Can a Creditor Put a Lien on Your House in Ontario?

Reviewed by Angelos Spingos, Principal Lawyer, Spingos Law · Licensed by the Law Society of Ontario · Last reviewed September 16, 2026

A lien on your home is what turns an ordinary debt into a threat to your equity. In Ontario an ordinary creditor can’t just register one — it has to sue, win, and enforce first. Here is exactly how a debt becomes a lien on your title, what that lien does, how long it lasts, and how it can be removed.

How a debt becomes a lien on your home

For most debts — a credit card, a line of credit, a personal loan — a creditor has no claim on your property until it goes through the courts. The sequence is:

1. Lawsuit. You are served with a Statement of Claim and have a limited time to respond.
2. Judgment. The court orders you to pay — often by default if the claim isn’t answered.
3. Writ of seizure and sale. The creditor files a writ with the enforcement office. From that filing it binds your land and works like a lien on your title.

What a lien on your title actually does

A registered writ does not put your home up for sale by itself. What it does is tie up your equity: you cannot sell or refinance without paying the writ out of the proceeds, because the enforcement office is entitled to be satisfied from any sale. It clouds the title, can complicate a mortgage renewal, and signals to other creditors that your property is encumbered. If the creditor takes further steps, the writ is also the foundation for a sheriff’s sale of the home.

Who can put a lien on your house in Ontario?

More parties than most homeowners expect, but each has to follow its own rules:

• Any judgment creditor. A bank, credit card issuer, debt buyer or collection law firm that has sued you and won can file a writ of seizure and sale with the sheriff. This is the lien this page is about.
• The Canada Revenue Agency. For tax debt the CRA can certify the amount in the Federal Court and register a lien against your property without suing you in the ordinary way. See how CRA collection works.
• A contractor or supplier. Unpaid work on the property can be secured by a construction lien under the Construction Act, on short deadlines and under different rules.
• Your condominium corporation, for unpaid common expenses, and your municipality, for property tax arrears, each under its own statute.

A mortgage lender does not need a lien: its charge is registered on title the day you borrow. And an ordinary creditor, such as a bank, a card issuer, a debt buyer or a collection agency, has nothing to register until it has sued you and won.

Can a collection agency put a lien on your house?

Not by itself. Ontario’s Collection and Debt Settlement Services Act draws a sharp line: an agency collecting for someone else can demand payment and report the debt, but it cannot seize anything or register anything against your home, and threatening a step it has no power to take is a prohibited practice. The lien only ever comes from a judgment followed by a writ, and only the creditor can sue for that judgment. The exception to watch is the debt buyer: an agency that has purchased your account owns the debt, can sue in its own name, and a judgment in its favour supports a writ like any other. Before you deal with anyone, ask in writing who owns the debt.

How to find out if there is a lien on your house

Two searches, because a writ does not always show up where people look first:

1. A title search of the parcel register in Ontario’s land registration system shows mortgages, construction liens, CRA and other registered instruments against the property.
2. A writ search with the sheriff (the enforcement office) for the county where the property sits. A writ of seizure and sale binds your land from the moment it is filed with the sheriff, whether or not anything appears on the parcel register, which is why every real estate lawyer runs this search before a sale or refinance closes.

The province’s Access Now search covers liens on personal property such as vehicles, not land, so a clear result there says nothing about your home.

How long a judgment lien lasts

A writ of seizure and sale remains in force for six years and can be renewed for further six-year periods. A judgment lien can therefore sit on your title for a very long time — quietly waiting for the moment you try to sell or refinance — until it is paid, settled, or discharged.

Your home equity and the exemption

Ontario’s Execution Act exempts a principal residence from forced sale only if the debtor’s equity is $12,997 or less (a figure adjusted periodically). It is a cliff, not a cushion: above it, the whole property is exposed. When a home is sold, a mortgage and prior registered charges are paid first, then writ holders share what remains.

How to get a lien removed

• Pay or settle the debt, then obtain a formal discharge of the writ so it comes off title.
• Dispute or set aside the judgment that the writ is based on, where there are grounds (for example, you were never properly served).
• Raise the limitation period if the debt was pursued out of time — but note this is a defence you must actually plead.
• Negotiate a reduced payout to discharge the writ, especially where the creditor faces cost and delay to enforce.

Can you sell a house with a lien on it?

You can list it, but you cannot deliver clear title while a writ stands. The purchaser’s lawyer will require the writ to be paid or discharged out of the sale proceeds before closing, and the writ creditor is paid through the sheriff before you receive anything. The same applies to a refinance: the new lender will not advance funds over an outstanding writ. Many homeowners discover a writ for the first time at exactly that moment, which is the worst time to negotiate. If you are planning a sale or a mortgage renewal, run the searches above first.

Frequently asked questions

How does a creditor get a lien on my house in Ontario?

For an ordinary debt, a creditor cannot simply place a lien. It must first sue you, obtain a judgment, and then file a writ of seizure and sale with the enforcement office (sheriff). From the day it is filed, that writ binds your land and acts as a lien on your title.

What does a lien on my home actually do?

It clouds your title. In practical terms you cannot sell or refinance the property without paying out the writ, because it must be satisfied from the proceeds. It does not force an immediate sale on its own, but it ties up your equity and can lead to a sheriff’s sale if the creditor pushes further.

How long does a writ / judgment lien last in Ontario?

A writ of seizure and sale stays in force for six years and can be renewed for further six-year periods, so a judgment lien can effectively sit on your title for many years until it is paid, settled, or otherwise discharged.

How do I get a lien removed from my house?

Common routes are paying or settling the debt (then obtaining a discharge of the writ), successfully disputing or setting aside the underlying judgment, or showing the claim was out of time. Because each depends on your facts, legal advice before you pay anything is usually worthwhile.

Who can put a lien on my house in Ontario?

Any creditor that has sued you and obtained a judgment, by filing a writ of seizure and sale with the sheriff; the Canada Revenue Agency for tax debt, which can register a lien without suing you in the usual way; a contractor or supplier under the Construction Act; your condominium corporation for unpaid common expenses; and the municipality for property tax arrears. A mortgage lender’s charge is registered when you borrow and is not a lien in this sense.

Can a credit card company put a lien on my house?

Only after it sues you and wins. There is no direct lien for an unsecured debt in Ontario. The card issuer, or the debt buyer that now owns the account, must obtain a judgment and then file a writ of seizure and sale. Until then it has no claim on your property.

Can a collection agency put a lien on my house?

Not on its own. An agency collecting for someone else can only ask you to pay; it cannot register anything against your home, and threatening to do so is a prohibited practice under Ontario’s collection rules. The creditor it collects for can sue, and a judgment followed by a writ is what creates the lien. An agency that has bought your debt is a debt buyer: it can sue in its own name and, if it wins, file a writ like any other creditor.

How do I find out if there is a lien on my house?

Two searches. A title search of the parcel register in Ontario’s land registration system shows mortgages, construction liens and other registered instruments. A writ search with the sheriff (enforcement office) for the county where the property is shows writs of seizure and sale, which bind your land from the moment they are filed even when nothing appears on the parcel register. A real estate lawyer runs both before any sale or refinance.

Can I sell my house with a lien on it?

You can list it, but you cannot deliver clear title while a writ stands. The buyer’s lawyer will require the writ to be paid or discharged from the sale proceeds on closing; the writ creditor is paid through the sheriff before you receive anything. Many homeowners first learn of a writ at exactly that point.