A title transfer lawyer prepares and registers the deed that adds or removes a name on your Ontario property — for a spouse, family member, or co-owner. We handle survivorship transfers, gifts, and buy-outs, and check whether Land Transfer Tax or an exemption applies, starting at $620.37 with your file opened online.
Our charges include HST. Disbursements — and Land Transfer Tax, where it applies — are extra and billed at cost, itemized and estimated in writing before any work begins. Most straightforward transfers land at our starting price; more complex ones (multiple owners, a mortgage to pay out, a survey issue) are quoted before you commit.
A title transfer is simply a change of legal ownership on record with the Land Registry Office. The reasons vary — but the deed and the registration process are the same.
Whatever the reason, a title transfer is a real legal transaction — it has to be drafted correctly, signed with proper identification, and registered on Ontario's electronic land registration system, which only a licensed lawyer can access. Getting the ownership structure right matters too: joint tenancy and tenancy in common carry very different consequences for what happens to your share later, including on death.
Deeper reading: adding a name to title & LTT, joint tenancy vs. tenancy in common, and right of survivorship — from our Ontario article library.
It depends on who's being added and whether anything of value changes hands.
Adding a spouse to title is commonly exempt from Land Transfer Tax under Ontario's spousal exemption, regardless of any mortgage balance. Adding a non-spouse family member — a parent, sibling, or adult child — can attract tax calculated on the value transferred, including any share of an assumed mortgage. Pure gift transfers with no consideration and no mortgage involved are often minimal or exempt, but every situation is different.
Your lawyer reviews your specific transfer before you commit — who's on title now, who's being added or removed, whether a mortgage is involved — and confirms in writing whether LTT applies and, if so, roughly how much.
Estimate Land Transfer Tax →From the moment your file opens, we keep you in the loop — what we've done, what's next, and what we need from you. Signing can be done online or in person, anywhere in Ontario.
Open My File Online →Yes. Ontario title changes are made through the electronic land registration system, which only a licensed lawyer can access. Your lawyer prepares and registers the Transfer/Deed of Land, checks whether Land Transfer Tax or an exemption applies, and confirms the new ownership record with you.
It depends on the transfer. Adding a spouse to title is commonly exempt from Land Transfer Tax under Ontario's spousal exemption. Adding a non-spouse family member, or any transfer involving consideration such as an assumed mortgage balance, can attract tax on that value. Your lawyer confirms which applies to your situation before you commit.
Joint tenants each own the whole property with a right of survivorship — when one owner dies, their share passes automatically to the surviving owner(s), outside their will. Tenants in common each own a defined share that forms part of their estate and passes according to their will. Your lawyer confirms which form of ownership you want on the new deed.
Yes. Removing a name works the same way as adding one — a new deed is prepared and registered. If a mortgage is registered against the property, the lender's consent or a refinance to remove the departing owner from the mortgage is usually required alongside the title change.
A straightforward transfer with no mortgage involved is one of the quicker files we handle — your lawyer confirms the timeline in writing when your file opens, once identification, ownership details, and any required lender consent are in hand. Your lawyer confirms a realistic timeline once we understand your specific transfer.
Related reading: joint ownership & probate risk and LTT on gifted property. Also see buying a home, selling a home, or estimate a transfer with our Land Transfer Tax calculator. Compare every service on Pricing, or start from our Real Estate Law overview.
Open your file tonight — a licensed Ontario lawyer will confirm everything with you by tomorrow.