Living · Duel · Sainte-Julie and Varennes or Beloeil and Mont-Saint-Hilaire · October 11, 2026
Two neighbouring areas, the pros and cons of each side by side, and the con that most often decides between the two.
Sainte-Julie and Varennes or Beloeil and Mont-Saint-Hilaire, the pros and cons side by side. Sainte-Julie and Varennes: pro, A planned suburb with Mont Saint-Bruno next door (Sainte-Julie) or an old town on the river with industrial jobs (Varennes). Con, No train or metro: both cities are lived by car, via highways 20 and 30. Beloeil and Mont-Saint-Hilaire: pro, The mountain, the Richelieu River, two old villages and a train to downtown, in a calm, artistic valley. Con, The valley is lived by car and train: no metro, and the Mont-Saint-Hilaire train runs at peak hours only. For families who want a planned suburb with Mont Saint-Bruno next door (Sainte-Julie) or an old riverside town with industrial jobs (Varennes), and accept the car. For families and couples who want nature, the mountain, the river, two old villages and a train downtown, in a calm, artistic valley; for those working in Saint-Hyacinthe or Longueuil via the 20.
Sainte-Julie and Varennes and Beloeil and Mont-Saint-Hilaire are neighbours, and buyers often hesitate between the two. Here are the pros and cons of each, side by side, written by a team that sells in both; the figures are those published by the APCIQ for the second quarter of 2026, and nothing is embellished.
| Sainte-Julie and Varennes | Beloeil and Mont-Saint-Hilaire | |
|---|---|---|
| Transit | No station or metro: exo Sainte-Julie and Varennes buses reach the Longueuil terminus (Longueuil–Université-de-Sherbrooke metro) via Highway 20 with reserved lanes, and the REM in Brossard via the 30. | The exo Mont-Saint-Hilaire line stops at McMasterville station (for Beloeil) and at Mont-Saint-Hilaire station, the terminus, with Central Station at the end; exo Vallée-du-Richelieu buses reach the Longueuil terminus. |
| Parks and shops | Mont-Saint-Bruno national park (trails, lakes, skiing) is at Sainte-Julie's door; in Varennes, the riverside promenade, Parc de la Commune and the Varennes islands. | The Gault nature reserve on Mont Saint-Hilaire (trails, Lake Hertel, summits) is the large space; the Richelieu riverbanks, the orchards and the neighbourhood parks complete the offer, with the arenas, the pool and Beloeil's cultural centre. |
| Schools and services | Both towns fall under the Centre de services scolaire des Patriotes and the Riverside School Board, with high schools on site. | Both towns fall under the Centre de services scolaire des Patriotes and the Riverside School Board, with high schools on site. |
| The market in 2026 | The QPAREB's Sainte-Julie/Varennes sector shows a single-family home at $630,000 (flat year over year, +49 % in five years) sold in 22 days, with 157 active listings, and a condo at $391,000 (+6 %, +61 % in five years, the South Shore's strongest rise) in 28 days with 81 listings. | The QPAREB's Beloeil/Mont-Saint-Hilaire sector shows a single-family home at $650,000 (+2 % year over year, +43 % in five years) sold in 23 days, with 210 active listings, and a condo at $409,500 (+5 %, +44 % in five years) in 28 days with 94 listings. |
| Who it is for | For families who want a planned suburb with Mont Saint-Bruno next door (Sainte-Julie) or an old riverside town with industrial jobs (Varennes), and accept the car. | For families and couples who want nature, the mountain, the river, two old villages and a train downtown, in a calm, artistic valley; for those working in Saint-Hyacinthe or Longueuil via the 20. |
| Not for | Less so for those who want a train, a metro on foot or a fast rise: most of the rise is done and prices are flat in a year. | Less so for those who want the metro or a dense town: the valley is lived by car and train, and Mont-Saint-Hilaire is expensive at the foot of the mountain. |
Sainte-Julie and Varennes: For families who want a planned suburb with Mont Saint-Bruno next door (Sainte-Julie) or an old riverside town with industrial jobs (Varennes), and accept the car. Beloeil and Mont-Saint-Hilaire: For families and couples who want nature, the mountain, the river, two old villages and a train downtown, in a calm, artistic valley; for those working in Saint-Hyacinthe or Longueuil via the 20.
The con that most often decides between the two. On one side, no train or metro: both cities are lived by car, via highways 20 and 30. On the other, the valley is lived by car and train: no metro, and the Mont-Saint-Hilaire train runs at peak hours only. Whichever of the two you accept more easily names your neighbourhood. The detail of each is in Living in Sainte-Julie and Varennes: the pros and cons and Living in Beloeil and Mont-Saint-Hilaire: the pros and cons.
The QPAREB's Sainte-Julie/Varennes sector shows a single-family home at $630,000 (flat year over year, +49 % in five years) sold in 22 days, with 157 active listings, and a condo at $391,000 (+6 %, +61 % in five years, the South Shore's strongest rise) in 28 days with 81 listings. The QPAREB's Beloeil/Mont-Saint-Hilaire sector shows a single-family home at $650,000 (+2 % year over year, +43 % in five years) sold in 23 days, with 210 active listings, and a condo at $409,500 (+5 %, +44 % in five years) in 28 days with 94 listings. The price of a specific house is set on the comparable closed sales on its street, which the team pulls from the Centris system; our Living in Sainte-Julie and Varennes and Living in Beloeil and Mont-Saint-Hilaire guides give the benchmark of each sector.
Both towns fall under the Centre de services scolaire des Patriotes and the Riverside School Board, with high schools on site. Both towns fall under the Centre de services scolaire des Patriotes and the Riverside School Board, with high schools on site. The exact school catchment varies from one street to the next: check before buying.
No station or metro: exo Sainte-Julie and Varennes buses reach the Longueuil terminus (Longueuil–Université-de-Sherbrooke metro) via Highway 20 with reserved lanes, and the REM in Brossard via the 30. The exo Mont-Saint-Hilaire line stops at McMasterville station (for Beloeil) and at Mont-Saint-Hilaire station, the terminus, with Central Station at the end; exo Vallée-du-Richelieu buses reach the Longueuil terminus.
Sainte-Julie and Varennes: No train or metro: both cities are lived by car, via highways 20 and 30. Beloeil and Mont-Saint-Hilaire: The valley is lived by car and train: no metro, and the Mont-Saint-Hilaire train runs at peak hours only.
The pros and cons are written by the Loaa & Manseur team from our neighbourhood guides and from what buyers tell us after the visits; no figure is added to those published by the APCIQ. The other neighbouring duels are in pros and cons, neighbourhood against neighbourhood.
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.