There are numerous options available to you in Toronto’s brand-new condo buildings and under-construction houses. With modern, sleek tall buildings that transform urban living, the city’s skyline is continuously changing. These brand-new condo developments and unfinished homes provide an innovative perspective on city living by combining innovative architecture, practical facilities, and an active neighbourhood. Toronto offers options to fit your interests, whether you’re interested in buying a condo or a home still under development. Pre construction homes let you get engaged immediately, choosing the layout, materials, and finishing touches to make the place uniquely yours. It’s like taking a blank piece of paper and creating your ideal house.

Pre Construction Homes (New-built Homes)

Pre construction homes, or selling condos before construction even begins, is a common practice in Toronto. During this stage, you will normally sign a contract with the builder if you purchase a condo. The cost and conditions of the proposed development are outlined in this contract. However, delays or modifications to the original plans could occur as construction progresses. Move-in dates are frequently postponed by three to six months since initial schedules are sometimes overly optimistic. This implies that the time it takes for you to move into your new condo may take longer than you were expecting.

  • Upfront Fees

A 20% down payment is typical when buying a condo that hasn’t yet been built. The customary format for this payment is as follows:

    • You must submit a deposit with your offer to buy a condo that hasn’t yet been built. Your first payment, due 30 days after your offer is accepted, will be reduced by the amount of this deposit.
    • Please be aware that depending on the builder, the final three down payment installments may be due at 4, 9, and 18 months instead of the customary 4, 9, and 18.
  • Advance-Registration

Your new condo enters the pre-registration phase, sometimes called interim occupancy, once it has been constructed and is ready to be occupied. You can move into the condo during this time, but you would just pay rent rather than a mortgage. Since you aren’t yet the legal owner of the condo until the building has been properly registered, this rent is occasionally referred to as a “phantom mortgage.” Setting up utility hookups and getting homeowner’s insurance while in the interim occupancy, phase is crucial, just like you would if you had already bought the unit. The good news is that your appliance warranties go into effect as soon as you move in, giving you peace of mind.

So, while making the appropriate preparations, you can enjoy living in your new condo while waiting for the building to be properly registered, knowing that shortly you’ll go from interim occupancy to becoming the legal owner.

  • Initial Occupancy Charges

Your mortgage is unaffected by the regular payments you make during this time. The phantom mortgage, also known as the occupancy cost, is paid to the builder and is calculated as follows: the interest portion of the remaining balance on the purchase price, which is typically due on the house registration date, plus the estimated condo maintenance fees and its share of the anticipated real estate taxes.

How these pre-registration rental costs are figured out, here is an instance:

    • Cost Price :$400.000
    • Installment Price Paid to the Builder: 20% / $80.000
    • The Builder is still owed the remaining balance : $320.000

Interest on the amount due to the builder. Builders often use the Bank of Canada’s advertised 1-year mortgage interest rate. In this case, 3.75% would be the interest rate.

                                         $320.000 x 3.75% = $1200/12 = $100 monthly

Additionally, you must pay property taxes, which are determined by multiplying the purchase price by the property tax rate (200.000 x 0.08), which is $1600 a year and $133.33 monthly. Let’s say your condo costs are $200 per month. Until house registration is complete, the occupation fee will be $100 + $400 + $133.33 = $633.33 each month.

  • Enrollment

When a “condominium” is largely occupied by people and has successfully finished the approval processes necessary for incorporation with the Land Registry Office, it is said to have come into existence. The title of your suite can now be transferred to you at this point.

The lower floors of high-rise condo buildings are generally finished before the upper levels. Residents can move in once the lower levels’ interiors are complete, and once the first suite is occupied, the building’s approval procedure officially starts. Similar to establishing a modest home subdivision, this process entails describing and documenting each unit within the condo complex at the land registration. With an average timeline of 4 to 8 months, after individuals start moving in, the registration period might range from 3 to 2 years after the initial interim occupancy starts.

The condominium building is registered once it has successfully completed all mandatory city inspections and has undergone the appropriate formalities to become a legal organisation. Mortgages take effect, the buyer is recognised as the condo’s legal owner, and the condo ownership is officially transferred to him or her during this registration time. In conclusion, once the approval and house registration procedures have been completed, a condominium is formally founded, and ownership is officially transferred to buyers.

You May Also Read :

Guide To Pre Construction Condos in Toronto

Pre Construction Condos in Toronto

All About New Home Construction

New Home Construction

Pros And Cons of Buying Pre Construction Homes

Buying Pre Construction Homes

Construction Mortgage Rates Canada

Mortgage Rates Canada