Short answer
The purchase price may not be the final amount needed on closing. Builder agreements can pass through development charges, utility connections, levies, Tarion enrolment, legal or administrative items and other adjustments. Your lawyer should identify what is capped, uncapped, credited or still uncertain before the cooling-off period ends.
Why this becomes stressful
The buyer plans the down payment to the dollar and later receives a statement of adjustments that is much higher than expected. The mortgage normally does not increase automatically to absorb every builder charge.
A practical Ontario example
Illustration only: A buyer saves the minimum down payment plus estimated legal fees. Near closing, builder adjustments and tax treatment add a five-figure cash requirement. If the lawyer had summarized capped and uncapped items at signing, Rajiv could have included a reserve in the original savings plan and rechecked it before closing.
What to do now
Ask the lawyer for a plain-language adjustment summary, not a promise of an exact future total. Add land-transfer tax, legal fees, title insurance, HST exposure, utility setup, occupancy costs, moving and a contingency reserve to the cash plan.
Keep the four decisions separate
- Builder contract: what the signed agreement permits, requires or charges.
- Legal position: rights, notices, liability and closing consequences explained by the lawyer.
- Mortgage approval: what a specific lender will accept based on current income, credit, property and value.
- Tax treatment: HST, rebate, assignment or rental consequences confirmed by an accountant or tax lawyer.
Questions Rajiv would ask first
- What did you sign, and what are the current occupancy and final closing dates?
- How much deposit has been paid and how much cash remains available?
- Will you occupy, rent, assign or sell the property?
- Has your income, employment, credit, debt or ownership changed?
- What value has the lender or appraiser supported?
- Which decision or deadline can no longer wait?
Practical routes to compare
- Negotiate caps during the cooling-off period where the builder agrees.
- Increase the documented closing reserve early.
- Ask whether eligible incentives or credits appear correctly in the agreement.
- If a shortfall remains, compare family gift, secured credit, alternative or short-term lending only after reviewing cost and exit.
Where A, alternative, MIC and private lending fit
An A lender is usually the first route when income, credit, debt ratios, property and appraisal fit its current policy. Alternative lenders may take a broader view of income and property but charge more. A MIC is an institutional mortgage lender that may offer flexible short-term, interest-only, amortized, open, partially open or maturity-matched structures. A private lender may also bridge a closing problem. Neither short-term route fixes the underlying issue by itself; compare total cost, legal fees, renewal risk and the written exit back to A or alternative lending.
Facts, lender policy and professional judgment
Verified public guidance: Tarion distinguishes the pre-delivery inspection and closing steps for new homes. The exact financial adjustments come from the purchase agreement and closing documents, so the buyer’s lawyer must interpret them.
Lender policy: qualification, appraisal use, rate holds, project acceptance and permitted funding structures vary by lender and can change. Legal and tax advice: the lawyer and accountant decide how the agreement and tax rules apply. Professional judgment: Rajiv can compare mortgage paths, but approval exists only when the lender has accepted the full current file and all conditions are satisfied.
What could make the plan fail?
A later appraisal, expired documents, new debt, job change, unexplained funds, builder notice, contract restriction, tax amount, property issue or lender policy can change the answer. Keep a second route and enough time for legal and mortgage work. Do not wait until the final funding date to discover that the first assumption no longer works.
Documents to gather
- Agreement of purchase and sale, disclosure statement and every amendment
- Statement of critical dates and builder notices
- Deposit receipts and 90-day source-of-funds history
- Current income, employment, credit and debt information
- Appraisal or valuation details, if available
- Lawyer’s estimate of adjustments, taxes and closing funds
Related AskRajiv guidance
Continue with statement of adjustments home purchase ontario, closing funds deadline source of money ontario.
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Source and review
Read the primary source. Source checked 2026-09-03. Reviewed by Rajiv Verma, Mortgage Broker on 2026-09-03. Educational information only; not legal, tax, appraisal, real-estate or mortgage approval advice.