Peel Region
Probate at the Brampton courthouse
Brampton is where Peel Region’s Superior Court of Justice sits, so probate applications for Brampton, Mississauga and Caledon residents are all filed here.
The courthouse at 7755 Hurontario Street, known as the A. Grenville and William Davis Courthouse, handles Peel’s estates. Ontario lets you file a probate application by email, so the application, affidavits, consents and proof of service are sent electronically with the court’s information form. The court’s electronic filing directions still require the original will, any bond and the estate administration tax payment on paper. A Brampton family can drop the originals at the court office themselves or have them couriered; either way, they must match what was emailed, which is why we prepare the whole package.
Who files it
With a will, the estate trustee named in it applies. Without a will, a surviving spouse usually has the first right, then a close relative, with consents from the beneficiaries and usually a bond. Where several family members are named as estate trustees together, they apply together and generally have to act together afterwards, including signing for the sale of a house.
Our main probate and estate administration page covers the general process, the forms, the estate trustee’s duties and the timeline. This page deals with two issues that often come up in Brampton estates: shared ownership and rented basement units.
Shared ownership
When parents and adult children own the home together
Some Brampton houses are bought and owned by more than one generation of a family. The way the names are on title decides what happens when one owner dies.
Joint tenants
If the owners hold the house as joint tenants, a deceased owner’s interest passes automatically to the surviving owners. It doesn’t form part of the estate, it isn’t counted for estate administration tax, and the survivors update the title with a survivorship application and a death certificate. There is one caution: where a parent put an adult child on title without being paid for it, the law may presume the child holds the parent’s share for the estate unless the parent meant it as a gift. We look at how and why the child was added before advising.
Tenants in common
If the owners hold the house as tenants in common, each owns a share that passes under their own will, or on an intestacy. A deceased owner’s share goes through the estate, is counted for estate administration tax, and usually needs a certificate before it can be sold or transferred, even though the other owners are still living there.
A worked example
A father and his son own a Brampton house as tenants in common, half each. The house is worth $1,100,000 with a $400,000 registered mortgage. The father dies with a will leaving everything to his three children, and $30,000 in his bank account. His half share is $550,000, less half the mortgage, $200,000, which leaves $350,000; with the bank account, the estate is $380,000. Under Ontario’s estate administration tax rules (as of 2026), the tax is 330 × $15 = $4,950. The son who lives in the house now co-owns it with his father’s estate, and the three children will have to agree whether the estate’s share is sold, bought out by the son, or transferred.
Had they owned it as joint tenants, the son would have taken the whole house by survivorship, the estate would be only the $30,000 bank account, no tax would be payable, and the bank might release it without probate. Whether that is the right result depends on what the father intended, which is why co-owners should review title and wills together. Our Brampton wills page explains planning for a shared home.
Why Wannes Law
A Toronto law firm that keeps you informed
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A licensed Ontario lawyer
Rosalie Wannes, licensed by the Law Society of Ontario, is responsible for your file from start to finish.
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Fees before you commit
Instant online quotes and published flat fees, so you know the cost before you retain us.
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Every step explained
Plain-language explanations of what happens, what you provide and what we handle, at every stage.
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Direct access
Reach your lawyer and law clerk directly by phone and email while your matter is underway.
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Sign in person or remotely
Meet at our Sheppard Ave E office in Toronto, or review documents by video and courier the originals.
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English, Armenian and Arabic
Talk through your matter in the language you are most comfortable with.
Basement units
The rented basement in a Brampton estate home
Where the estate home has a rented basement unit, the estate trustee takes on the landlord’s role and should check the unit’s status with the City early.
Registration
- The City of Brampton requires every additional residential unit to be registered, a one-time process confirming it meets the Building Code and zoning by-law
- The City imposes administrative penalties for failing to register
- Look for the registration and building permit among the deceased’s papers, or ask the City
- A buyer, and the buyer’s lender, will ask about it
The tenant
- The tenancy continues after the owner’s death, on the same terms
- The estate trustee collects the rent into the estate account and gives the tenant written notice of where to pay
- Repairs, heat and proper notice before entering remain the landlord’s obligations
- Tell the insurer about the death and confirm the policy still covers the rented unit
Selling or transferring
- A buyer takes the house subject to the tenancy unless it is ended properly under the Residential Tenancies Act
- The notice and compensation rules for a buyer’s own use are strict and changed on September 21, 2026; decide the approach before accepting an offer
- We act on the sale for the estate; the fee for the sale is calculated by price in the quote
- For a tenancy dispute, we can review it and refer you
For more on buying and selling in Brampton, see our Brampton real estate page.
Questions
Brampton probate questions
Where is probate filed for someone who lived in Brampton?
With the Superior Court of Justice for Peel Region at 7755 Hurontario Street, Brampton. The application can be emailed; the original will, any bond and the tax payment are delivered on paper.
My father and I owned the house as joint tenants. Do I need probate?
Usually not for the house: his interest passes to you by survivorship, and you register a survivorship application with the death certificate. If you were added to title without paying for it, the other beneficiaries may argue you hold his share for the estate, so keep any evidence of what he intended.
We owned the house as tenants in common. What happens to my mother’s half?
It passes under her will, or under Ontario’s intestacy rules if there is no will. It goes through her estate, is counted for estate administration tax, and usually needs a certificate before it can be sold or transferred.
Does the estate have to register the basement unit?
Brampton requires all additional residential units to be registered, and the City imposes penalties for failing to do so. Check the unit’s status early and discuss it before listing the house.
How much is probate on a Brampton estate?
Ontario’s estate administration tax is nothing on the first $50,000 and $15 per $1,000 above it (as of 2026). A half share of a house with $350,000 of equity, plus $30,000 in the bank, pays $4,950. Our legal fee is quoted individually.
Can you help in Armenian or Arabic?
Yes. We serve clients in English, Armenian and Arabic. Our office is at 3319 Sheppard Ave E in Toronto, and most estate work can be done by phone, email and video.
Areas We Serve
Probate help in Peel and across the GTA
We act on Brampton and Mississauga estates filed at the Peel courthouse, and on estates across Toronto, York and Durham.
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Scarborough
Probate & estates for Scarborough clients. Our office is on Sheppard Ave E.
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North York
Probate & estates for North York clients.
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Markham
Probate & estates for Markham clients.
Here to help
Start with how the house is owned.
Book a free 15-minute call, or answer the estate questions for a quote.
Prefer to talk now? Call (647) 707-7718 · Service in English, Armenian and Arabic