If you're ready to make the leap from apartment dweller to condo-owner, there's a new Ontario condo buyers' guide to help.

Despite the pandemic, Toronto's real estate market hasn't cooled — in fact, home prices have reached record highs.

With $1 million burnt out homes and a tiny shacks as choices for low-budget housing in Toronto, a condo, even a micro-sized one, may look pretty good right now.

If that's the case, the Ontario government has a new Residential Condominium Buyers' Guide to help condo buyers make an informed choice.

"Buying a condo is a significant decision, and it is important that purchasers are appropriately informed so they can be confident in their new home," said Lisa Thompson, Minister of Government and Consumer Services.

Beginning Jan. 1, 2021, condo developers must provide buyers of new or pre-construction residential condos with a copy of the guide and the current disclosure statement.

Thompson said the guide is written in "plain-language" and contains "up-to-date information about condo ownership and the condo purchasing process."

And as some buyers of a cancelled Danforth condo development can attest, the process can be tricky and difficult to navigate.

The new guide includes information on condo ownership, such as:

• The condo purchasing process
• Moving into a pre-construction residential condo unit
• Condo living and governance
• Resources for resolving issues with condo living

As anyone who lives in Toronto knows, new condo developments appear to be popping up everywhere.

There are about 900,000 condominium units and over 11,000 condominium corporations across Ontario. According to data from the 2016 Census, about 13 per cent of Ontario households live in condominiums.

About 55 per cent of homes under construction in Ontario are condominiums, according to Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation.

As condo development shows no signs of slowing, the new guide, developed by the Condominium Authority of Ontario (CAO), and approved by the Minister of Government and Consumer Services, will hopefully help new buyers in this important purchase.