Apartment property (5+ units)
Purchase, refinance, bridge or stabilization where property income supports the request.
- ✓ Current rent roll and leases
- ✓ Trailing operating statement
- ✓ Unit count, occupancy and planned work
Property financing in Toronto.
Commercial, rental, construction, and alternative mortgage files in Toronto are shaped by the property, the financing purpose, and the exit.
Province-wide service from our licensed Ontario brokerage. Open Financial does not maintain a local office in Toronto.
The short version
Toronto isn't one property market.
Toronto is too large to treat as one mortgage market. A downtown condo, an east-end semi with a basement apartment, a Scarborough plaza and a North York redevelopment site may share a city name and almost nothing else from a lender's point of view.
We would start with the actual property: what it is today, how it is being used, what is changing and how much cash is needed beyond the mortgage. Toronto's second land-transfer tax and its property-specific planning rules come after that basic picture is clear.
Choose the file you actually have
Start with the property, not a generic mortgage form.
Business-owner property
Commercial real estate occupied or acquired by the operating business.
- ✓ Property details and intended business use
- ✓ Business financial statements
- ✓ Purchase terms or current mortgage statement
Construction or land
Land, infill, conversion or construction where timing and the next financing stage matter.
- ✓ Plans and permit status
- ✓ Line-item budget and contingency
- ✓ Current value, completed value and exit plan
Start here
Three things we would check first.
- 1
Toronto has its own land-transfer tax
A purchase in Toronto is subject to the City’s Municipal Land Transfer Tax in addition to Ontario land transfer tax. The City provides current rates, rebate information, and a calculator, and its high-value residential rate structure changed on April 1, 2026.
This is a closing-cost item, not mortgage proceeds. It belongs in the sources-and-uses schedule before the down payment and liquidity are tested, especially on a high-value purchase or a transaction with several closing adjustments.
[1] Municipal Land Transfer Tax and Municipal Non-Resident Speculation Tax - 2
Four-unit projects can receive different municipal treatment
Toronto says a multiplex may contain up to four units. Its multiplex guidance also notes that projects with no more than four units are generally exempt from development charges and parkland dedication, and that parking is not required for duplexes, triplexes, or fourplexes.
An exemption can reduce a project budget, but it does not prove zoning, permit readiness, legal unit count, or future rent. A construction request should still show drawings, permit status, a line-item budget, contingency, and the intended take-out loan.
[2] Considerations when building multiplexes - 3
Development charges depend on the work, not just the address
The City identifies new buildings, added residential units or gross floor area, and some changes of use as work that may trigger development charges. Exemptions and reductions are governed by legislation and the City’s by-laws, and current rates are published separately.
Do not carry a zero-charge assumption from one Toronto project to another. Ask the permit and planning team for the charge treatment in writing, then place any amount and payment timing in the funding schedule.
[3] Development charges overview
A simple example
House purchase with a proposed third unit
Illustrative only: a buyer is purchasing a Toronto semi and expects to add a basement unit after closing. The appraisal describes the property as a two-unit dwelling today, while the offer price assumes income from three units.
The initial loan should be tested on the current legal property and supportable income. Plans, permits, construction cost, development-charge treatment, contingency, and the future refinance are reviewed as a separate improvement stage. This is not an approval example or a promise that the third unit will qualify.
This is an invented example that explains the review. It is not a client result, quote, approval, appraisal, rate, or expected outcome.
A little local context
2,794,356
people lived in Toronto in the 2021 Census.
Apartments make up most of Toronto's occupied housing, so condominium and multi-unit questions come up often. That citywide fact still tells us nothing about one building's fees, litigation, condition or lender concentration.
Statistics Canada counted 1,160,892 occupied private homes. These figures are background, not current prices, a forecast, or evidence for one appraisal.
[4] Statistics Canada 2021 Census ProfileWhat to send us
Enough to understand the file.
You do not need a perfect package to start. An address or listing and a plain explanation are useful.
The property address, listing, or a short description
The purchase price or value, amount needed, purpose, and timing
Separate current legal use from a proposed conversion or additional-unit plan.
Model Toronto closing costs, existing mortgage penalties, and available equity before choosing a structure.
Match condo, multiplex, commercial, or construction files to a lender desk that regularly reviews that asset type.
Financing paths that may fit the property
Local questions
Questions people actually ask in Toronto.
These are general answers. The municipality and lender still need to confirm the actual property and transaction.
Does a Toronto mortgage cover the municipal land-transfer tax?
Normally the mortgage is advanced toward the purchase price and eligible closing disbursements, while the buyer must demonstrate the required down payment and closing cash. Treat Toronto’s municipal tax as a separate closing item and confirm the exact calculation with the lawyer and City calculator.
Can proposed laneway-suite rent be used immediately?
Not automatically. A lender may distinguish a permitted, completed, rentable suite from a concept that still needs design, approvals, construction, and occupancy. The review should show what exists now and what income, if any, the lender will recognize at each stage.
Is a fourplex treated like a house by every lender?
No. Municipal permission and lender policy answer different questions. Unit count, legal use, owner occupancy, rent evidence, property condition, loan size, and the lender’s residential or commercial policy can all change the route.
Do Toronto development-charge exemptions remove the need for a permit?
No. A fee exemption does not replace zoning, building-permit, code, conservation, or other approvals. Confirm the project’s municipal path first and use the exemption only after the City or the project’s qualified adviser confirms it applies.
What should a Toronto condo borrower provide early?
Provide the agreement or mortgage statement, property-tax details, condo fees, intended occupancy, and available status-certificate or building information. Lenders may also review insurance, litigation, special assessments, commercial concentration, and the number of units already financed in the building.
Local references
Where the local claims came from.
- [1] Municipal Land Transfer Tax and Municipal Non-Resident Speculation Tax (City of Toronto)
- [2] Considerations when building multiplexes (City of Toronto)
- [3] Development charges overview (City of Toronto)
- [4] 2021 Census Profile (Statistics Canada)
- Official city website
Research checked August 27, 2026. Municipal information changes, so confirm it for the property before relying on it. Reviewed for Open Financial by Principal Broker: Marcel Greaux, Lic. M10002478.
Nearby location guides
Start with the property
Tell us what you are trying to do in Toronto.
The intake carries the city, property purpose and timing into the broker review. It is an enquiry, not an application or commitment to lend.
Garrison Capital Corp., operating as Open Financial | FSRA Mortgage Brokerage Licence #13362. Information is general and location-aware, but it is not legal, planning, appraisal, tax, or mortgage advice and does not guarantee approval, proceeds, pricing, timing, or funding.