Stage 9 of 10
Moving in
Change the locks, find the water shutoff, and file the paperwork that has deadlines: the rebate claims and the utility transfers.
The first weeks are logistics and a short list of things that matter later. Some of them are safety, some are money with a deadline attached, and some are the boring documentation that makes the next five years easier. Do them in the first month while you still have momentum.
Your progress in this stage
0 of 8 ticked, 0% weighted. 1 critical task is still outstanding.
Weighted, not counted: a critical task is worth 5 optional ones.
Outstanding, and each one can cost you the deal
- Locate every shutoff and label it · You
Work backwards from closing
Closing day is the only fixed date in a purchase. Give it to us and every outstanding task in this stage gets the date it has to be started by, using the slow end of each stage's range.
Anything from Aug 28, 2026 onwards. A closing sooner than a week away is not something a lawyer and a lender can complete.
Critical
Skipping one of these can cost you the house, the deposit, or five figures.
- CriticalYou1 day
Main water valve, individual fixture valves, electrical panel and its main breaker, gas shutoff, furnace switch. The night a pipe bursts is not the night to go looking.
Important
Skipping one costs money or leverage, not the deal.
- ImportantYou1 day
You have no idea how many keys exist. Rekeying is cheap and it is the one security measure with no downside. Do the same for garage and side door codes.
$150 to $400 after you have the keys
- ImportantYou3 days
Hydro, gas, water, internet, waste. Check that the start dates match closing and that you are not being billed for the seller's last week or your own gap.
$100 to $400 after you have the keys
- ImportantYou1 day
A federal non-refundable credit claimed on the tax return for the year you buy. It is not automatic and nobody will remind you. Diarize it now for filing season.
- ImportantYou7 days
Register with the municipality, decide between instalments and a monthly plan, and confirm whether your lender is collecting taxes with your payment. Being wrong about this creates arrears you find out about a year later.
- ImportantYou7 days
Driver's licence and health card within the statutory window, CRA, banks, insurers, employer, and a mail forward with Canada Post for six months to catch what you forgot.
- ImportantYou14 days
Furnace filter, service the HVAC if there is no recent record, clean the dryer vent, test every smoke and carbon monoxide alarm, clear the gutters, check the grading around the foundation. Cheap now, expensive later.
Worth doing
Nothing breaks if you do not.
- Worth doingYou1 day
Deed, title policy, mortgage documents, statement of adjustments, inspection report, survey, warranties and every trade invoice. Ten years from now this file is what tells you the age of the roof.
What goes wrong at this stage
Each of these is common and each one costs money or a house. The consequence is stated in dollars or in what you lose, because a warning without a number is a warning people skip.
Not claiming the first-time buyer credits and rebates.
The first-time buyer credit and the land transfer tax rebates are worth thousands of dollars each, and each has a deadline. Miss the filing window and the money is gone permanently.
Instead: Make a list of every rebate you might qualify for the week you close, and diarize each deadline.
Starting a major renovation in the first month.
You have just spent your reserve on closing. A renovation financed on credit at consumer rates, before you know how the house behaves in each season, is how a good purchase becomes a debt problem.
Instead: Live in it through one full winter first. You will renovate different things than you planned to.
Closing with nothing left in the account.
The first failure is a furnace or a water heater, and it arrives in the first year more often than not. With no reserve it goes on a credit card.
Instead: Hold back a reserve of one to two percent of the purchase price before you spend on furniture.
What you sign and receive
A document marked binding commits you. Once it is signed you cannot change your mind without losing money, and in Ontario a resale purchase has no cooling-off period at all.
Lawyer's reporting letter
Confirms registration, encloses the deed and title policy, and accounts for the funds. Keep it permanently; it is the record of what you own.
You are finished with this stage when
- Locks changed, and you know where the water main, electrical panel and gas shutoff are.
- All utilities are in your name with correct start dates and no overlap you are paying for.
- Any rebate or credit you are entitled to has been claimed or diarized.
- You have a maintenance calendar with the seasonal items on it.