Buying pre-construction is different from buying a resale home. This practical roadmap takes you from financial preparation through final ownership, with a decision calculator for owners approaching occupancy.
Use these ten stages to understand what normally happens from getting financially prepared through receiving ownership of your new home.
Know your budget before choosing a home.
Speak with a mortgage professional familiar with pre-construction. Review your budget, deposit requirements and how your financing may need to be reconfirmed closer to closing.
Watch for: Pre-construction deposits can be spread across several payments rather than one conventional resale deposit.
Look beyond just the floor plan.
Review the builder, location, pricing, floor plan, exposure, deposit structure, estimated occupancy timeline and what is included with the suite.
Request your preferred suite.
For many projects, a worksheet is submitted with your preferred unit choices.
A worksheet or reservation does not necessarily guarantee that the builder will allocate you a suite.
Your suite has been allocated.
If the builder accepts your purchase, you will receive an Agreement of Purchase and Sale along with the applicable disclosure and warranty documents.
This is where the transaction becomes much more serious.
This is your due-diligence window.
For a new or pre-construction Ontario condominium, a purchaser generally has 10 days to cancel after receiving the fully signed agreement, disclosure statement and Ontario's Residential Condominium Buyers' Guide. Ontario reference
Use this period to have a real-estate lawyer review the agreement and confirm your financing. Your lawyer should also review development charges, closing adjustments, assignment provisions and other obligations in the agreement.
Do not treat these 10 days casually.
Follow the builder's deposit schedule.
Deposits are typically paid in stages according to the Agreement of Purchase and Sale.
For Ontario pre-construction condominiums, purchaser deposits are subject to statutory protections, including trust requirements. Ontario reference
Keep copies of every payment and document.
Your home is being built.
Construction can take several years, and occupancy dates can change.
Ontario new-condo agreements include Tarion delayed-occupancy protections and an Addendum explaining occupancy dates and applicable rights when delays occur. Tarion reference
Use this period to keep your finances healthy and prepare for eventual occupancy and closing.
Inspect your new home before occupancy.
Before taking occupancy, you will complete a PDI with the builder. This is your opportunity to document items that are damaged, missing, incomplete or not operating properly, and to learn how the home's systems work. Tarion PDI reference
Important: The PDI documents the home's condition; it is not itself a warranty claim. Tarion explanation
You may move in before you actually own the condo.
During interim occupancy, you can take possession of your suite, but title has not yet transferred to you because the condominium corporation has not yet been registered.
You generally pay the builder an interim occupancy fee, which can include prescribed interest on the unpaid purchase balance, estimated municipal taxes and projected common expenses. Condominium Authority reference
The condo registers and title transfers to you.
Once the condominium corporation is registered, your lawyer completes the final closing and ownership transfers to you. Your mortgage funding generally occurs at this stage.
Your lawyer will calculate the final amount required for closing, including applicable adjustments, taxes and legal costs.
You are now the registered owner of your new home.
General educational information only, not legal, mortgage, tax or investment advice. Program rules and eligibility can change. Official reference links checked November 2026.
Compare assignment and closing outcomes, cash required, carrying costs and market scenarios. Blue figures are the editable assumptions.
A clear conversation about the builder, agreement, deposit schedule, closing costs and your financial plan.