Can You Cancel an Accepted Offer to Purchase in Manitoba?

The seller has accepted your offer, and now you are having second thoughts. Maybe the financing looks shaky, the inspection raised concerns, or your plans changed. The first question is whether you can get out, and the second is what it could cost you.

The answer depends on what you signed and when. This article walks through the main ways out, how condition periods work, the specific protections for Manitoba condominium buyers, and what to do before you take any step you cannot undo.

This article covers the law of Manitoba.

Start with the document you signed

Once an offer is accepted, the agreement is usually the only reliable guide to your rights. Look for conditions, their deadlines, any wording about how to give notice, and what the contract says happens to your deposit. The rules for enforcing offers and handling deposits are fact-specific, so a lawyer can confirm how they apply to your agreement.

Do not simply stop responding or tell your agent you have changed your mind. How and when you give notice can matter as much as the reason.

What the condition period allows

A condition is a term that must be met, or waived, before the deal becomes firm. Common examples are financing, a satisfactory inspection and, for condos, review of the corporation's documents. Each normally has a deadline written in the offer.

• If a condition is not met by its deadline, the offer's wording decides whether the deal ends or whether you must act to end it.
• Waiving a condition generally means giving up that way out, so confirm what you are signing before you do.
• If you think you need more time, raise it early and ask a lawyer how your agreement handles changes to deadlines.
• Keep proof of every notice you send, with the date and time.

Extra protection for condominium buyers

If you are buying a condominium unit, Manitoba law gives you a seven-day cooling-off period. It starts on the later of the day you sign and the day the seller delivers the disclosure documents, and you can cancel for any reason. If the seventh day is a weekend or holiday, it runs to the next business day, except Remembrance Day.

On a resale, those documents include the seller disclosure statement (Form 2A, 2B or 2C), the corporation disclosure statement (Form 3) signed within 90 days, the declaration, budgets, financial statements, by-laws and rules, and any reserve fund study or summary, plus Forms 4, 5 and 6B. For a new unit sold before the declaration and plan are registered, a different package applies, including the declarant's disclosure statement (Form 1).

If you cancel after the cooling-off period because of a material change and the seller disputes it, the seller may apply to court within 10 days of receiving your notice.

The consequences of backing out

If you have no condition or statutory right to rely on, what happens when you back out depends on the wording of your contract and the facts. Whether your deposit is at risk, or whether the seller could pursue a claim, is not something to guess at, so get legal advice before you decide.

If you are properly cancelling during the condo cooling-off period or for a material change, the seller must refund the amounts you paid plus interest within 10 days after receiving your cancellation notice. If you are not buying a condominium, look closely at the conditions and wording in your own agreement, and ask a lawyer what rights apply to you.

What to do next

• Gather the signed offer, all counter-offers, amendments and any disclosure documents.
• Mark every condition deadline and, for a condo, the seven-day cooling-off date.
• Speak with a lawyer before you send any notice or waive anything.
• Keep your communications with the seller's side in writing.
• Tell your lender and agent only after you know your options, as advised.

Frequently asked questions