Living in Greater Montreal: the pros and cons of 53 boroughs, sectors and cities (2026)

Living · Pros and cons · 53 neighbourhoods · October 11, 2026

One page per neighbourhood, the same grid everywhere: the pros, the cons, who it is for, and the price. Montreal first, then Laval, the South Shore, the North Shore and the West.

The pros and cons of living in 53 boroughs, sectors and cities of Greater Montreal: 19 Montreal boroughs and neighbourhoods, 6 Laval sectors, 14 South Shore cities, 7 North Shore cities and 7 in the West Island and Vaudreuil-Soulanges. For each place: the good reasons to live there (transit, parks, schools, price), what you have to accept (noise, parking, distance, old housing stock, flood zones, entry price), who it suits and who it does not, and what it costs in 2026 according to the APCIQ.

Every neighbourhood has a page: the pros (what the neighbourhood really has going for it), the cons (what buyers discover after visiting), who it suits and who it does not, and the price published by the APCIQ for the second quarter of 2026. The lines below give the first pro and the first con of each place.

Montreal, by borough (19)

• Living on the Plateau-Mont-Royal: the pros and cons. Pros: Everything is on foot or by bike: three metro stations, bike lanes everywhere, shopping streets and parks at every corner. Cons: Parking is scarce and permit-regulated; living with one car takes patience, two cars is a headache.
• Living in downtown Montreal (Ville-Marie): the pros and cons. Pros: Work, universities, hospitals, shows and the metro on foot: the only neighbourhood where a car is truly useless. Cons: Tower condo fees (pool, gym, concierge) weigh heavily every month and rise with the building's age.
• Living in Montreal's Sud-Ouest: the pros and cons. Pros: The Lachine Canal, its paths and parks, with downtown on foot or by bike from Griffintown and Saint-Henri. Cons: Griffintown: density, construction, few trees and schools, and new condos that resell slowly against the supply.
• Living in Verdun and on Nuns' Island: the pros and cons. Pros: The river, the urban beach, the bike paths and Wellington Street, with two metro stations on the Verdun side and the REM on the island. Cons: Verdun has become expensive: plexes and plex condos cost what a sought-after neighbourhood costs, and parking is hard near Wellington.
• Living in Rosemont–La Petite-Patrie: the pros and cons. Pros: The city on foot: Jean-Talon Market, Masson, Beaubien, two metro stations, green laneways and neighbourhood schools. Cons: The detached house is the exception above a million; the supply is plexes and plex condos.
• Living in Villeray, Saint-Michel and Parc-Extension: the pros and cons. Pros: Jarry and Jean-Talon metro, Jarry Park, Villeray cafés and the market steps away, for less than Rosemont. Cons: Saint-Michel and Parc-Extension remain dense and noisy near highway 40 and the Metropolitan, with an uneven housing stock.
• Living in Hochelaga-Maisonneuve and Mercier: the pros and cons. Pros: A house or plex on the island under $700,000, the metro on foot, the Olympic Park, Maisonneuve Market and the Ontario promenade. Cons: The neighbourhood is still changing: some streets are renovated, others not, and choosing the street matters as much as the house.
• Living in Ahuntsic-Cartierville: the pros and cons. Pros: Houses with yards on the island, the Rivière des Prairies, Henri-Bourassa and Sauvé metro, and Laval in five minutes. Cons: The median house exceeds $900,000: the entry point is the condo, and detached houses are contested.
• Living in Outremont: the pros and cons. Pros: The finest residential setting on the island: tree-lined avenues, parks, reputed schools, universities and Mount Royal on foot. Cons: The price: a house costs close to two million and a condo $750,000, for prices that have barely moved in five years.
• Living in Côte-des-Neiges: the pros and cons. Pros: Universities, hospitals and the metro on foot, the mountain and Mount Royal Park, and an affordable condo for a first-time buyer. Cons: Dense and noisy on the arteries, with hard parking near the hospitals and the university.
• Living in Notre-Dame-de-Grâce (NDG): the pros and cons. Pros: Brick houses on quiet streets, two metro stations, the MUHC, schools in both languages and a bilingual neighbourhood. Cons: A house costs $1.25 million: NDG is no longer an entry neighbourhood, and the plex condo is the alternative.
• Living in Saint-Laurent (Montreal): the pros and cons. Pros: The REM and Côte-Vertu metro, the Technoparc and West jobs, Bois-Franc and its townhouses, planned parks. Cons: Vast and contrasted: industrial sectors, wide boulevards, few neighbourhood shopping streets; you get around by car.
• Living in LaSalle: the pros and cons. Pros: The river and the rapids, Parc des Rapides, Angrignon metro, and a house or duplex under $750,000 on the island. Cons: Functional and vast, built for the car: few walkable shopping streets, boulevards and shopping centres.
• Living in Lachine: the pros and cons. Pros: Lake Saint-Louis, the canal, an old village with its market, the commuter train and a price below Dorval and Pointe-Claire. Cons: No metro: the Lachine train has few departures, and downtown requires a car or a long bus ride.
• Living in Saint-Léonard: the pros and cons. Pros: Houses with garage and garden on the island, quiet streets, Italian shops on foot and the future Blue Line stations. Cons: No metro until the Blue Line opens: today, Saint-Léonard is lived by car and by bus on Jean-Talon.
• Living in Anjou: the pros and cons. Pros: A suburban house with garage without leaving the island, next to highways 40 and 25, the Galeries d'Anjou and large parks. Cons: No metro until the Blue Line arrives: Anjou is lived by car, and the bus is the only public transit.
• Living in Montréal-Nord: the pros and cons. Pros: The cheapest house and plex on the island, the Pie-IX rapid bus, the Rivière des Prairies and riverside parks. Cons: No metro on foot: transit depends on the Pie-IX bus and the car, and downtown is far.
• Living in Rivière-des-Prairies and Pointe-aux-Trembles: the pros and cons. Pros: The lowest price on the island for a house with land, the waterfront, nature parks and a condo under $350,000. Cons: Far from downtown: without a car, trips are long and the Mascouche train has limited schedules.
• Living in Pierrefonds-Roxboro: the pros and cons. Pros: A suburban house with land on the island, nature parks, the river, and the REM to downtown. Cons: Lived by car: no walkable shopping street, boulevards and shopping centres.

