You Need An Income Over $100,000 To Afford An Average Montreal Home, According To A Report

The Soviet Union was still a thing, Bob Gainey was captain of the Habs, and Michael Jackson was topping the charts the last time Montreal's real estate market was this out of control.

That's the message behind the National Bank of Canada's latest housing affordability report, released August 3, which says the city's home prices are climbing at their fastest pace in almost 40 years.

The report, "Housing affordability worsens by the most in 27 years in Q2 2021," found affordability decreased in all ten markets studied with Montreal home prices increasing 19.8% over the past year, a figure "surpassed only by Hamilton and Ottawa/Gatineau, and the highest annual growth since 1983 for the city."

The price of a representative non-condo home has reached $492,777 and one would need an annual household income of $100,489 to afford one (you'd also need to save for 42 months to come up with a down payment), according to National Bank.

Conversely, the price of a representative condo reached $356,443 and you'd need a household income of $72,688 for one of those.

The good news is Montreal remains more affordable than the average of the markets covered (especially compared to pricey Toronto and Vancouver), so there's that.