What should you ask a builder before signing?
Ask who you are contracting with, which dates and payments apply, what is included, what can change and what needs independent confirmation. Record the answer, the agreement or specification reference and anything the lawyer still needs to review. Fifteen useful questions are set out below; adapt them to the home type and province.
The Pre-Construction Buyer Kit includes a two-page developer and builder research checklist with 15 sales-representative questions. The checklist is a way to organise research, not a certificate that the builder or purchase is safe.
First, match the name to the right entity and record
In Ontario, HCRA’s builder guidance directs buyers to the Ontario Builder Directory to review licensing and history. Check the exact entity named in the agreement rather than relying on a project’s marketing name. Record the date and source of the search and have unresolved identity or status questions reviewed.
Outside Ontario, use the applicable local registry and warranty resources. For example, BC Housing explains BC new-home warranty insurance; it is a separate framework from Ontario Tarion. A familiar warranty label from another province is not proof that the same protection applies.
Keep past-project research factual. Distinguish a regulator record, a builder’s written response, a client reference and an online opinion. An unanswered concern should remain visible as a question rather than being silently converted into a conclusion.
Fifteen questions to take into the meeting
- Which occupancy or closing dates are firm, tentative or outside dates, and where are they recorded?
- What delays have affected comparable completed projects, and can you provide that history in writing?
- Who holds each deposit, under what trust or insurance arrangement, and what protection applies?
- What is each deposit amount, due trigger and signing-payment credit in the agreement?
- For an Ontario new-condominium purchase, which documents trigger the 10-day cooling-off protection, and how is delivery acknowledged? Elsewhere, what local review protection should the lawyer confirm?
- Is assignment permitted, whose written consent is needed and can consent be refused?
- What assignment consent fees, taxes and advertising restrictions apply?
- What is included as standard, including appliances, parking and locker rights?
- Which structural and finish upgrades are available, and what are their written change deadlines?
- How are upgrade prices, taxes, deposits, substitutions and refunds documented?
- Which development-charge or levy adjustments are capped in this agreement, and which remain uncapped?
- Are GST/HST and any assumed rebate included in the quoted price, and what must the buyer qualify for?
- How will interim occupancy fees be calculated, documented and adjusted, if that stage applies?
- What warranty provider, home enrolment, inspection and registration steps apply?
- Which termination conditions, material-change notices and remaining charges should the lawyer review?
These are questions to obtain and check answers, not statements that every contract has the same clauses. Ask for references to the exact documents discussed. Do not interpret an informal answer as an amendment.
Assignment consent needs its own check
BCFSA’s pre-sale guide explains that a developer may have a right to refuse an assignment even if another buyer is ready. Review permission, fees and continuing obligations before treating assignment as an available exit.
Use a written record: what the agreement allows, what consent has actually been obtained, what remains conditional and who is advising on tax. The kit’s two-page assignment explainer can prepare the questions; it cannot create consent, release a purchaser or draft the assignment transaction.
Deposit and warranty coverage are not the same as a deposit total
Tarion’s current Ontario pre-possession page distinguishes deposit coverage by home type and explains registration and transition information. Verify the particular purchase and current requirements rather than quoting a remembered limit. A deposit planner does not determine coverage.
Ask the lawyer to explain the source and scope of the protection, exclusions, registration actions and deadlines that need attention. Record who will complete each action and how completion will be confirmed. Keep that separate from the arithmetic showing scheduled deposits.
Turn the answers into a follow-up record
Before the meeting ends, identify anything that remains verbal, conditional or unavailable. Ask who will provide the written answer and when. A request for review time, clarification or professional advice should not be treated as a reason to abandon the record.
Prepare a client copy with clear confirmed and pending sections. Use the buyer process checklist to place each issue in the timeline, and the closing-cost guide to organise charges without assuming tax or rebate outcomes.