The City of Montreal announced plans to ban Airbnb-style rentals during its high-tourist season for residences not designated in specific commercial areas.
“Nearly 65% of people living in Montreal are tenants, and expect quick solutions to access more housing in the current crisis,” said Montreal Mayor Valérie Plante in a statement Thursday.
“Despite all the tightening efforts deployed by the government, the City and the boroughs, too many housing units are still rented illegally, and escape Montreal tenants. To meet the needs of tenants, we are taking action!”
The proposed ban would be in effect from June 10 to Sept 10 and promises hefty fines for those who violate the timeframe.
“If you want to do legal Airbnb, you’ll need a valid permit and it will have to be between June 10 and September 10” said Benoit Dorais, vice–president of Montreal’s executive committee on Thursday.
Dorais said for those who don’t acquire a permit, the result will be a “simple” and “automatic filing.”
“You’ll go and defend yourself in front of the judge to prove that you had the right,” he said.
Dorais is promising fines of $1,000 per night for individuals and $2,000 per night for business.
“By preventing homeowners from renting even part of their homes outside of certain government-regulated dates, Montreal’s Plante administration shows its fight against short-term rentals is purely ideological,” Renaud Brossard, vice president of communications at the Montreal Economic Institute told True North.
Additionally, the city will also be expanding its number of inspectors from three to seven.
Certain designated tourist residences in specific commercial districts located near Montreal’s downtown would continue to be rentable year-round.
The executive committee will adopt a draft of the new regulations Thursday.
Quebec laws allowed anyone to rent out their primary residence on platforms such as Airbnb after obtaining a licence from the Corporation de l’industrie touristique du Québec as of 2023.
However, the city claims this has been exploited by people renting out year-round accommodation in places that are not their primary residence.
“There are 100,000 tricks that are done to make it a commercial activity,” said Dorais.
One gripe the city noted involves couples claiming to live at two separate residences while turning their other “primary residences” into a temporary rentable space.
“This is just one more way in which the Plante administration takes rights away from property owners to further its ideology,” said Brossard.
Plante claims that the new regulations will allow the city to “recover up to 2,000 homes to return them to Montrealers.”
“This new framework will allow us to concretely combat the housing crisis while allowing short-term rentals during the peak tourist season, which is essential for the metropolis,” she said.
However, Brossard pointed out that the city’s decision also bans short-term rentals even in someone’s primary residence, between specific months.
“That means a young couple who’s looking to rent their place while they’re away on vacation won’t be able to do it anymore,” said Brossard. “This is not exactly trying to help make more housing available, as it targets even a primary residence.”
The change in regulation also presents the problem of no longer allowing residents to rent out a spare bedroom for those travelling through the city for work, allowing them to mitigate the increasing cost of living in Montreal.
Plante claims that the new regulations will allow the city to “recover up to 2,000 homes to return them to Montrealers.”
“This new framework will allow us to concretely combat the housing crisis, while allowing short-term rentals during the peak tourist season, which is essential for the metropolis,” she said.
However, MEI published a study last month which estimated that of the 25,000 Airbnb units available before the city’s various crackdowns, only about 7000 units were permitted to return back into the long-term housing stock.
“Coincidentally, Mayor Plante’s administration has blocked nearly 24,000 housing units from being built since she came in office, which is substantially more than what Airbnbs represent in the city,” said Brossard.
“If Mayor Plante wants to take action and make housing more affordable, she should start by admitting her administration’s responsibility in furthering the crisis by blocking nearly 25,000 new homes from being built since her election” said Brossard.
