Homes with a second unit
A registered basement unit is part of your estate plan
Mississauga requires every second unit to meet the Building Code, Fire Code and zoning, and to be registered with the City, at no fee. If you rent one out, your will and powers of attorney need to deal with it.
Registration helps your estate trustee
When an estate sells a house with a basement apartment, the buyer’s lawyer and lender will ask whether the unit is legal. Registered units appear on the City’s Second Units Registry List, updated monthly. If yours isn’t registered, it is far easier to deal with now, while you can sign the application and let inspectors in, than to leave it to your estate trustee.
The tenant stays
Under the Residential Tenancies Act, “landlord” includes the owner’s personal representatives, so the lease continues after your death and your estate trustee takes over as landlord. If the plan is to sell the house empty, ending the tenancy follows the Act’s notice rules. Your will should give the estate trustee power to lease and manage real estate, not only to sell it.
Rental income while you are alive
If you are in hospital or can no longer manage, someone has to collect the rent, pay the mortgage and deal with repairs. Your attorney under a continuing power of attorney for property can do that. Your spouse can’t automatically act for you on a house in your name alone, and a tenant can’t be told to pay someone else without authority. Our wills and powers of attorney page explains how both documents work.
Condo owners
Leaving a condo in the City Centre or on the lakeshore
A condo passes under your will like a house, but the corporation’s rules and fees go with it. Three things to settle while you can.
If the estate sells
- The estate trustee usually needs probate before selling a unit in your sole name
- A buyer will want the status certificate, which shows the reserve fund, special assessments and any arrears on the unit
- Common expenses must be paid throughout, or the corporation can claim a lien on the unit
If a beneficiary keeps it
- The unit can be transferred to them on title after probate
- Check the building’s rules on leasing if they plan to rent it out
- Say whether any mortgage is paid off by the estate or passes with the unit
If you own a unit you rent out
- The tenant’s lease continues, as with a house
- Tax may be payable on any gain at death unless it passes to your spouse
- Our Mississauga real estate page covers selling a tenanted unit
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.
Peel Region
Probate in Brampton, hospital visits and help for older relatives
Mississauga is in Peel Region, and that decides where your estate trustee will go to court.
The court is in Brampton
A probate application is filed with the court for the county or district where the person lived. For Mississauga, that is the Superior Court of Justice at the Brampton courthouse, 7755 Hurontario Street, not in Toronto. The application can be filed by email. Estate administration tax is nil on the first $50,000 and $15 per $1,000 above that (as of 2026). Our Mississauga probate page explains the process.
When we come to you
Wills are normally signed with two witnesses at our Toronto office. Where a medical or mobility reason makes that trip difficult, we come to your Mississauga home, or to hospital, for example Trillium Health Partners’ Mississauga Hospital or Credit Valley Hospital, for $500 + HST. The person must be able to understand the documents and give instructions directly; if that is in doubt, tell us before we book.
Powers of attorney for aging parents
The person you name as attorney for personal care often ends up arranging day programs, respite or long-term care. Peel Region’s seniors services include adult day services, respite care and long-term care centres. An attorney who lives nearby and knows the local options makes that easier.
Packages
Choose the package that fits
Every package includes estate planning advice, and the price is shown in the quote form before you book.
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Single will package
A will plus powers of attorney for property and personal care. The usual choice for an owner with a rental unit.
$1,000 + HST -
Couples wills
A will and both powers of attorney for each spouse, including who manages the rental if one of you can’t.
$1,750 + HST -
Power of attorney package
Both powers of attorney, if your will is up to date.
$500 + HST -
Will only
Your will on its own, if your powers of attorney are current.
$750 + HST -
Primary & secondary wills
For owners of private company shares, to keep them out of estate administration tax.
$2,500 + HST
Fees
Flat fees for Mississauga clients
A home or hospital visit in Mississauga adds $500 + HST, only where a medical or mobility reason makes coming in difficult. The person making the will must have full mental capacity. Services in English, Armenian and Arabic. See all our legal fees.
Get your instant quoteQuestions
Mississauga wills questions
My basement unit isn’t registered. Does that affect my will?
Your will still works, but your estate trustee may find the house harder to sell or value. Registration with the City of Mississauga is free, and dealing with it while you can sign and arrange inspections is much easier than leaving it to your estate.
Who collects the rent if I end up in hospital?
The person you name in a continuing power of attorney for property. Without one, no one, not even your spouse, has clear authority over a house in your name alone.
Where is probate filed for someone who lived in Mississauga?
With the Superior Court of Justice in Brampton, which serves Peel Region. The application can be filed by email.
Can you come to Credit Valley Hospital to sign a will?
Yes, where the person can’t come to our office for medical or mobility reasons, for $500 + HST. They must be able to understand the will and give instructions themselves.
Do I have to come to our office?
Once, to sign with two witnesses. The call, instructions and draft review can be done by phone, email and video.
What happens to my condo fees after I die?
Your estate keeps paying them until the unit is sold or transferred. Unpaid fees give the condominium corporation a lien on the unit, so name an estate trustee who will keep them paid.
Areas We Serve
Wills across Peel Region and the GTA
We prepare wills for families in Mississauga, Brampton and across the GTA. For real estate and other services in Mississauga, see our Mississauga page.
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Scarborough
Wills & powers of attorney for Scarborough clients. Our office is on Sheppard Ave E.
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North York
Wills & powers of attorney for North York clients.
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Markham
Wills & powers of attorney for Markham clients.
Here to help
Decide who looks after the house, the unit and the tenants.
Choose a package and see the price, or book a free 15-minute call first.
Prefer to talk now? Call (647) 707-7718 · Service in English, Armenian and Arabic