Laval, by sector (6)

• Living in Chomedey, Laval-des-Rapides and Pont-Viau: the pros and cons. Pros: The metro on foot (Montmorency, De la Concorde, Cartier), the Centropolis, Carrefour Laval, and a recent condo with amenities. Cons: Urban and noisy on its boulevards (Saint-Martin, Le Corbusier, highway 15): quiet is found on the inner streets.
• Living in Sainte-Rose, Vimont and Auteuil: the pros and cons. Pros: An old village on the Rivière des Mille Îles, the Cité-de-la-Santé hospital, two train stations and a price below Sainte-Dorothée and Duvernay. Cons: No metro: the Saint-Jérôme train has limited schedules, and downtown Montreal requires the car or train plus metro.
• Living in Fabreville: the pros and cons. Pros: The cheapest house with land in Laval, near highways 13 and 440 and the Rivière des Mille Îles. Cons: Functional, with no old village or shopping street: shops are on the boulevards and you get around by car.
• Living in Duvernay: the pros and cons. Pros: Large houses on large lots, quiet streets, Val-des-Brises for the recent stock, and east Montreal via the Pie-IX Bridge. Cons: No train or metro: Duvernay is lived by car, and the Pie-IX Bridge is saturated at rush hour.
• Living in Sainte-Dorothée, Laval-Ouest and Laval-sur-le-Lac: the pros and cons. Pros: Large lots, the river, waterfront properties, Laval-sur-le-Lac and the Deux-Montagnes train. Cons: The Laval of wide-open spaces, not of services: everything is by car, and shops are far from residential streets.
• Living in Saint-François and Saint-Vincent-de-Paul: the pros and cons. Pros: Space and countryside twenty kilometres from downtown, the Rivière-des-Mille-Îles park, at the lowest price in east Laval. Cons: Rural and quiet: no train, no metro, no condos or shopping street; everything is by car.

