What due diligence should I do before buying a condo assignment in Ontario?

Buying a condo assignment is riskier than buying directly from a builder because you inherit the original buyer's position with less protection. Before you complete an assignment purchase, conduct thorough due diligence.

Start with the documents: obtain the original agreement of purchase and sale, the builder's disclosure statement, the Tarion addendum, all upgrade selection sheets, any amendments or addenda, and the builder's written consent to the assignment. Have a real estate lawyer review all of these, not just the assignment agreement itself.

Investigate the building and builder: search Tarion's Ontario Builder Directory for the builder's history and any claims. Research the project's construction status and projected closing timeline. The closer the unit is to final closing, the lower your exposure to builder delay, but the timeline is not always easy to confirm.

Understand what you are not getting: you have no 10-day rescission right on an assignment (you would have had it only on the original pre-construction disclosure). You also have no right to revisit the upgrade selections.

Understand the financial picture: confirm the total purchase price (original price plus assignment fee), the deposit amounts already paid and still owed, the estimated adjustments at closing, and the HST implications. The overall cost can be substantially higher than the headline numbers suggest.