Terminology Tuesday: Escrow

If you spend some time reading real estate stories and articles or watching American real estate shows, you may have heard someone say something like, “We’re in escrow!” But what does that mean—and do we use escrow in Ontario?

Escrow is an arrangement where a third party holds money or documents until agreed conditions for their release have been met. In some American markets, an escrow company coordinates this process while a home purchase moves toward closing.

In Ontario, we generally use different terminology and a different process:

• The deposit is held “in trust.” In a typical resale transaction, the buyer’s deposit is held in a real estate brokerage’s trust account—often the listing brokerage’s—under the terms of the purchase agreement. It isn’t simply handed to the seller to spend.

• Lawyers handle the closing. The buyer’s and seller’s lawyers coordinate the transfer of funds and ownership, using their trust accounts to handle closing money.

So, while the underlying idea of holding funds securely until they can properly be released is familiar here, Ontario buyers are more likely to hear “deposit held in trust” than the more American term “opening escrow.”  As such, buyers and sellers will generally describe their purchase as ‘conditional,’ ‘firm,’ or ‘waiting to close,’ rather than ‘in escrow.’

On a technical level, the escrow concept does play a role in Ontario transactions, but less visibly as part of the  lawyers’ closing procedures rather than the deposit process, and as an underlying general legal concept. I've never heard a lawyer actually refer to escrow in my entire time in real estate.

Market Media Monday - October 12, 2026

A curated list of recent headlines relevant to real estate in Canada or locally, with short excerpts. Click each headline link to read the full article on the source site.

[ Toronto Home Prices Plunge To 6-Year Low, 28% Below Peak ]

"Greater Toronto’s real estate recovery experienced another setback last month. Toronto Regional Real Estate Board (TRREB) data shows home sales pulled back in September. Falling sales met with historically lofty inventory, helping to push home prices to a 6-year low. "

[ Canadian Rents Fall For 24th Month, Driven By Shrinking Unit Size ]

"Canadian rents continue to fall but a lack of demand hasn’t been the driver. Rentals.ca and Urbanation data shows asking rents fell in September. This marked a 24th straight month of declines, mostly in condo apartments. However, more than half the drop within the past two years was due to shrinking unit size. "

[ Ottawa considering ‘options’ as foreign home buyer ban nears end: minister ]

"Finance Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne said the government is “considering the options” on extending a ban on foreign ownership of Canadian residential property. Champagne appeared non-committal when asked if Ottawa would extend the ban, which banned foreign investors from buying Canadian residential property and was first enacted in 2022."

Terminology Tuesday: Patent Defect

A cracked window, a broken railing, a damaged floor tile—some problems with a home are there to be seen. In real estate, these are examples of a patent defect: a flaw that is visible or discoverable through a reasonable inspection.

Unlike a [latent defect], which is hidden and would not reasonably be discovered during an inspection, a patent defect gives a buyer an opportunity to identify the problem before purchasing.

The distinction is about discoverability, not severity. A patent defect can be more than cosmetic, and overlooking a problem doesn’t automatically make it a latent defect.

Why does this matter? In Ontario, the principle of caveat emptor—“buyer beware”—generally places responsibility on buyers to inspect the property. Sellers cannot deliberately conceal them or misrepresent the property’s condition, but sellers generally aren’t required to actively point out patent defects, 

For buyers, that means looking beyond the attractive décor. Ask questions, investigate visible signs of damage, and consider a professional home inspection. A defect might affect your offer, lead to a negotiated repair, or help you decide whether the property is right for you.

A visible problem doesn’t necessarily mean you should walk away—but it does mean you should understand what you’re buying.

Market Media Monday - October 5, 2026

A curated list of recent headlines relevant to real estate in Canada or locally, with short excerpts. Click each headline link to read the full article on the source site.

[ Canada’s Housing Market Is Stuck in Neutral: Builders Keep Building While Buyers Wait ]

"Canadian home sales slipped 0.7 per cent from July to August, the fourth straight month of little movement, even as builders kept starting new homes at an annual pace of 229,046 units, according to the Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA) and Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC)."

[ TD Bank cuts outlook for Canada's housing market as borrowing costs climb ]
"Toronto-Dominion Bank has downgraded its outlook for Canada's housing market in 2026 and is calling for home sales to fall five per cent as higher bond yields take their toll."