South Shore (14)

• Living in Brossard: the pros and cons. Pros: The REM on foot, Quartier DIX30, highways 10, 30 and 15, and the widest house choice on the South Shore. Cons: A recent city without an old centre: few mature trees, boulevards and shopping centres rather than a main street.
• Living in Longueuil: the pros and cons. Pros: Longueuil metro, Saint-Charles Street and Old Longueuil, the Université de Sherbrooke campus, the river and the parks. Cons: An old stock that renews itself through renovation: little new construction, pre-1960 houses to maintain.
• Living in Saint-Hubert: the pros and cons. Pros: A house with a yard below the regional median, the Saint-Hubert train to downtown and highway 30. Cons: No pedestrian downtown: Saint-Hubert is lived by car and bike, between boulevards and shopping centres.
• Living in Saint-Lambert: the pros and cons. Pros: A village with mature trees, a train station ten minutes from downtown, reputed schools and the river. Cons: The entry price is high and there is no new construction: you buy a pre-1960 stock, to maintain, often without a double garage.
• Living in Boucherville: the pros and cons. Pros: Mature trees, neighbourhood schools, the Îles-de-Boucherville national park and Old Boucherville on the river. Cons: Boucherville is lived by car: no train or metro, and the tunnel-bridge or highway 20 at rush hour.
• Living in Saint-Bruno-de-Montarville: the pros and cons. Pros: A green city with Mont Saint-Bruno, an old village, a train station, highways 20 and 30 and reputed schools. Cons: The budget: a house costs $800,000 and up, and the entry level is contested within 20 days.
• Living in Sainte-Julie and Varennes: the pros and cons. Pros: A planned suburb with Mont Saint-Bruno next door (Sainte-Julie) or an old town on the river with industrial jobs (Varennes). Cons: No train or metro: both cities are lived by car, via highways 20 and 30.
• Living in La Prairie: the pros and cons. Pros: Old La Prairie and its charm, the river, and Symbiocité for new construction, in the same city. Cons: The train station is in Candiac and the REM in Brossard: for the daily train, you need a car first.
• Living in Candiac: the pros and cons. Pros: A planned, well-kept city, a train station to downtown, parks and neighbourhood schools. Cons: There is almost nothing under $400,000: the entry level is the condo, and it is rare.
• Living in Saint-Constant, Delson and Sainte-Catherine: the pros and cons. Pros: A suburban house with land, a train station on foot in each town, the river and a price below Candiac and La Prairie. Cons: Lived by car and train: no dense city or lively old village.
• Living in Châteauguay: the pros and cons. Pros: A house with land under $550,000, the Châteauguay River, Île Saint-Bernard and the Mercier Bridge toward LaSalle. Cons: The Mercier Bridge rules: recurring roadwork, jams, and a single direct link to the island.
• Living in Chambly: the pros and cons. Pros: The Chambly Basin, the fort, the canal and a lively old village, with a family house below Brossard prices. Cons: No train: the trip to Montreal depends on highway 10 and the Champlain Bridge, saturated at rush hour.
• Living in Beloeil and Mont-Saint-Hilaire: the pros and cons. Pros: The mountain, the Richelieu River, two old villages and a train to downtown, in a calm, artistic valley. Cons: The valley is lived by car and train: no metro, and the Mont-Saint-Hilaire train runs at peak hours only.
• Living in Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu: the pros and cons. Pros: A real city: CEGEP, hospital, downtown, river, at a price below Chambly and Saint-Hubert, with Saint-Luc for the suburb and Iberville for the charm. Cons: Some forty kilometres of highway and no train: working downtown Montreal every day without a car is not realistic.

North Shore (7)

