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You’ve just moved to Montreal and naturally your first priority is finding  a place to live. Time is of the essence  and you’re overwhelmed with finding your way around, figuring out your class schedule and settling in. You may be tempted to move into the first place you find in order to get on with your life, but WAIT! Living in Montreal can be an amazing experience, however you should  take a bit of time and do a thorough search in order to find the place where you’ll be spending most of your time. Give yourself at least a week to shop around. You may need to spend a week in temporary lodging, but it might save you a lot of trouble in the long run. Luckily, Montreal has plenty of short term housing options including hostels, AirBnB, couchsurfing and more.

Priorities

Before you start looking, you may want to define your priorities, figuring out what you need and what you want in your new apartment.  Think of factors such as proximity to a metro or school, having a balcony, water pressure in the shower, whether you need a washer and dryer in the building, etc. Create a housing wish list and let it guide you during your search. You can use the Rental Unit Evaluation Worksheet to help you define your priorities. Understanding what you want and what you are willing to compromise on is the first step in finding the perfect apartment.

While you are visiting the apartments ask your landlord lots of questions about the apartment. You may also want to get a first-hand opinion, in which case you could introduce yourself to the neighbors and get the inside scoop. Tenants living in the building may be in the best position to answer some of your questions. You want to find out as much as possible before signing the lease, and avoid being unpleasantly surprised half-way through the year.

Tip: If the landlord promises to fix or add anything to the apartment make sure that they write it into the lease.

Heads up!

1. Some apartments with a high volume of applicants may require you to sign application forms prior to signing the actual lease. It is important to know that if you sign a form and the landlord chooses you as the tenant, you are legally obliged to sign the lease. To avoid being stuck with multiple leases, leave an expiration date with your signature at the bottom of the application form, and try to fill out only one at a time.
2. Whenever you pay for anything apartment-related, make sure you receive detailed receipts. Your receipt should include the date, amount, what it is that you paid for, and the landlord or representatives’ signature or company stamp!
3. Where to look!
   Take time to discover the city while looking for an apartment! Many apartments up for rent are not listed online and are only advertised through «À Louer» signs in windows or hanging on balconies with the landlord’s contact  number on it. To get a general idea about the various boroughs in Montreal , check out the neighbourhood descriptions!

Temporary housing options

• www.cmhc-schl.gc.ca
• www.airbnb.com/s/Montreal
• www.couchsurfing.com
• www.hostelmontrealcentral.com
• www.hostellingmontreal.com
• www.hostels.com

Housing Advertisements

• cherchetrouve.ca
• kijiji.com
• craigslist.com
• padmapper.com

In Quebec there are many regulations that protect renters from living in deplorable conditions. The thing is, if you don’t know what rights you have as a tenant, you may feel powerless in an unpleasant situation. Take a look at the landlord’s top 10 obligations in order to better understand your rights as a tenant.

1. Only enter the tenant’s apartment with consent.

Landlords must provide 24 hours notice, either verbal or written, if they wish to enter your apartment, unless your apartment is up for rent. In both cases, the landlord needs your consent to enter. Only in cases of emergency is the landlord allowed to enter your apartment without your consent.

2. Perform necessary repairs.

It is the landlord’s responsibility to perform urgent and necessary repairs in a timely manner and to cover any related costs. This includes repairing heating problems in the winter.

3. Only rent dwellings fit for habitation.

The landlord must maintain the dwelling in a clean condition, fit for habitation. A caved in ceiling, for example, is unacceptable! If you see that your place poses a health or a safety hazard, take pictures, contact outside help, such as a city inspector and read about abandonment!

4. Do not ask for private information; including credit card numbers, social insurance numbers, and/or passports.

The landlord cannot collect credit card numbers, bank account numbers, social insurance numbers, visa or passport, driver’s permit or health insurance. They may ask a future tenant to show their ID to confirm their name. They are allowed to ask for references, full name, current or previous addresses and date of birth for a credit check. To learn more take a look at The lease and protection of personal information

5. Do not ask for additional rental fees, such as security and/or key deposits!

The landlord cannot ask for a deposit greater than the full amount of the first month’s rent in advance. That means no security deposit, no damage deposit, no key deposit!

6. Do not demand post-dated cheques.

Post dated cheques are cheques which are cashable at a later date. There is absolutely no reason for the landlord to require post-dated cheques. By law, they cannot demand this from a tenant.

7. Use an official Quebec lease.

Quebec has an official lease that can be found at any corner store for just over 2 dollars. The landlord has an obligation to provide this lease. It is also your right to have the lease in either English or French depending on your preference.

