Our role as notaries goes beyond the simple preparation of legal documents. We must verify the exactitude of declarations made by all parties involved. Thus, we request documents to support these claims, such as Ids, matrimonial documents and citizenship documents, etc.. Our professional association, the Chambre des Notaires du Québec, requires us to keep these documents in our files.

Yes. We must confirm that the power of attorney is still valid and has not been revoked.

Yes. A few days after signing with the notary, our team will prepare certified copies of your documents.

We will plan both of your appointments with the Notary two (2) weeks prior to your closing date. However, to do so, we must have received the complete promise to purchase from the real estate brokers and the mortgage instructions from your financial institution. Without all these documents we are unable to schedule any appointments.

All financial institutions require that you obtain damage insurance coverage for the property you wish to acquire. Each financial institution sets out specific requirements and criterias that must be met, and instructs us to confirm that the coverage you obtained meets these requirements and criterias. Without an adequate proof of coverage (insurance binder) we do not have the authorization to sign the deed of sale.

We request that you provide your down payment one (1) week prior to your closing date. The amount will be determined once we receive the complete promise to purchase and the mortgage instructions.

The transfer of keys is outside the scope of the service provided by us. The transfer is either arranged between the real estate brokers or between the buyer and seller directly. It is recommended that you discuss this subject before the closing date.

The amount of the down payment includes : Your contribution towards the purchase price, the notary fees and ,when applicable, a 9% tax on the default mortgage insurance amount. Your financial institution may require the payment of other closing costs, such as realty taxes, evaluation fees etc.

The welcome tax is due after the closing date and is billed directly to the buyer. You can expect the invoice from the city within a delay ranging from 4 weeks to 6 months.If you wish to have the invoice sent to an address other than the property concerned, you must contact the city directly.

A down payment coupon is one of the methods available to provide your down payment. It allows you to transfer the required funds through your online banking service. The funds will be deposited in our trust account within a few days. Please note that not all financial institutions support this method.

There are two (2) types of exemptions, ones provided by law and ones provided by some cities. The exemptions provided by law apply automatically and without your intervention. Common examples are : the exemption when a property is transferred between spouses or when a property is transferred between family members in the direct line, such as child and parent. The exemptions provided by some cities require you to apply to the city. Strict criterias must be met and documents must be filled out if you qualify. Please contact your city to know more about these programs.

There are three (3) ways to provide your down payment : via a Canadian bank draft, via down payment coupon or an electronic wire transfer.

When you are financing the purchase of a property, your spouse’s intervention in the deed of mortgage is required by law for any property with fewer than five dwellings that is used in whole or in part as a family residence. To know more, Maitre Gynet Gloria KOZUB wrote a blog post on this subject : https://www.babalegal.ca/post/why-is-my-notary-requiring-my-spouse-s-signature

When you are financing the purchase of a property, you must meet the notary on two different occasions. All financial institutions require that the deed of mortgage is published against the property before giving us authorization to use the funds for the purchase of the property. During the first meeting, you will meet the notary in order to sign the deed of mortgage and related documents. A few days later, once the deed of mortgage is published on the land registry, you will meet with the notary to sign the deed of sale and related documents.

If you choose to provide your down payment via a bank draft, regardless of the notary assigned to your transaction, the bank draft must be payable to the order of “Abdulkarim BABA, Notary In trust”. Please note that you have to physically bring the bank draft to our offices.

We will plan your appointments with the Notary two (2) weeks prior to your closing date. However, to do so, we must have received the complete promise to purchase from the real estate brokers and the mortgage instructions from the buyer’s financial institution. Without all these documents we are unable to schedule any appointments.

Yes. The notary will consider all payments made and will include them in the adjustments. The calculation will be presented during the appointment with the notary.

Unless otherwise stated in the offer to purchase, the vendor undertakes to provide the purchaser with a certificate of location “describing the entire state of the immovable”, or, in the case of a condominium, with a certificate of location “describing the current state of the entire co-ownership and including the private portion or, failing this, a certificate of location pertaining to the private portion only”.

The rights given to a lender under the terms of a deed of mortgage remain in effect as long the deed of mortgage is not discharged even though the loan has been reimbursed in full. Since a vendor undertakes to provide a clear title to the purchaser, the notary must obtain the discharge at the vendor’s expense. To know more, Maitre Gynet Gloria KOZUB wrote a blog post on this subject : https://www.babalegal.ca/post/paying-off-versus-radiating-your-mortgage

Since October 2020, the provincial government requires all parties involved in a real estate transaction to complete a citizenship declaration. Failing to do so, the deed will not be published at the land registry

If you have mandated another notary to proceed with the purchase, please allow for a minimum of three (3) business days between transactions. This delay is required to ensure that the funds are deposited in the other notary’s account. If you have mandated us to proceed with the purchase, please allow a minimum of two (2) business days. This delay is required to ensure that the deed of sale has been published.

No. Unless otherwise stated in the offer to purchase, the vendor undertakes to provide the purchaser with certified true copies of the title of ownership , the certificate of location and the declaration of co-ownership.

A vendor is responsible for certain notary fees related to the sale of a property. These fees vary significantly depending on the work the notary must perform. A detailed blog post written by : Maitre Gynet Gloria Kozub is available here : https://www.babalegal.ca/post/who-pays-the-notary-fees-in-a-real-estate-transaction

Yes. The other notary must provide us with the exact amount required for the subsequent transaction and the details of their trust account. Please note that the delays for wiring funds between different financial institutions vary between 24 to 72 business hours.

Yes. You must provide us with your void cheque prior to the closing date. In the event where there are multiple vendors, you must provide us with either a void cheque for a joint account held by all vendors or a void cheque for each vendor. In the event where you share an account with a person who is not a vendor, you must authorize us in writing to deposit the funds in such an account even though the latter may access the funds.

Once the deed of sale is signed by all parties, it has to be published at the land registry before the notary can release any funds. The process takes 48 to 72 business hours in normal circumstances.

Yes. In fact, all financial products linked to the registered mortgage will be paid off and closed. Please contact your financial institution, in order to know the specific financial products associated with your mortgage.

Unless otherwise stated in the offer to purchase, the vendor is obligated to provide a clear title to the purchaser. Some irregularities, discovered during the title examination and/or during the analysis of the certificate of location, may require the purchase of a title insurance in order to protect the purchaser and their financial institution. In such a case, the costs related to the title insurance are borne by the vendor.

When selling a condo, verifications regarding various aspects of the co-ownership, such as the information regarding monthly condo fees, the existence or not special assessment fees, the validity of the co-ownership insurance policy, etc. must be made.

Section 404 of the Civil code of Québec requires the non-owner spouse to give written consent whenever a property with fewer than five dwellings that is used in whole or in part as a family residence is being sold. To know more, Maitre Gynet Gloria KOZUB wrote a blog post on this subject : https://www.babalegal.ca/post/why-is-my-notary-requiring-my-spouse-s-signature

This depends entirely on your financial institution's internal procedures. In all cases, we must use the amounts indicated to us on the payout statement provided by the financial institution to make the final payment. Note that any overpayment will be reimbursed directly by the financial institution.