Buyer's Guide
Buying a Century Old Home in Montreal: What Changes
A house built in 1915 gets visited like any other and bought differently. What changes the file is not the …
A vacant lot takes five minutes to visit. No roof to inspect, no foundation to sound out, and that is the trap: everything that decides whether you can build on it lives on paper, in by-laws and maps nobody is required to hand you. Here is the list to work through before you file a promise to purchase.
Buying land in Quebec: for sale does not mean buildable
No lot carries an automatic right to a permit. Section 116 of the Loi sur l’aménagement et l’urbanisme (Quebec’s land use planning and development act) allows a municipality to require, by by-law, that no building permit be issued unless the land forms one or more distinct lots on the cadastral plan that comply with the subdivision by-law, unless water and sewer services are established on the street or ordered by a by-law in force, unless, failing that, the drinking water and wastewater treatment projects comply with the Loi sur la qualité de l’environnement (Quebec’s environment quality act), and unless the land abuts a public street or a compliant private street.
A lot that is not yet distinct has to go through a cadastral operation. In Montreal that means a subdivision permit, and only an arpenteur-géomètre (a Quebec land surveyor) may carry out the operation. Before issuing it, the borough may require the transfer of 10% of the land, or a contribution equal to 10% of its actual value, for park purposes.
Zoning, permitted use and the CPTAQ detour
The zoning grid tells you which uses are allowed, which setbacks apply, what the minimum lot area is. Ask for it before you make an offer. In Laval, the Info-règlements tool gives the zone by address or by lot number and flags special provisions, such as a plan d’implantation et d’intégration architecturale (a site planning and architectural integration programme).
Agricultural zoning changes everything. The Loi sur la protection du territoire et des activités agricoles prohibits several acts without the authorization of the Commission de protection du territoire agricole du Québec (CPTAQ, Quebec’s agricultural land protection board): using a lot for a purpose other than agriculture, residential use included (section 26), subdividing it (section 28), alienating a lot while keeping a right over an adjacent parcel (section 29), removing topsoil (section 70). The application goes through the municipality. A quiet wooded lot can therefore be unusable as a house site.
Wetlands, shoreline and flood zone
Section 22 of the Loi sur la qualité de l’environnement makes works and construction in wetlands and bodies of water subject to ministerial authorization. The Règlement sur les activités dans des milieux humides, hydriques et sensibles (chapter Q-2, r. 0.2), in force since 1 March 2026, sets out which activities are exempt, which go through a declaration of compliance and which require the authorization. A separate regulation governs the financial compensation owed for harming those environments.
A marsh is not always visible in August. The environment ministry publishes a wetland map: that is the first screen to open. For the site plan of a dwelling on a floodplain or a waterfront lot, Laval already requires the high water line determined by a biologist, the high and low velocity zones, the special intervention zone and the geodetic elevations. If the lot touches water, also read the checks in a flood zone.
Municipal water and sewer, or a well and a septic system
With no municipal network, two provincial regimes come on top.
Wastewater. The Règlement sur l’évacuation et le traitement des eaux usées des résidences isolées (chapter Q-2, r. 22) requires a permit from the municipality before the work (section 4). The application must include a characterization study of the site and of the natural ground covering the topography, the slope of the receiving terrain, soil permeability with the method used and the results, then the level of the bedrock and of the groundwater (section 4.1). For an isolated residence, that study and the location plan are signed by a professional who is a member of an order governing this activity; for an above-ground sand filter or a polishing field in impermeable soil, by an engineer or a geologist (section 4.3).
The well. The Règlement sur le prélèvement des eaux et leur protection (chapter Q-2, r. 35.2) imposes minimum distances: 15 m or more from a sealed wastewater treatment system, 30 m or more from a non-sealed system, or 15 m if the well is sealed in accordance with section 19, and 30 m or more from a composting area or a livestock waste storage facility (section 17). In a flood zone, the well must be sealed and installed under the supervision of a professional (section 16).
These two rules contradict each other fast on a small lot. That is where many isolated lots stop being buildable: the septic tank, the leaching field, the well and the setbacks no longer fit together.
Servitudes, access and the certificat de localisation
A servitude is a charge on one immovable in favour of another (article 1177 of the Code civil). It cannot be established without a title, and possession, even immemorial, is not enough (article 1181). Above all, it follows the immovable into whatever hands it passes (article 1182): the sale does not erase it.
