Home records, explained › For owners and sellers › Heritage listing ends on 1 January 2027
Listed heritage homes in Ontario: what changes on 1 January 2027
A municipal heritage register holds two kinds of property: designated ones, and listed ones that council has noted for heritage value without designating them. The Province has set a date for the listed ones, and a home's status on the register is one of the records a buyer's report reads. This page sets out what the Province and the cities have published, with the source and date for each line.
Page reviewed 22 Oct 2026. Every line names its source below.
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5years
A property removed this way can't be relisted until 1 January 2032.
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60days
While listed, the owner gives the City 60 days' notice before demolishing or removing a building.
1 January 2027Listed properties without a notice of intention to designate come off municipal heritage registers.
- 1 Jan 2027Listed properties without a notice to designate come off the registers.
- 1 Jan 2032The earliest a property removed this way can be listed again.
In detail
What the Province decided
The Environmental Registry notice for the Homeowner Protection Act, 2024 (decision posted 21 June 2024) says: "Municipalities now have until January 1, 2027, to issue a notice of intention to designate." Listed properties without that notice by the date are removed from the register, and they "cannot be relisted on the register for a period of five years starting January 1, 2027."
The same notice says the government added regulation-making powers "allowing for these dates to be amended in the future, prior to their expiration."
Listed, designated and district: what each means today
- Listed (non-designated). Hamilton's heritage page says the register gives short-term protection by "requiring an owner to give 60-days notice of their intention to demolish or remove" a building, and that "Non-designated registered properties are not subject to Heritage Permits." Adding or removing a listed property takes a council resolution.
- Designated (Part IV) or inside a heritage conservation district (Part V). The 1 January 2027 date applies to listed properties only; a designation or a district stays on the register. The guide's heritage entry describes what each one means.
- Toronto's register review page also notes the ability of owners of listed properties to file a notice of objection to the inclusion of their property on the register.
Where to check a home's status
Each city publishes its own register. Toronto's register review page (modified 3 July 2026) counts "approximately 4,000 properties currently listed" and says a subset will be designated before 31 December 2026, chosen through a "data-informed, citywide prioritization process". Ottawa's heritage staff say they "will reach out to property owners in advance of any proposed designation".
| City | Where the register is published |
|---|---|
| Toronto | Toronto Heritage Register and the register review |
| Ottawa | Heritage conservation; questions to [email protected] |
| Hamilton | Municipal Heritage Register |
| Guelph | Guelph Cultural Heritage Register |
| Other Ontario | The municipality's heritage or planning department keeps the register; the Ontario Heritage Trust keeps the provincial register. |
The records a buyer's side reads
A buyer's report reads the heritage register for the address in Toronto, Ottawa, Hamilton and Guelph and says whether the home is designated, listed, inside a district, or none of these. Permits and planning applications on file for the address sit next to it. The entries below name each record and where it is published.
Who answers questions about a heritage property
The City's heritage planning staff answer questions about a property's status and a proposed designation. Lawyers give advice on an objection or a designation; the Law Society of Ontario's Referral Service gives a free consultation of up to 30 minutes. Who does what in an Ontario offer names each role and its public register.
Sources
- Environmental Registry of Ontario, notice 019-8738: Proposed Amendments to the Ontario Heritage Act, Schedule 2 of the Homeowner Protection Act, 2024 (decision posted 21 June 2024), checked 22 Oct 2026.
- City of Toronto, Heritage Register Review (modified 3 July 2026), checked 22 Oct 2026.
- City of Toronto, Toronto Heritage Register, checked 22 Oct 2026.
- City of Hamilton, Waterdown Village Built Heritage Inventory: FAQs (the Municipal Heritage Register), checked 22 Oct 2026.
- City of Hamilton, Municipal Heritage Register, checked 22 Oct 2026.
- City of Ottawa, Reviewing Ottawa's Heritage Register: FAQs, checked 22 Oct 2026.
- City of Ottawa, Heritage conservation, checked 22 Oct 2026.
- City of Guelph, Guelph Cultural Heritage Register, checked 22 Oct 2026.
- Ontario Heritage Trust, checked 22 Oct 2026.
- Law Society of Ontario, Law Society Referral Service, checked 22 Oct 2026.
A rule or a form can change after the date a line was checked; the source's own page is the current version. Spotted something out of date? Write to [email protected] and it goes on the corrections list.
Public-record information, not legal, financial, insurance or inspection advice. OfferDue reports what each record and official page shows, with its source and date. Back to for owners and sellers.