Home records, explained › Who's around a home offer
Who's around a home offer, and what each one looks up
Fourteen people and firms stand around one offer. Each asks the same question from a different side: what does the public record say about this home, and where does it say it? This page is the short version; each card opens that reader's guide.
Page reviewed 20 Oct 2026.
The people in the deal
- BuyerIs there anything on record that would stop me before I spend on an offer, an inspection or a lawyer?Floods, what is planned next door, permits, zoning, taxes, the street.The buyer's guide
- Co-buyer, partner, familyThe same facts in a form I can forward and argue over.The three or four records that decide most offers, read together.The co-buyer, partner, family's guide
- Owner or sellerWhat will buyers find? What does the by-law let me do with the lot before I sell? What changed nearby since I bought?A dated copy to hand to buyers so the first question is already answered.The owner or seller's guide
- Investor or landlordCan this home be rented, and how?Short-term rental rules, licensing, registered units, what the zoning allows, holding costs, the area's price record.The investor or landlord's guide
- Tenant in a home being soldWhat are my rights, and what is on record about the unit I live in?Where the rules are, the home and the unit on record, the street and daily life.The tenant in a home being sold's guide
- Newcomer or relocating buyerHow does an Ontario offer work, and what does daily life from this address look like?Who does what, schools, transit, services, what it costs to hold a home here.The newcomer or relocating buyer's guide
- Condo buyer, corporation or managerWhat does the public record say about the building's lot and surroundings?The lot, what is changing nearby, daily life from the address; never condo documents.The condo buyer, corporation or manager's guide
The licensed professionals they hire
- Real estate agentSpeed inside an offer window, and a pre-listing check for a seller, without putting my own name behind a claim.A sourced diligence list to hand a client in hours.The real estate agent's guide
- Mortgage broker or lenderThe property facts a file turns on.Legal units, heritage, flood context, water and sewer, services, what is changing on the street.The mortgage broker or lender's guide
- Real estate lawyerA starting list before the official searches, and which searches exist in each city.Zoning, permits, open applications, planned works, road widening, heritage, the overlays.The real estate lawyer's guide
- Home inspectorWhat the City approved, beside what I see on the day.Permits and registered units; records, never condition.The home inspector's guide
- AppraiserThe lot and the building on record, and the surroundings.Lot and building size, the overlays, area-level price records; never a value.The appraiser's guide
- Insurance brokerThe facts an application asks for.Hydrant and fire station distance, flood context, wells, heating fuel, services.The insurance broker's guide
After the offer
Two more are around the offer but are not readers we serve: the municipality and the conservation authority, who publish the records, and the listing sites, which OfferDue never reads. Who is licensed for what, and the register for each licence: who does what in an Ontario offer. The firms that work with OfferDue: who works with OfferDue.
Public-record information, not legal, financial, insurance or inspection advice. OfferDue reports what each record shows, with its source and date.