[ Bank of Canada won’t target house prices with interest rates ]
"The Bank of Canada’s second in command said the central bank is limited in what it can do to address home prices, arguing that the housing market should remain an input and not a target of interest rate decisions. “Low, stable and predictable inflation” is the best salve for the country’s housing affordability problems, Senior Deputy Governor Carolyn Rogers said in a speech in Victoria, British Columbia."

[ Fixed mortgage rates continue to climb as borrowers weigh the variable discount ]
"Fixed mortgage rates are climbing again after another jump in Canada’s 5-year government bond yield, extending an upward trend that began around the outbreak of the war in Iran in late February."

Terminology Tuesday: Lead Magnet

If you have ever clicked on an offer for a free homebuyer’s guide, a list of properties under a certain price, or an instant estimate of your home’s value, you have probably encountered a lead magnet.

A lead magnet is something offered for free—usually information, a tool, or access to a resource—in exchange for your contact information. In real estate marketing, that commonly means providing your name, email address, or phone number before you can receive the promised item or see the results. 

The term itself describes the real purpose fairly well: the offer is designed to attract potential clients, or “leads.” More specifically, it helps a REALTOR® identify people who may already be thinking about buying or selling a home. Someone requesting a first-time buyer’s guide may be preparing to enter the market. Someone asking for a list of homes with in-law suites may have a fairly specific purchase in mind. A homeowner requesting a property valuation may be considering selling.

That does not automatically make lead magnets dishonest or harmful. Businesses in many industries offer useful information in exchange for an opportunity to continue the conversation. The important thing for consumers to understand is that the free resource is usually not the entire point of the offer. Your contact information—and the indication that you may be interested in real estate services—often has more value to the marketer than the resource has to you.

Common Real Estate Lead Magnets

Lead magnets can take many forms, including:

• Free homebuyer or homeseller booklets
• Checklists for preparing a home for sale
• Guides to closing costs or the buying process
• Lists of properties matching a particular description
• Neighbourhood or market reports
• Email alerts for new listings
• Mortgage calculators or affordability tools
• “Instant” or AI-generated home-value estimates

Some of these can be genuinely helpful. A well-written guide created by an experienced local REALTOR® may answer useful questions. A customized property search can save a buyer time. A market report based on current, relevant local data can provide valuable context.

However, many lead magnets provide information that is fairly basic, widely available elsewhere, or produced with little effort. A “free exclusive guide” may be a short generic booklet purchased from a marketing company and used by hundreds of agents. A property list may simply reproduce listings that are already publicly searchable. The offer may still have some convenience value, but it is worth keeping its value in perspective. 

Be Especially Careful With Instant Home Valuations

Automated or AI-generated home valuations deserve particular caution—not necessarily because they are always useless, but because they can look far more precise and authoritative than the information behind them justifies.

A form may ask only for your address and then produce an estimated value within seconds. That estimate may be based on public records, previous sales, nearby transactions, broad market trends, or automated comparisons. What it may not know is whether your kitchen was renovated last year, whether the basement has moisture problems, whether the interior is beautifully maintained or badly dated, whether an addition was completed with permits, or how your lot, layout, parking, condition, and location compare with the homes used in the calculation.

Even within the same neighbourhood, two apparently similar houses can have meaningful differences that affect market value. An automated system working with limited information cannot reliably account for everything a knowledgeable professional would examine. Artificial intelligence may make the presentation faster or more polished, but it cannot create facts it was never given.

The resulting number may be a broad starting point, but it should not be mistaken for a proper market evaluation. In some cases, the estimate’s primary job is simply to persuade a homeowner to enter their contact information so that a salesperson can follow up.

Know What You Are Agreeing To

Before submitting something that looks like a lead-magnet form, take a moment to look at what information is being requested and what consent language appears nearby. You may be agreeing to receive emails, phone calls, text messages, or ongoing marketing. You should also consider whether the promised resource is valuable enough to justify sharing your details.

A few sensible questions can help:

• Is the information specific and genuinely useful, or does the offer rely mostly on an impressive-sounding title? Do I even know what I'll be getting?
• Can I obtain essentially the same information without providing personal details?
• Does the website clearly identify who will receive my information?
• Am I comfortable being contacted afterward?
• If the offer produces an estimate, what information was actually used to calculate it?

