New Construction | Taking possession
Completion, Possession, and Adjustment
Three separate dates, often within days of each other, each doing a different job. Confusing them is how people end up without keys.
The short answer
Completion is when title transfers and money moves. Possession is when you get the keys, usually the next day. Adjustment is the date from which costs like property tax and strata fees become yours. They are set in the contract and they are not the same day.
What happens on each
On completion, your lawyer registers the transfer and the funds move. That is the legal change of ownership.
On possession, you get the keys. It is commonly the day after completion, because registration and funds have to clear first.
The adjustment date determines who pays for what across the changeover: prepaid property tax, strata fees, and similar are apportioned from it.
Why the gap exists
Money and registration take time to clear. A same-day possession is possible and it leaves no margin if anything is delayed.
Plan your move around the possession date rather than the completion date, and do not book movers for the morning of completion.
What can go wrong
Funds arriving late is the common one, and it can push possession. Lender documents that are not ready in time cause the same effect.
Get your financing finalised well before completion and respond quickly to your lawyer's requests. Most delays trace back to a document nobody chased.
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Common questions
What is the difference between completion and possession?
Completion is when title transfers and the money moves. Possession is when you get the keys, usually the following day, because registration and funds have to clear first. They are separate dates set in the contract.
What is the adjustment date?
The date from which the property's ongoing costs become yours. Prepaid property tax and strata fees are apportioned from it, which is what the adjustments on your closing statement are settling.
Can I move in on completion day?
Sometimes, and it leaves no margin. Possession is commonly the day after completion because funds and registration must clear. Book movers around possession, not completion.
Where these figures come from
- VanPlex active listings, MLS® data
Active townhouses, half duplexes, and row houses built in the last two years across Metro Vancouver and the Fraser Valley.
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- Government of BC, property transfer tax rates
1% to $200,000, 2% to $2M, 3% above $2M, plus a further 2% on residential value above $3M.
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