How much is the deposit on a pre-construction home in Ontario?
Updated November 10, 2026
No law sets how much you put down on a pre-construction home in Ontario. The builder sets the deposit in the agreement of purchase and sale, and it is usually paid in stages over months rather than at once, so read the schedule in your agreement before you sign.
The law sets how your deposit is protected. On a new condo, the Condominium Act, 1998 requires the money to be held in trust, and Tarion backs up to $20,000 of it if it was not. On a new freehold home, Tarion protects up to $60,000 where the price is $600,000 or less, and 10% of the price to a maximum of $100,000 above that.
How a deposit schedule works
The agreement lists each payment and its date: something on signing, then further amounts at set intervals, and often a last one at occupancy. Builders set different totals and timings, and the schedule can sometimes be negotiated, so compare it line by line between projects.
An example, not a rule: on a $700,000 condo, a schedule of 5% on signing, 5% at 90 days, 5% at 180 days and 5% at occupancy comes to $140,000 paid before closing. The balance of the price is due at final closing, usually from your mortgage.
What protects a condo deposit
Section 81 of the Condominium Act, 1998 requires deposit money on a new condo to be received and held in trust by the builder's lawyer or another prescribed trustee. It can leave trust only as the Act allows, for example once the builder puts in place security the Act permits.
Tarion's deposit protection for condos is a backstop: if a deposit was not placed in trust, Tarion protects up to $20,000 of it. Payments for upgrades and extras count within the same limit for agreements signed from January 1, 2018 (Tarion).
What protects a freehold deposit
For a new freehold home bought under an agreement signed on or after January 1, 2018, Tarion protects deposits up to $60,000 where the price is $600,000 or less, and 10% of the price to a maximum of $100,000 where it is more. Upgrade and extras payments count within that limit. Agreements signed before 2018 are covered up to $40,000 (Tarion).
If your deposits will add up to more than that limit, ask the builder in writing how the excess is held before you sign.
The 10-day cooling-off period
On a new condo bought from the builder, section 73(2) of the Condominium Act, 1998 gives you 10 calendar days to cancel the agreement and get your deposit back in full. The clock starts on the later of the day you receive a copy of the agreement signed by the builder and the day you receive the disclosure statement and the Condo Guide (Condominium Authority of Ontario).
A new freehold home gets its own 10-day cooling-off period only for agreements signed on or after January 1, 2027 (Home Construction Regulatory Authority). Before then there is none, and there is none on a resale or an assignment. Use the cooling-off period, or a condition in a freehold agreement, to have a real estate lawyer read the agreement and to confirm your financing.
Related questions
- Do I pay the whole deposit when I sign?
- Usually not. Most builders take a first amount on signing and the rest in instalments on dates the agreement sets. Your agreement is the only schedule that counts.
- What happens to my deposit if the project is cancelled?
- Your agreement sets out what is returned and when. Trust holding under the Condominium Act on a condo, and Tarion's deposit protection on condos and freehold homes, are what stand behind the deposit if the builder cannot return it.
- Is this legal advice?
- No. It is general information about Ontario rules as Tarion and the Condominium Authority of Ontario publish them. A real estate lawyer should review your agreement.