8. Do not add illegal clauses to the  lease.

Although the lease is a legally binding document and the landlord may have added a clause which conflicts with your rights as a tenant,  you cannot sign your rights away. Therefore illegal clauses are invalid even if you have signed the lease.

9. Ensure full and peaceful enjoyment of the dwelling.

It is your landlord’s responsibility to to provide full and peaceful enjoyment of the dwelling. This means the landlord must deal with noisy neighbors, your plumbing and maintain the appliances (if they’re included in your lease)!

10. Be available for the tenant to provide notice for non-renewal.

Leases renew automatically in Quebec. A written notice of non-renewal is required if you want to leave in the case of a: 12 month lease: 3-6 months notice; less than 12 months or indeterminate: 1-2 months notice; no written agreement: 10 days notice.

History

Quebec has a long history of cooperative housing. Housing cooperatives entered into the scene in Montreal in the 1960s as a response to neighborhood clearance projects. Essentially, housing cooperatives became a way tenant could collectively own and govern their own homes without the risk of eviction by a landlord who may try and sell the property to large housing corporations. Since then, housing cooperatives have taken a prominent role in Québec housing as an innovative and affordable alternative to traditional private market rental housing.

Advantages

There are several great advantages about Co-op housing. For instance, cooperative tenants collectively own and govern their household. That’s right- in this case you’re both a tenant and a landlord! As such, co-op housing is generally more affordable than private-market housing because the tenants collectively decide on rental increases, if any. Your rent, rather than going into a landlord’s pocket goes directly into the maintenance and financial value of the apartment building you live in. Beyond the rent, the cooperative of tenants collectively decide on any questions relating to the maintenance or costs of the building. However, finding a spot in a co-op is not easy because they tend to choose new members who will get involved and stay for a long period of time.

Student Housing Cooperatives

With increasingly more out-of-town students in Québec, Montréal in particular, as well increasing rental-to-condo conversion, the amount of decent student-appropriate private rental housing stock is not meeting the demand. Not only is it becoming more difficult for students to find decent apartments, rental units available to families are also becoming increasingly scarce. As students, how do we create sustainable housing options for ourselves while maintaining rental housing options for families? One solution could be student housing cooperatives! By creating student-specific housing we’re not only providing affordable and sustainable housing options for ourselves, we’re also leaving more private rental housing stock to those families who need it. While co-op situations are special and somewhat limited, plans  to expand these initiatives are currently motion.

For more info on student co-ops, get in touch with UTILE : utile.org

1. Renting in Montreal

Montreal’s housing market consists of over 50% renters. The city was built in a way that incorporates not only high-rise buildings, but many different apartment styles. For example, there’s the studio/loft: which is generally one large open space with a mezzanine for sleeping. There’s the duplex and the triplex, the “typical” Montreal apartment with winding stairs: two and three story apartment buildings where each unit has its own entrance. A less common building type is the bloc; multiple apartment buildings with a central entrance shared among the tenants. Finally, while not very common in Montreal, full houses are also available for rent.

If you are a new student, finding a roommate  and apartment hunting in a completely new city may seem too overwhelming. In this case, university residence may be an appropriate option for your first year in Montreal. Renting from an accredited institution has it’s benefits. Residences offer different rooms to choose from and many include a meal plan.  It can be a great way to meet people, and this way you can make the transition from university residence to having your own apartment in the following year, once you know the city better.. You may also consider private student residences; they are a relatively new addition to the housing market. Although scattered near university campuses, they are not affiliated with any university.

2. The deal on apartment sizing in Quebec

You may have noticed, while looking through apartment ads, that apartments are listed by size with this strange ½ business (1 ½, 3 ½, 4 ½, etc.)  Rumor has it that this classification system derived from the original architecture of duplexes and triplexes that we find everywhere in Quebec. Nowadays it is used to indicate the bathroom. Therefore the full number refers to the amount of rooms in the apartment and the ½ indicates that there is indeed a bathroom as well. In other words, a 1 ½/2 ½ are studio or bachelor-sized apartments and a 3 ½ is an apartment with a kitchen, living space, closed bedroom and  bathroom. Any sizes above that, you’re essentially adding an extra closed bedroom (ex. a 4 ½ has two closed bedrooms.)

3. Orientation: True North vs. Montreal North

If you look at a map of Montreal you may think you’ve got a good idea of where you’re going, but asking for directions might throw you off, in terms of the compass! Generally Montrealers will tell you North is towards the apex of the mountain while South is towards the Lachine Canal or the Saint-Lawrence River, even if this is geographically incorrect. When it comes to West and East, boulevard St Laurent is the dividing line. In the same vein, street addresses (along streets like Maisonneuve, Ste. Catherines and Sherbrooke) will change from “Est” to “Ouest” as they intersect boulevard Saint-Laurent.