New homes & pre-construction in Scarborough

Buying pre-construction in Scarborough generally starts with registering your interest, which puts you in line for early access to floor plans and pricing before a project opens more broadly. Once you select a unit, you sign an agreement and pay a deposit in stages according to the builder's schedule. For condos, there's often an interim occupancy period — where you move in and pay an occupancy fee — before the building registers and you reach final closing and take title. Townhomes typically close more directly.

The key buyer-protection rule to know: in Ontario, new and pre-construction condominiums come with a 10-day cooling-off (rescission) period under the Condominium Act, during which you can cancel the agreement. Note this applies to condos only — it does not apply to freehold houses, which includes many freehold townhomes. Since 13 of the 15 active Scarborough projects are townhomes, check whether a given townhome is condo or freehold, because that determines whether the 10-day right applies.

Pre-construction buying lets you commit to a unit today under a staged deposit structure and take final ownership later, which means your capital controls the home over the build period rather than being paid all at once. For investors weighing a Scarborough purchase, the local supply picture matters: with 13 townhome projects versus 2 condo projects active, townhome inventory is deeper here, and how quickly comparable projects sell (absorption) tells you something about real demand at a given price and home type.

Before committing, evaluate the things that drive an individual deal rather than the market as a whole: the deposit schedule and what it ties up, the home type relative to who rents or buys in that pocket of Scarborough, the builder's track record, closing timelines, and your own carrying costs through interim occupancy and final closing. Rental demand and the size of a unit relative to local tenant needs are worth checking directly. None of this predicts a price outcome — it's the groundwork for judging whether a specific project fits your goals.

For first-time buyers, the deposit is usually the first hurdle. Pre-construction projects typically ask for a staged deposit paid in installments over the build, rather than a single large down payment up front, which can make the numbers more manageable than they look at first glance. Starting prices in Scarborough currently begin around $500,900, so it's worth mapping your deposit and financing against the lower end of the range before you fall for something at the top.

In Ontario, first-time buyers may be able to use well-known programs such as the provincial and municipal Land Transfer Tax rebates and the federal First-Time Home Buyer incentives — confirm current eligibility and amounts directly, since these change. Registering early with a project can matter too: first access to floor plans and pricing often goes to registered buyers before wider release, which is useful in a market where townhome demand is strong.