may need several days or more to resolve. Standard Ontario purchase agreements include a requisition date for this reason. It is the deadline by which the buyer’s lawyer must raise title objections. If the seller cannot resolve the issue by closing, the buyer may have grounds to terminate the agreement. The right depends on the nature of the defect.

Serious unresolvable title issues are rare in practice. Most issues are administrative: old registrations not properly discharged, execution searches returning a common name, or minor municipal matters easily cleared. Your lawyer’s job is to identify and clear these before you take possession.

If a title issue arises and you are unsure of your rights or next steps, the Real Estate Council of Ontario (RECO) outlines buyer protections and what to expect from a registered agent throughout the transaction.

Title searches and your closing timeline

For a clean property, most title searches in Ontario run through Teraview electronically and take a matter of hours. Off-title searches may add a day or two depending on the municipality and the type of search. Resolution of any issues found adds time on top of that.

The requisition date and why it matters

The requisition date in the Agreement of Purchase and Sale sets a firm deadline for your lawyer to raise title objections. This date is typically several business days before closing, leaving time for resolution. Your lawyer should begin the search well before that date, not at it.

Chain closings and title timing in the GTA

In high-volume GTA markets, closings run in a chain across the region’s real estate ecosystem. Mortgage funds arrive, lawyers register documents, and agents release keys in a chain that depends on every step completing in order. Title issues that surface late in this chain can delay closing for everyone involved.

If you are still in the offer stage, see our guide to first-time home buyer guide Ontario for how offer conditions and timelines connect to legal due diligence. For those approaching closing, our article on closing day in the GTA covers the full sequence from document signing to key release.

What Buyers Ask About Title Searches

Market conditions, pricing strategies, and buyer competition vary by location, property type, and timing. This guide reflects our experience working with buyers and sellers across Ontario, particularly in the GTA and Niagara Region. For advice specific to your situation, speak with a qualified real estate professional before making decisions.