Check the development's vitals first: spending just 12–15 minutes here saves you the second showing, the extra meetings, and restarting your search a week later — and you walk into your lawyer's review with your homework done.
This tool is educational. It is not legal advice and does not replace a lawyer's review of the full certificate. In Ontario, a status certificate costs a maximum of $100 and the corporation has up to 10 days to deliver it. CondoXray is not a brokerage and does not provide real estate services.
Fill in what you can find — even a handful of fields produces useful flags.
Did you knowYou're not just buying a unit — you're buying a share of the development's finances. Owners co-own the common elements and their costs, and unpaid costs get legally attached to the unit — you can't sell until they're paid.
Front page of the certificate, or the agreement of purchase and sale.
Condos come in many shapes — high-rise towers, townhouse condos, and POTLs (you own the home and land, but shared elements still carry fees). All produce status certificates, and this tool covers them all.
Often not on the certificate itself — check the declaration's schedules, the listing, or ask the listing agent. Fine to leave blank.
Usually not in the package — the listing or the development's page on realtor.ca will say the year built.
On the certificate's signature page. Recent matters — an old certificate may be stale.
Don’t find out after you’ve fallen in love with the unit that the monthly fees are about to jump — or that every owner is about to get a repair bill.
Did you knowThe reserve fund is the condo corporation's savings account for big repairs. If it's thin, owners top it up — and a fresh reserve study (required every 3 years) is often when fees jump.
Look for the paragraph headed 'Reserve Fund' on the certificate — it states the balance. The attached reserve fund study has the fuller story.
Stated on the certificate as this unit's monthly common expenses. The listing shows it too, but trust the certificate.
The certificate states when the last study was conducted — or check the study's own cover page in the attachments.
Compare this year's budget to last year's, if both are attached — or ask the listing agent. Fine to leave blank.
Check the attached budget or financial statements for a shortfall, or the certificate's statement about anticipated increases. 'Not sure' is fine.
The certificate must disclose loans — search the pages for 'borrow' or 'loan'. 'Not sure' is fine.
Did you knowA special assessment is a repair bill split among every owner, on top of monthly fees — it's the #1 surprise buyers wish they'd caught earlier.
The certificate has a specific statement about assessments levied since the current budget — search the document for 'assessment'.
Look for wording about increases or assessments the board anticipates or 'has knowledge of'.
If disclosed, the amount appears in the same paragraph or an attached owners' notice.
Usually stated alongside the amount — e.g., garage repairs, roof, cladding.
Near the top of the certificate: it states whether the owner is in default of common expenses.
Rarely disclosed — sometimes in the auditor's notes to the financial statements. Most people leave this blank.
Did you knowIf water damage starts in your unit, some corporations can charge their insurance deductible back to you — sometimes $25,000+. Personal condo insurance can cover this.
The certificate lists outstanding lawsuits and applications — search for 'litigation' or 'proceedings'.
Stated alongside the litigation disclosures — search for 'judgment'.
A certificate of insurance should be attached near the back of the package — check it exists and the dates are current.
On the attached insurance certificate — look for the 'water damage' line in the deductibles.
Search the by-laws for 'deductible' — many buildings have a deductible chargeback by-law. 'Not sure' is fine.
Did you knowSome restrictions are written in near-permanent ink (the declaration), others can be changed by the board fairly easily (the rules). A pet ban in the declaration is basically forever.
Check the declaration and rules — search for 'lease', 'rental', or 'short-term'.
Search the declaration and rules for 'pets', 'smoking', or whatever use matters to you.
The certificate must disclose amendments under way — search for 'amend'.
Not a standard section — but attached notices or the reserve fund study sometimes name known issues (Kitec plumbing is the classic).
Questions to bring to your lawyer
Educational summary generated from numbers you entered — accuracy depends on your inputs. This is not legal advice, not an opinion on whether to buy, and not a substitute for a lawyer's review of the complete status certificate and attachments. Thresholds are general guidelines; your lawyer's judgment prevails.
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