The Montreal Housing Market Is Wild Right Now, But There's Some Hope For Wannabe Homeowners

Montreal's housing market is not what one might call "healthy" or "affordable," with home sales at their lowest level in the last 10 years, according to a report from the Quebec Professional Association of Real Estate Brokers (QPAREB) using Centris data. This is partially explained by the fact that many first-time homebuyers struggle to qualify for loans, especially in the current economic climate.

The QPAREB also credits "the wait-and-see attitude of experienced buyers and sellers" for the low number of recorded sales, as those market players who are used to ebbs and flows hold out for better prices.

The market still favours sellers, according to the association, meaning that prices have stayed relatively stable, especially compared to 2022.

“At the start of the year, the markets in the south of the province, which had been the most exposed to overheating, overbidding and overvaluation until early 2022, recorded very low levels of sales. This translated into an accumulation of properties with no takers," according to Charles Brant, QPAREB's Market Analysis Director.

"However, the market generally remained in favour of sellers in most other metropolitan areas and agglomerations in Quebec, despite market conditions favourable to buyers in a few sectors for the first time since 2015. This is particularly the case for plexes and single-family homes on the Island of Montreal,” Brant added.

The number of active listings across the province is continuing to increase, with the first quarter of 2023 representing a 47% increase as compared to the first quarter of 2022.

The median price of a single-family home in Quebec was $400,000 in Q1 2023, marking a 3% increase since the fourth quarter of 2022 but a $32,500 decrease compared to the first quarter of 2022.

In Montreal, the median single-family home price fell 6%, to $522,500, between Q1 2022 and Q1 2023.

This article's cover image was used for illustrative purposes only.