If the land has no access to a public road, or insufficient access, article 997 lets you demand a right of way from a neighbour, against compensation. Where the enclosure results from the division of the land, the right of way is claimed from the co-partitioner or the contracting party, without compensation (article 999). A right of way is still not a public street, and section 116 is still standing in front of you.
The seller must give you the copy of the certificat de localisation (a surveyor’s certificate of location) he holds (article 1719). On vacant land, he often has none. That document is an arpenteur-géomètre’s opinion on the state of the property in relation to titles, the cadastre, occupancy and by-laws: servitudes, encroachments, agricultural zone, flood zone, protection areas. Only he can produce it. On a bare lot, it is a condition, not a wish.
A serviced lot in a development, or an isolated lot
In a development, the street, the services and the subdivision already exist, and the price reflects them. In exchange, you often inherit a book of architectural standards, a plan d’implantation et d’intégration architecturale, and sometimes an obligation to build with the developer or within a set deadline. Have those commitments read, as you would for a new build.
On an isolated lot, you pay for the cadastral operation, the access, the studies and the connections. In Laval, a single application covers the construction and the water and sewer connections; the permit for a single-family dwelling costs $732, the site plan must be prepared by an arpenteur-géomètre, and the status of the application arrives within five business days, with 30 days to complete a file.
Bearing capacity. The study required by regulation Q-2, r. 22 measures permeability, bedrock and the water table, not the soil’s capacity to carry foundations. I found no provincial rule imposing a geotechnical study for a single-family house: it is the engineer, the builder or the lender who asks for one. Sensitive clay, fill, an old peat bog: that is where the cost of the foundation gets decided.
Financing land in Quebec: no advance on vacant land
The CMHC Improvement program (SCHL Améliorations) insures new construction up to 95% of the value once the work is done, for an owner-occupied property of 1 or 2 units, and 90% for 3 or 4 units. The rules are blunt: financing approved before the site opens or very early, a lender that controls the building during construction, no equity take-out, condos excluded, and no advance permitted on vacant land. For a self-built home, the borrower must hold title to the land at the first advance.
So the land gets paid for beforehand, out of your own cash or with a separate loan negotiated case by case. No public source lets me announce a typical down payment on a bare lot. At the very least, model the payment on the house you plan to build with the mortgage calculator.
On the tax side, the sale of a parcel of land by an individual is generally exempt from GST and QST, but it becomes taxable notably if the land has been subdivided into more than two parts, if it was used primarily in a business, or if the sale is part of carrying on a business. If the seller is a builder, presume the price is taxable and have it confirmed. Transfer duties apply as well: see how the welcome tax is calculated.
The conditions to write into the promise to purchase
A promise on land is drafted differently. The deadlines in it are longer, because the answers come from third parties.
| Condition | What it must allow |
|---|---|
| Zoning | Written confirmation that the intended use is authorized |
| Buildability | The conditions of section 116: distinct lot, street, services |
| Certificat de localisation | A recent certificate, servitudes and constraints visible |
| Wastewater and well | The signed characterization study, a well compliant with section 17 |
| Wetlands and shoreline | The map verified, a delineation if needed |
| Geotechnical | The time for the study, and a way out if foundations change the budget |
| Financing | A realistic deadline: the loan does not follow the rules for a house |
| CPTAQ | In an agricultural zone, the sale conditional on the authorization |
Every condition names the document expected, the deadline and the effect if the answer displeases you. A clause that says only “to the buyer’s satisfaction” negotiates badly. For the mechanics of deadlines, see the negotiation levers.
Frequently asked questions
The seller says the land is “ready to build”. What is that worth? Nothing, as long as the municipality has not written it down. Ask for written confirmation of the zoning and of the permit conditions, by lot number.
How long does a CPTAQ authorization take? I cannot give you a reliable figure: it depends on the file and on the passage through the municipality. Treat it as a long delay rather than guess at one.
Can I buy this year and build in three years? On the financing side, yes, provided you pay for the land other than with an insured loan. Check the deadlines to build imposed by the developer or the municipality, though.
The seller’s certificat de localisation dates from 2011. Usable? It shows the state of the premises on that date. A servitude published since, a new flood map or a cadastral operation do not appear on it.
To go further, read the checks for buying in Laval and what the new build brochure does not say.
Want to know whether the lot you found holds up on paper? Write to me. I go through the municipal checks with you before you file a promise to purchase.
Georges Matar
Residential Real Estate Broker · RE/MAX DU CARTIER INC.
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