Living · Family duel · Saint-Laurent or Dollard-des-Ormeaux · October 13, 2026
Two neighbouring areas seen with children: schools, parks, commutes, and the compromise that decides between Saint-Laurent and Dollard-des-Ormeaux.
Saint-Laurent or Dollard-des-Ormeaux for a family, side by side. Saint-Laurent: The borough falls under the Centre de services scolaire Marguerite-Bourgeoys and the English Montreal School Board; the Cégep de Saint-Laurent and Vanier College are both on the territory. Vast and contrasted: industrial sectors, wide boulevards, few neighbourhood shopping streets; you get around by car. Dollard-des-Ormeaux: The town falls under the Centre de services scolaire Marguerite-Bourgeoys and the Lester B. DDO is lived by car and bus, between the boulevards: no waterfront, no old village, no train on foot. For those who work in the west or at the Technoparc and want the REM or the metro on foot; for families looking for a planned neighbourhood with parks and townhouses (Bois-Franc); for a condo buyer who wants choice and time. For families who want a suburban house with a lot, parks, schools in both networks and an active multicultural community, at a price below Pointe-Claire and Beaconsfield.
Saint-Laurent or Dollard-des-Ormeaux for a family: two neighbouring areas, the same questions on both sides. Schools, parks, commutes and the compromise each one asks of a family, taken from our neighbourhood guides and from what families tell us after the visits. The figures are those published by the APCIQ for the second quarter of 2026; nothing is embellished.
| Saint-Laurent | Dollard-des-Ormeaux | |
|---|---|---|
| Schools | The borough falls under the Centre de services scolaire Marguerite-Bourgeoys and the English Montreal School Board; the Cégep de Saint-Laurent and Vanier College are both on the territory. | The town falls under the Centre de services scolaire Marguerite-Bourgeoys and the Lester B. |
| Parks | Parc Marcel-Laurin and its woodland, the Bois-Franc parks with their basins, Parc Beaudet and Parc Noël-Sud are the large spaces; the Saint-Laurent sports complex, the Raymond-Bourque arena and the Bibliothèque du Boisé, awarded for its architecture, are the flagship facilities. | Centennial Park (lake, trails, sledding) is the town's great park; neighbourhood parks, the Civic Centre (pool, arenas, library) and the community centre complete the offer. |
| Commutes | Two orange-line stations, Côte-Vertu (terminus) and Du Collège, serve the centre; the REM stops at Bois-Franc, Du Ruisseau and Montpellier (Deux-Montagnes branch), with downtown a few stations away. | DDO has neither station nor metro of its own: buses on boulevards des Sources, Saint-Jean and de Salaberry lead to the Fairview terminus and to the exo stations of Pointe-Claire (Vaudreuil-Hudson line) and Roxboro-Pierrefonds (REM, Deux-Montagnes branch, opened in the fall of 2025). |
| The market in 2026 | Saint-Laurent is the island sector where the single-family home rose most year over year in Q2 2026: a $988,750 median, +22 % in a year (but only +12 % in five years), with 148 active listings and 43 days on market; the rise comes from the mix of sales, driven by Bois-Franc and the north, more than from a street-by-street surge. | The QPAREB's West Island North sector (DDO, Kirkland, Pierrefonds-Roxboro, L'Île-Bizard) is the island's best-supplied house market: 502 active listings, a $760,000 median in Q2 2026 (+1 % year over year, +22 % in five years), 42 days on market. |
| For which family | For those who work in the west or at the Technoparc and want the REM or the metro on foot; for families looking for a planned neighbourhood with parks and townhouses (Bois-Franc); for a condo buyer who wants choice and time. | For families who want a suburban house with a lot, parks, schools in both networks and an active multicultural community, at a price below Pointe-Claire and Beaconsfield. |
Saint-Laurent: For those who work in the west or at the Technoparc and want the REM or the metro on foot; for families looking for a planned neighbourhood with parks and townhouses (Bois-Franc); for a condo buyer who wants choice and time. Dollard-des-Ormeaux: For families who want a suburban house with a lot, parks, schools in both networks and an active multicultural community, at a price below Pointe-Claire and Beaconsfield.
The compromise that most often decides between the two, seen with children. On one side, vast and contrasted: industrial sectors, wide boulevards, few neighbourhood shopping streets; you get around by car. On the other, dDO is lived by car and bus, between the boulevards: no waterfront, no old village, no train on foot. The family that accepts one of the two more easily has found its neighbourhood. The full family portrait of each is in Living in Saint-Laurent (Montreal) with a family and Living in Dollard-des-Ormeaux with a family; the general duel, all profiles together, is in Saint-Laurent or Dollard-des-Ormeaux: the pros and cons.
For those who work in the west or at the Technoparc and want the REM or the metro on foot; for families looking for a planned neighbourhood with parks and townhouses (Bois-Franc); for a condo buyer who wants choice and time. For families who want a suburban house with a lot, parks, schools in both networks and an active multicultural community, at a price below Pointe-Claire and Beaconsfield. The area whose compromise bothers you least is the right one.
The borough falls under the Centre de services scolaire Marguerite-Bourgeoys and the English Montreal School Board; the Cégep de Saint-Laurent and Vanier College are both on the territory. The town falls under the Centre de services scolaire Marguerite-Bourgeoys and the Lester B. No page replaces checking the school catchment of the exact address.
Two orange-line stations, Côte-Vertu (terminus) and Du Collège, serve the centre; the REM stops at Bois-Franc, Du Ruisseau and Montpellier (Deux-Montagnes branch), with downtown a few stations away. DDO has neither station nor metro of its own: buses on boulevards des Sources, Saint-Jean and de Salaberry lead to the Fairview terminus and to the exo stations of Pointe-Claire (Vaudreuil-Hudson line) and Roxboro-Pierrefonds (REM, Deux-Montagnes branch, opened in the fall of 2025). Do both commutes once, on a Tuesday morning, before deciding.
Written by the Loaa & Manseur team from our Living in Saint-Laurent (Montreal) and Living in Dollard-des-Ormeaux guides and from what families tell us after the visits; no figure is added to those published by the APCIQ, and ranking schools is not our trade. The other neighbourhood duels seen with children are in neighbourhood against neighbourhood for a family.
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.
Also available in French: version française de ce guide.
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.
Équipe no 1 de RE/MAX Platine en 2024 et en 2025, 6e au Québec, 15e au Canada et dans le top 50 mondial au classement officiel RE/MAX. Réponse en moins de 24 heures, sept jours sur sept.