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Good news for renters! The rent increase in Montreal stopped due to pandemic in 2020-2021

The rent increase in Montreal finally decided to take a break. The million-dollar question is “How long will this break last?”.

A decrease in average rents has been reported in 2020 and in the beginning of 2021 as vacancy rates are increasing in Montreal. This increasing vacancy rate in Montreal is creating a competitive environment for landlords. It has been estimated that the rent prices will only climb back up to their pre-Covid19 level when the pandemic is over and when students and immigrants come back to the City. 

Rent increase in Montreal 2020-2021

Although the supply of rental units continues to grow, demand has declined in Montreal. Vacancies due to the student population which left Montreal, a decrease in immigration, and an increase in the number of families who chose to move to the suburbs during the pandemic are affecting rent prices in Montreal. These lower rent prices are attracting a number of people who had preferred the suburbs for their lower rent prices, which in its turn is creating greater vacancies in the Montreal suburbs.

The historically low vacancy rate before the pandemic hit created a highly competitive environment for renters. Although the pandemic has significantly affected the rent prices in downtown Montreal, it is only a temporary setback as the real-estate market shows no sign of slowing down. 

The next question then is, how much do rent prices cost now, and which Montreal neighborhoods are the most expensive to live in?

The Montreal Gazette recently published an article about the average rent prices across the Greater Montreal region. The analysis of the real estate and rental market metrics are presented according to dwelling sizes as follows; one-, two- and three-bedroom apartment categories. 

Certain Montreal neighborhoods, like Westmount or Mont-Royal, are famous for rather high rental prices and for a high rent increase in Montreal over the last years, but when compared to all areas over the Greater Montreal region Montrealers might be surprised by the neighborhoods that figure at the top of the following lists: 

The most expensive neighbourhoods to rent one-bedroom apartments in 2021, on average

  1. Ville-Marie Est — $1,479
  2. Sud-Ouest — $1,365
  3. Nuns’ Island — $1,355
  4. Pointe-Claire — $1,312
  5. Mont-Royal — $1,286
  6. Westmount — $1,256
  7. Plateau-Mont-Royal — $1,192
  8. Outremont — $1,181
  9. Beaconsfield-Kirkland — $1,151
  10. Chomedey — $1,124

The most expensive neighbourhoods to rent two-bedroom apartments in 2021, on average

  1. Westmount — $1,797
  2. Nuns’ Island — $1,787
  3. Pointe-Claire — $1,691
  4. Mont-Royal — $1,674
  5. Outremont — $1,581
  6. Sud-Ouest — $1,569
  7. Plateau-Mont-Royal — $1,534
  8. Ville-Marie Est — $1,443
  9. Dollard-des-Ormeaux — $1,432
  10. Côte-Saint-Luc/Montreal West — $1,415

The most expensive neighbourhoods to rent three-bedroom apartments in 2021, on average

  1. Westmount — $2,382
  2. Mont-Royal $2,224
  3. Outremont — $2,001
  4. Beaconsfield-Kirkland — $1,869
  5. Nuns’ Island — $1,837
  6. Côte-Saint-Luc/Montreal West — $1,836
  7. Plateau-Mont-Royal — $1,827
  8. Hampstead/Côte-Saint-Luc — $1,826
  9. Notre-Dame-de-Grâce — $1,648
  10. Pointe-Claire — $1,641

On average, across the data analysed from all 92 areas of the Greater Montreal region, the average prices for one-bedroom apartments are $926, $1,155 for two-bedroom apartments, and $1,359 for three-bedroom apartments.

This is good news for renters, who will benefit from a temporary setback in the fast and continuous increase in rent prices observed over the last years, but this will be just it: a temporary setback. It has been reported that rent prices would continue to decline for the next few months until the pandemic is over.

The falling rental prices will inevitably impact other areas of the real estate market, influencing some to rent rather than to buy, which will create more demand and lead to a rent increase in Montreal again. 

As Agrasoy Realty, we have seen unprecedented activity in the rental market. Starting May 2020, we started to rent 2-3 times more units compared to last year despite the lack of new students, immigrants, and international professionals on temporary contracts in Montreal. Most of the tenants do not renew their leases at their current apartments/condos and break their leases and sign new leases to be able to take advantage of lower rent prices or promotions offered by the landlords competing with each other to lower their vacancies.

Check out Agrasoy Realty listings here for current apartments for rent in Montreal.

Agrasoy Realty is a property management company in Montreal, Quebec. It specializes in property management services and rental services for condo units, multiplex, and apartment buildings as well as syndicates. Agrasoy provides property search services as well as lease transfer and subletting services for tenants.

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