Title insurance covers you, your lender or both against losses from problems with the legal ownership of a property: a lien left by the previous owner, a structure over the property line, a forged transfer or an error in the land registry. You pay a single premium on closing, usually through your lawyer, and there are no renewals. It’s one of the smaller closing costs of buying a home, and this guide covers how it works from coverage to claims.

What title insurance is

Feature	Details
What it insures	The legal title (ownership) of the property, not its physical condition
Premium	One payment on closing, commonly $250 to $500 for a home
Ongoing cost	None
How long it lasts	An owner policy, as long as you own the property; a lender policy, as long as the mortgage it covers
Who sells it	Title insurers such as FCT, Stewart Title, Chicago Title and TitlePLUS
How you buy it	Your real estate lawyer or notary orders it as part of the closing

Owner policy vs lender policy

Feature	Lender policy	Owner policy
Protects	The lender’s interest in the property	You, the owner
Required?	Most lenders require one	Optional
Coverage amount	The mortgage balance	The purchase price
Lasts	Until the mortgage is paid off or discharged	As long as you own the property
Cost	Included in the base premium	Often a modest addition to the lender policy
Pays your legal costs?	No, it covers only the lender’s interest	Yes, for a covered claim

The difference shows when something goes wrong. If a fraudster registers a mortgage against your home, a lender-only policy makes the lender whole, but you’re left to pay your own lawyer to restore the title. An owner policy covers your loss and your legal costs for a covered claim. Steps that make that kind of fraud harder in the first place are in home title fraud protection.

Scenario	Lender policy only	Owner and lender policies
Title fraud discovered	The lender is covered; you are not	Both of you are covered
A structure must be removed for an encroachment	The lender’s security is protected; you pay the cost	The policy covers your cost
An old lien surfaces after closing	The lender keeps its priority; you deal with the lien	The policy pays to clear the lien

What title insurance covers

Risk	Example
Title fraud and forgery	Someone forges your signature to sell or mortgage your home
Existing liens	The previous owner left a contractor’s lien, a tax lien or an unpaid mortgage
Encroachments	Your deck or garage crosses onto the neighbour’s land, or theirs onto yours
Work without permits	The previous owner finished the basement without a permit and the municipality orders it fixed
Zoning problems that existed at closing	The property’s use breaks the zoning in place when you bought
Survey and boundary defects	The boundaries differ from what was represented
Errors in public records	A mistake in the land registry
Undisclosed easements	A utility right-of-way across the yard that wasn’t on title
Property tax arrears	The previous owner’s unpaid taxes become a charge on the property
Municipal work orders	An outstanding order, such as a sidewalk repair, issued before you bought
Condo arrears and status certificate errors	Unpaid fees from the previous owner, or a status certificate that misstated fees or special assessments
The registration gap	Problems that arise between closing and registration of the transfer

What it doesn’t cover

Not covered	Why
Defects you knew about before buying	You accepted them when you bought
Environmental contamination	Needs separate environmental coverage
The physical condition of the home	That’s what a home inspection is for
Zoning changes after you buy	Only problems that existed at closing are covered
New-home construction defects	Covered by the provincial new home warranty, where one applies
Problems you cause, such as your own unpermitted work	Not a title defect
Indigenous land claims	Excluded in many policies; check yours

What it costs

The premium depends on the property’s value and type and on whether you add an owner policy. Rough ranges:

Property	Lender and owner policies together
Condo, around $400,000	About $250 to $400
House, around $600,000	About $325 to $475
Property around $1,000,000	About $400 to $625
Refinance (lender policy only)	About $250 to $400

Title insurance is one line on the closing statement; the closing cost calculator includes an allowance for it with the other costs.

Provincial differences

Province	How title insurance fits in
Ontario	Title insurance is the usual practice, and buyers rarely get a new survey. TitlePLUS, from the lawyers’ insurer LAWPRO, is one of the options.
Alberta	Sellers usually provide a real property report (RPR) with a municipal compliance letter; title insurance is used when no current RPR is available or alongside it (see below).
British Columbia	Title insurance is common but not universal; the Land Title and Survey Authority keeps the title register.
Quebec	The notary examines the title as part of the closing, so title insurance is less common, though some lenders require it.
Saskatchewan and Manitoba	Land titles systems with a government guarantee of title give some built-in protection; title insurance is still commonly bought.
Atlantic provinces	Title insurance is common practice.

