What Happens After You Accept an Offer?

Accepting an offer feels like the finish line. It is really the start of the last leg: a few weeks in which the buyer confirms what they need to, your lawyer or notary prepares the transfer, and both households get ready to move. Most of it happens quietly, which is exactly why private sellers find it unnerving. This guide explains what is going on in each week, what is expected of you, and what to watch for, so that the silence reads as progress rather than a problem.

The road from accepted to closed

The sequence is the same almost everywhere in Canada, even though forms and timing differ by province:

1. The buyer pays the deposit into trust.
2. The conditions period runs: inspection, financing, any others.
3. The buyer waives or fulfils the conditions in writing, and the deal is firm.
4. Lawyers or notaries on both sides prepare the closing: title search, mortgage payout, adjustments, documents.
5. You sign your closing documents, usually a few days before completion.
6. On completion day, funds move, title transfers, and the buyer takes possession.

Your main jobs are to make the home available when needed, answer your lawyer promptly, and keep the property in the condition the buyer saw. The rest is mostly waiting well.

The deposit arrives

The agreement says how much the deposit is, when it is due, and who holds it in trust, usually a lawyer, notary or brokerage. Confirm with your lawyer that it has been received by the due date. A deposit that is late or does not arrive is the first and clearest warning that a buyer is not committed, and the agreement may give you options if it happens. Do not accept a deposit paid directly to you, and do not agree to informal arrangements for it.

The conditions period

Each condition in the agreement has a deadline. During this period the agreement is binding on both of you, but the buyer can end it, with their deposit returned, if a condition is not met. You cannot sell to someone else, and in most cases you cannot withdraw. Treat the deadlines as fixed: write them down, with the time of day, and know what must arrive in writing by each one.

If the buyer's offer was conditional on selling their own home, this period can be longer and less certain. Many agreements let you keep marketing and give the buyer a short window to remove the condition if another acceptable offer comes in. Your lawyer will tell you how that works in your province and what notice you must give.

The home inspection

The buyer will book a licensed or certified home inspector, usually within the first week. Plan for two to three hours. The inspector will look at the roof, exterior, structure, electrical, plumbing, heating and cooling, insulation and ventilation, interior and appliances, and will write a report for the buyer.

Make it easy for them:

• Access. Clear the electrical panel, the furnace, the water heater, the attic hatch, crawl spaces and the sump pit.
• Utilities on. Water, gas and electricity all working so systems can be tested.
• Documentation out. Manuals, permits, warranties and receipts for recent work, left on the counter.
• Give them space. Be reachable, but let the inspector work. Buyers often attend; you do not need to.

Afterwards the buyer may come back with a request: a repair, a credit, or a price reduction. You are not obliged to agree. Consider what the request would cost, how reasonable it is, and how strong the rest of the market is for your home. Many sellers agree to fix genuine safety items and decline cosmetic ones. Get the agreed outcome in writing as an amendment, through your lawyer, rather than as a promise in a message.

Financing and the appraisal

A pre-approval is for the buyer; the lender still has to approve the specific property. That usually means an appraisal: an appraiser visits, often briefly, compares your home to recent sales, and reports a value to the lender. If the appraised value supports the purchase price, the lender issues its commitment and the financing condition can be satisfied. If it comes in low, the buyer must cover the difference, renegotiate, or walk away under the condition.

Your role is simple: make the home available, keep it presentable, and have the same documents ready that you had for the inspection. If the buyer asks for more time on the financing deadline, ask why, ask for a specific new date, and have your lawyer paper the extension. A short, explained extension is normal; an open-ended one is not.

Going firm: waivers and fulfilment

When the buyer is satisfied, they deliver a written waiver or notice of fulfilment for each condition, on or before its deadline. Once the last one is in, the agreement is firm: both sides are committed to close on the completion date. Your lawyer will confirm receipt. If a deadline passes without a waiver, the agreement usually ends automatically, so this is the moment to be in close contact with your lawyer rather than assuming.

Once firm, update your HouseUp listing to sold. Then message the other buyers who inquired or viewed; a courteous note closes the loop and keeps your reputation intact if the deal were ever to fall through later.

What your lawyer is doing

From acceptance to completion, your lawyer or notary is working in the background. They review the agreement and any amendments, search the title, respond to the buyer's lawyer's requisitions (questions about title, surveys, outstanding permits or work orders), obtain the payout statement from your mortgage lender, arrange for the mortgage to be discharged from title, prepare the transfer and the statement of adjustments, and set up the trust arrangements for receiving the buyer's funds.

They will ask you for things. Respond the same day where you can:

• Identification for the verification they are required to do.
• Mortgage details: lender, account number, and authorisation to request the payout.
• Property documents: survey, condo documents, rental contracts for equipment, permits.
• Your instructions: forwarding address, how you want the proceeds paid, and any holdbacks you have agreed to.

Our guide on a real estate lawyer's role in a private sale goes through each of these in more depth.

The statement of adjustments

A few days before completion you will receive a statement of adjustments. It starts with the purchase price, credits the deposit, and then adjusts for items paid in advance or in arrears: property taxes, condo fees, utilities where applicable, fuel in an oil tank, rents and deposits if there is a tenant. The result is the balance the buyer must pay on closing. A second statement, from your lawyer, shows what is deducted from that balance: the mortgage payout, legal fees and disbursements, any agreed holdbacks, and what is left for you.

Read both line by line and ask about anything you do not recognise. Errors here are usually small and easily corrected before the day, and much harder afterwards.

Moving out

The home must be in the condition the buyer saw, with everything included still there and everything excluded gone, and clean. Book movers early; the end of a month is busy. In the last week:

• Cancel or transfer services for the completion date: electricity, gas, water, internet, equipment rentals, insurance (keep it in force until closing is confirmed).
• Forward your mail and update your address with your bank, employer, government accounts and the condo corporation.
• Photograph the empty home and the meter readings on the day you leave.
• Gather keys, fobs, garage openers, alarm codes and manuals and leave them where your lawyer instructs.
• Walk through the inclusions list one last time.

If the agreement gives the buyer a final walk-through, make it easy. A buyer who sees the home clean and complete the day before closes without friction.

Closing day and possession

You will normally have signed your documents a few days earlier, so on the day itself the work is between the lawyers and the land registry. The buyer's lawyer sends the funds to your lawyer's trust account, your lawyer confirms receipt, the transfer is registered, your mortgage is paid out, and keys are released to the buyer. Timing within the day varies; it is common for closings to complete in the afternoon, so plan your move for the morning and do not hand over keys until your lawyer says the deal is done.

Afterwards, your lawyer sends a reporting letter with the final figures, confirmation of the registration and the mortgage discharge, and your net proceeds by the method you chose. Keep everything with your tax records: the sale of a principal residence must be reported to the CRA even when no tax is payable.

Then it is done. If you want the full picture of the stages before this one, the complete private home sale checklist puts every step in order from the day you decide to sell.