Nearly 25,000 apartments and condos remain vacant on the island of Montreal [1].
This vacancy rate persists despite a critical shortage of affordable housing in the region. The gap between available units and the urgent need for shelter highlights a systemic failure in the local real estate market.
Laurianne Croteau, a data journalist with Radio-Canada Info, led the analysis that uncovered the extent of the unoccupied units [1]. Croteau said there are nearly 25,000 vacant homes on the island [1]. To provide scale, this number is equivalent to every single housing unit in the Villeray neighborhood [2].
The investigation suggests the vacancies are not the result of a lack of demand. Instead, the phenomenon stems from a combination of investment strategies, administrative hurdles, and the voluntary retention of units by certain owners [1].
Specific cases highlight the severity of the issue. Reports indicate that hundreds of affordable housing units have been left vacant [3]. In some instances, owners have kept apartments empty for months even when demand remained high [3]. One specific entity mentioned in reports regarding voluntary retention is Gestion Turret [3].
While some sources emphasize the role of specific companies like Gestion Turret in keeping units off the market, other data suggests a broader mix of administrative blockages, and financial strategies contribute to the total number of empty homes [1, 3].
“There are nearly 25,000 vacant housing units only on the island of Montreal.”
The presence of 25,000 vacant units during a housing crisis suggests that market forces alone are not incentivizing owners to rent their properties. When investment strategies and administrative delays outweigh the demand for affordable housing, it indicates a need for policy interventions to prevent the intentional withholding of residential stock from the public market.