Alberta: real property report vs title insurance

Factor	Real property report (RPR)	Title insurance
What it is	A land surveyor’s plan of the boundaries, buildings and setbacks	An insurance policy on the title
Who usually pays	The seller	The buyer
What it protects	Nothing on its own; it’s information	Financial losses from covered title defects
Fraud protection	No	Yes
Timing	A new RPR can take weeks	Usually available within days
Municipal compliance	Paired with a compliance letter from the municipality	No municipal step
When it’s used	The usual seller document in an Alberta sale	When the RPR is missing, out of date or not compliant

Title insurance vs a survey

Factor	Title insurance	Survey or RPR
What you get	Financial protection against title defects	A map of the boundaries and structures
Finds encroachments?	No, but covers the loss from one	Yes, it shows where they are
Fraud and lien protection	Yes	No
Lender acceptance	Most lenders accept a lender policy	Some lenders accept one instead of title insurance
Useful before building a fence or addition	No	Yes
Protection over time	Yes, while you own the property	No, it shows the property on the day it was surveyed

Many buyers get title insurance alone. A survey adds information that insurance doesn’t: for a rural property with unclear boundaries, a lot where you plan to build near the property line, or waterfront land, some buyers get both.

When a policy matters most

Situation	Why
No recent survey	Title insurance covers boundary problems a survey would have shown
An older home	More time for unpermitted work, old liens or unregistered easements
A condo	Unpaid common expenses and status certificate errors
Renovations by the previous owner	Permits may not have been obtained
An estate sale or power of sale	A higher chance of liens, tax arrears or disputes

Title insurance providers

Provider	Notes	Available through
FCT (First Canadian Title)	A national title insurer with a wide lawyer network	Most law firms
Stewart Title	Part of an international title insurance group; residential and commercial	Many law firms
Chicago Title	Part of Fidelity National Financial; residential and commercial	Some law firms
TitlePLUS	Offered by LAWPRO, the Ontario lawyers’ professional liability insurer; covers some legal-service risks the others don’t	Participating lawyers

All residential policies cover the same core risks; they differ in claims handling and in extras such as coverage for a lawyer’s error. Your lawyer usually recommends an insurer they work with, and you can ask for an owner policy if only a lender policy has been arranged.

Making a claim

Find the problem. You receive a notice, find a lien, or a neighbour disputes a boundary.
Contact the insurer using the details on your policy (your lawyer also has a copy).
Send the documents: the notice, your policy and your purchase agreement.
The insurer investigates and decides whether the claim is covered.
Resolution. The insurer fixes the defect (pays off a lien, defends your title in court) or pays you for the loss.

Stage	Typical time
Claims adjuster assigned	A few business days
Investigation	Several weeks
Resolution	One to six months, depending on complexity
Title fraud claims	Often longer, because the title has to be restored through the courts or the land registry

Common claims

Claim	What happens	Typical resolution
The previous owner’s contractor files a lien	A lien appears on title after closing	The insurer pays to discharge it
A neighbour says your fence is on their land	A boundary dispute	The insurer pays the legal costs and, if the fence must move, the cost of moving it
The municipality finds an unpermitted renovation	An order to bring it to code or remove it	The insurer covers the cost of compliance
A forged transfer is registered	Your title is taken or mortgaged without your consent	The insurer pays to restore your title and covers your losses
Property tax arrears surface	The previous owner’s taxes become a charge	The insurer pays the arrears

Refinancing, renewing and inheriting

Event	New lender policy?	New owner policy?
Refinancing with the same or a new lender	Usually yes	No, the existing one stays in force
Renewing with the same lender	No	No
Switching lenders at renewal with no increase	Yes, often paid by the new lender	No
Adding a HELOC	Some lenders require one	No
Inheriting the property	Depends on the policy	Some owner policies extend to heirs; check yours

Mortgage fraud, where a loan is taken out against a property by deception, is covered in mortgage fraud in Canada.

Title Insurance in Canada: Coverage, Cost, Policies and Claims