Frequently Asked Questions

A real estate law clerk handles the administrative and legal preparation work involved in closing a real estate transaction. This includes reviewing agreements, conducting title and off-title searches, preparing closing documents, communicating with lenders and opposing counsel, coordinating signing appointments, managing trust funds, registering documents electronically, and delivering the final report to the client. At Clerkify, all of this work is performed under the supervision of a licensed Ontario real estate lawyer.

No. Clerkify is not a law firm. We are a real estate clerical services firm that operates under the supervision of a licensed Ontario real estate lawyer. Our clerks prepare, review, and manage all aspects of your transaction, and a supervising lawyer is responsible for the legal oversight of every file.

Signing appointments are typically scheduled between two and ten days before your closing date. Before we can arrange your signing, we need to confirm that all required information and documents from all parties — including your lender, realtor, and opposing counsel — have been received and reviewed. We will contact you directly to schedule a time that works for you, including evening and weekend availability.

Once mortgage funds are received from your lender and combined with your down payment, those funds are sent to the seller’s lawyer along with all required closing documents. Once all conditions are met and the transfer is registered, keys are released — typically between 2:00 p.m. and 5:00 p.m. We will keep you updated throughout the day.

Yes. We offer evening and weekend signing appointments, and we also provide mobile signing services — we come to you. One mobile signing within the Greater Toronto Area is included in our standard fees. For locations outside the GTA, mobile signing is available for an additional fee based on distance.

Title insurance is a policy that protects property owners and their lenders against losses arising from issues related to the property’s title or ownership. It covers risks including:

• Unknown title defects that prevent clear ownership
• Existing liens from unpaid taxes, mortgages, or condominium fees
• Errors in surveys or public records
• Encroachments from neighbouring structures
• Title fraud and forgery

Most lenders in Ontario now require title insurance as a condition of financing. We arrange title insurance on your behalf as part of our standard service.

With joint tenancy, ownership passes automatically to the surviving owner upon death. With tenancy in common, each owner holds a defined share of the property, and upon death that share passes to their estate rather than to the co-owner. The distinction has meaningful legal and estate planning implications, and we recommend discussing your preference with a lawyer before title is registered.

To qualify for the Ontario Land Transfer Tax first-time home buyer refund, the purchaser must:

• Be at least 18 years of age
• Intend to occupy the property as their principal residence within nine months of the transfer date
• Have never previously owned or held an interest in a home anywhere in the world
• Have a spouse who also has never owned an eligible home while being their spouse

If any one of these conditions is not met, the refund may be reduced or unavailable entirely.

Yes — if all conditions have been met and we have instructions from all parties, we can typically close a transaction within 48 hours. If you have an urgent closing, contact us immediately so we can assess what is needed and get the file started right away. We will not commit to a timeline we cannot deliver on.

Yes. We regularly work with A lenders including major banks and credit unions, B lenders, and many private lenders. We are familiar with the requirements and instruction formats used by all major institutions and can accommodate most mortgage types including standard, variable, HELOC, and private lending arrangements.