There is nothing wrong with requesting a resource from a REALTOR® you may want to speak with. In fact, it can be an easy, low-pressure way to begin a useful conversation. Just understand the exchange being made: the resource is free because your interest and contact information have marketing value.

Proceed With Your Eyes Open

Lead magnets are marketing tools, not public services. Some offer real value; others are little more than attractive packaging around generic information. Consumers do not need to avoid them entirely, but they should approach them with realistic expectations.

If you want the guide, property list, or market update—and you are open to hearing from the person providing it—go ahead. If you only want an accurate opinion of your home’s value, however, an automated estimate based on minimal information is no substitute for an informed evaluation that considers the property itself, relevant comparable sales, and current local market conditions.

As with most things in real estate, better information usually comes from asking good questions, understanding the source, and knowing what is happening behind the screen.

Terminology Tuesday: Buyer Commission Rebate

A Buyer Commission Rebate is an arrangement in which a real estate brokerage gives a homebuyer a portion of the commission it receives after helping them purchase a property.

In many Ontario real estate transactions, the seller agrees to pay remuneration to the brokerages involved in the sale. When the buyer’s brokerage receives its share, it may return an agreed-upon portion to the buyer as a rebate.

For example, suppose the buyer’s brokerage receives $10,000 from a transaction and has agreed to provide the buyer with a 25% commission rebate. The buyer would receive $2,500, subject to the terms of the agreement.

The rebate normally does not reduce the purchase price of the home or replace the buyer’s down payment. It is generally paid after the transaction has closed and the brokerage has received its commission. Buyers may use the money however they choose, such as helping with moving expenses, purchasing furniture, making improvements or rebuilding their savings after closing.

The amount of a Buyer Commission Rebate can vary because the commission received by the buyer’s brokerage is not necessarily the same in every transaction. Some properties may offer a different amount of commission, while others may offer none at all. Any rebate arrangement should therefore be clearly explained in writing, including how it will be calculated, when it will be paid and whether any conditions apply.

Most importantly, receiving a rebate should not mean receiving less representation. The buyer’s REALTOR® still has professional responsibilities to protect the buyer’s interests, provide competent advice and show suitable properties regardless of the commission being offered.

A Buyer Commission Rebate is simply a way for a brokerage to share part of its earned commission with its buyer client—giving the buyer some additional money back after a successful purchase.

Time Your Life, Not The Market

It's one of the most common questions in real estate:

"Is now the right time to buy a home?"

Most people asking this question are really asking whether prices will go up or down, whether interest rates will change, or whether they should wait for a "better" market.

The honest answer is that nobody knows for certain.

Economists, banks, governments, and real estate professionals all make predictions, and sometimes they're right. Just as often, they're wrong. Trying to perfectly time the market is a bit like trying to predict the weather six months from now—you might get lucky, but it's not a strategy you should build your future around. 

More often than not, by the time you know the bottom of the market, it's because you're reading about it in the news and it's already passed. And you're reading about it with everyone else, who will now be entering the market as your competition.

Instead of focusing on timing the market, I encourage buyers to focus on timing their lives.

Are you financially stable? Do you have a suitable down payment? Is your current home no longer meeting your needs? Are you tired of renting? Has your family grown, or have your circumstances changed?

These are the questions that matter most.

The best time to buy a home is often when you are personally ready and when the purchase makes sense for your long-term plans. If you find a home that fits your needs, budget, and lifestyle, waiting for the "perfect" market conditions may end up costing you opportunities you can never get back.

That's not to say market conditions don't matter. Interest rates, inventory levels, and local market trends should absolutely be considered as part of your decision. But they should be factors in the decision—not the entire decision.

Remember that a home is first and foremost a place to live, not a stock market investment. Over the long term, homeowners who buy responsibly and stay in their homes for several years tend to benefit from both the enjoyment of homeownership and the gradual growth of equity.

So, is now the right time to buy a home?

If you're trying to predict the market, nobody can give you a guaranteed answer. But if you're financially prepared and the move makes sense for your life, the answer may very well be yes.