What does 'title' mean when I buy a home in Ontario?

In Ontario, "title" refers to your legal ownership of a property — the bundle of rights that lets you use, sell, mortgage, or transfer the land. When you buy a home, the seller transfers title to you by registering a deed (called a transfer/deed of land) in the Ontario land registry system. Once registered, you are the legal owner on the public record.

Title is more than just a piece of paper. It can come with conditions, restrictions, or competing claims — things like easements, rights-of-way, liens, or encumbrances — that affect how freely you can use your property. Your real estate lawyer searches the title before closing to identify any such issues and make sure you receive what you are paying for.

Ontario operates under the Land Titles system for most properties, which provides a higher level of government guarantee of ownership than the older Registry system. If a title defect surfaces later in a Land Titles property, the Land Titles Assurance Fund can, in certain situations, compensate you for losses.