• Living in Blainville: the pros and cons. Pros: Large recent houses in planned neighbourhoods, parks, bike paths, a well-off city and highway 15. Cons: No entry price: the affordable house has become rare, and so have condos.
• Living in Boisbriand and Sainte-Thérèse: the pros and cons. Pros: The North Shore one bridge from Laval, a CEGEP, a train station, old downtown Sainte-Thérèse and the Faubourg Boisbriand. Cons: House supply is the thinnest on the North Shore (96 listings): little choice and multiple offers.
• Living in Mirabel: the pros and cons. Pros: New or recent houses with garage and park, highway 15 and a price below Blainville. Cons: No train or dense town: Mirabel is lived by car between sectors separated by fields.
• Living in Saint-Jérôme: the pros and cons. Pros: A real city (CEGEP, hospital, train station, downtown) at the lowest price among the large North Shore cities, and the gateway to the Laurentians. Cons: Downtown Montreal is far: the train is long and so is highway 15 at rush hour.
• Living in Terrebonne: the pros and cons. Pros: A complete city (hospital, CEGEP, Old Terrebonne, train station, highways) with the widest house choice on the North Shore. Cons: Highway 25 to Montreal is tolled, and the Pie-IX Bridge is saturated at rush hour.
• Living in Mascouche: the pros and cons. Pros: A recent house under $650,000, the Mascouche train, highway 25 and a city built since 2000. Cons: Little charm or village life: a new city lived by car, with little choice (109 listings).
• Living in Repentigny: the pros and cons. Pros: The river, a cultural and stable city, 1970s houses to renovate or recent ones in Le Gardeur, and highway 40. Cons: Repentigny looks east: working in the West Island or Laval means long trips.

West Island and Vaudreuil-Soulanges (7)

• Living in Dollard-des-Ormeaux: the pros and cons. Pros: A suburban house with land, parks, schools in both systems and an active multicultural community. Cons: DDO is lived by car and bus, between the boulevards: no waterfront, no old village, no train on foot.
• Living in Dorval: the pros and cons. Pros: The lake, a train station, highways 20 and 520 at the door, and the airport for those who work there or travel often. Cons: Aircraft noise: some streets sit under the flight corridor, to be checked before offering.
• Living in Pointe-Claire: the pros and cons. Pros: A complete city: hospital, train stations, shopping centre, lakeside village, bilingual schools. Cons: The entry price is high ($820,000 median) and the high end gets negotiated for a long time.
• Living on Île-Perrot, Pincourt and Notre-Dame-de-l'Île-Perrot: the pros and cons. Pros: Water on every side, two train stations, the West Island one bridge away, and a price below Pointe-Claire and Beaconsfield. Cons: The island is lived by car: a single bridge to the West Island, saturated at rush hour, and a train with limited schedules.
• Living in Vaudreuil-Dorion: the pros and cons. Pros: A complete, growing city (train stations, hospital coming, CEGEP, shops, lake) at the crossroads of highways 20, 30 and 40. Cons: A new city without village charm: life is by car between neighbourhoods and big-box stores.
• Living in Saint-Lazare and Hudson: the pros and cons. Pros: Space, woods, horses, an English-speaking lakeside village in Hudson, and the West Island twenty minutes away. Cons: Lived by car: the Hudson train is rare, and there are no condos or services on foot.
• Living in Saint-Zotique, Les Cèdres and Coteau-du-Lac (Soulanges Sud): the pros and cons. Pros: A large lot, the lake or the canal, and a house under $600,000 half an hour and more from the West Island. Cons: A string of villages lived by car: no train, no condos, no services on foot.

How to read these pages

The pros come from our neighbourhood guide and from what makes people choose a place: transit, parks, shops, schools, setting, entry price. The cons come from what buyers report to us after the visits: highway or train noise, parking, distance to downtown, old housing stock to renovate, flood zones, condo fees, taxes, thin supply or competition on the good houses. No con is a verdict: each one weighs differently depending on whether you work downtown or remotely, with a car or without, with children or not. The figures are those published by the APCIQ; we add none.

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The Loaa & Manseur team, led by Lotfi Manseur and Loaa Al Daow, is the number 1 team at RE/MAX Platine in 2024 and 2025, 6th RE/MAX team in Quebec, 15th in Canada and in the global top 50 of large residential teams according to the official RE/MAX ranking, computed on actual transactions. Its Google profile counts more than 220 reviews with a 4.9 rating. Its offices are at 55 avenue de l'Équinoxe in Brossard, one bridge from the island, and every broker's licence can be checked in the OACIQ public register. Three things to verify yourself before calling us, and to demand of any other broker.

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Published September 7, 2026 by the Loaa & Manseur team, the number 1 team at RE/MAX Platine in 2024 and 2025, 6th RE/MAX team in Quebec, 15th in Canada and in the global top 50 according to the official RE/MAX ranking. Tell us about your project.