Buyer tool
New home closing cost worksheet
Budget 2% to 4% of the purchase price. On a $1.1 million freehold home outside Toronto expect $30,000 to $45,000, land transfer tax of about $18,475, development levies, utility connections, Tarion enrolment, legal fees and grading deposits, plus $25,000 to $60,000 of items excluded from the base price.
New construction closing costs run materially higher than resale, because a builder passes through a list of charges a private seller never bills you for.
The working number
On a $1,100,000 freehold home outside Toronto, plan on $30,000 to $45,000 at closing, on top of your deposit and mortgage. Inside the City of Toronto, add roughly $18,000 for the second land transfer tax.
Then add $25,000 to $60,000 across the first year for the things the base price excludes, appliances, window coverings, fencing, rear landscaping, a deck. This is the most common budgeting error in new low-rise, because none of it appears on the price list. What’s excluded.
Ask for an estimate early
Your lawyer receives a statement of adjustments shortly before closing, often only a week or two, which is not enough time to raise money. Most lawyers will produce an estimate several months out if you ask. Doing so converts a nasty surprise into a plan. What’s on it.
The item worth negotiating now
Development charges. The standard clause passes municipal increases through to you with no ceiling, and on a closing three or four years out that is genuinely open-ended. A cap makes it a number you can put in this worksheet. Why it matters most.
The checklist
24 items01 / Government
- Ontario land transfer tax, on $1.1M, about $18,475
- Toronto municipal land transfer tax, City of Toronto only, roughly the same again
- Less first-time buyer rebates: up to $4,000 Ontario, up to $4,475 Toronto
02 / Builder adjustments
- Development charges and levies, $5,000 to $20,000+, uncapped unless negotiated
- Utility and service connections, $1,500 to $3,500
- Meter installations, $500 to $1,500
- Tarion enrolment fee, $600 to $1,500
- Grading, sodding and driveway deposits, $1,000 to $3,000 (often refundable)
- Utility security deposits, $300 to $1,000
- Builder administration, document and legal fees, $1,000 to $3,000
- Prepaid property tax adjustment
- HST on applicable fees and upgrades
03 / Your own costs
- Legal fees and disbursements, $2,500 to $4,000
- Title insurance, $400 to $900
- Home insurance, first payment, $100 to $250
- Moving, $1,000 to $3,000
04 / The two that can wreck the budget
- A failed HST rebate, up to $80,000, due in certified funds on closing day
- An appraisal shortfall, if the home appraises below your price, the gap is cash
05 / Not closing costs, but due in year one
- Appliances, if not included
- Window coverings, $3,000 to $10,000
- Fencing
- Rear sod and landscaping
- Deck or patio
- Basement finishing, if planned
Sources