Ville-Marie and Plateau-Mont-Royal, Montreal Real Estate Market: Q3 2026

In the third quarter of 2026, Centris recorded 311 residential sales in Ville-Marie, more than in any other borough or city on the island of Montreal, but 19% fewer than in summer 2025. Its neighbour, the Plateau-Mont-Royal, recorded 197 (-6%). Both sell mostly condominiums, and yet APCIQ does not place them on the same side of the market. Here are the figures, what separates the two boroughs, and what changes for anyone selling or buying there.

The Ville-Marie and Plateau-Mont-Royal real estate market, by the numbers

The two boroughs had almost the same population in the 2021 census: 104,944 residents in Ville-Marie and 105,813 in the Plateau, according to their Centris pages. But between 2016 and 2021, Ville-Marie’s population grew 18% and the Plateau’s 2%, and the Plateau is twice as dense.

During the quarter, Ville-Marie posted 1,180 new listings (-4%) and 2,368 active listings, the same as a year earlier; the Plateau posted 495 (+4%) and 564 (+25%). The changes compare with the same quarter of 2025; changes in time on market are expressed in days.

Condos: two neighbours, two markets

Source: Centris real estate statistics for Montréal (Ville-Marie), Montréal (Le Plateau-Mont-Royal) and Montréal (Island), third quarter of 2026, July to September.

Condos account for 289 of Ville-Marie’s 311 sales and for 150 of the Plateau’s 197. Ville-Marie alone has 2,203 listed units, about a third of the island’s 6,696. Its median price sits below the island’s; the Plateau’s is above it. The sharpest gap is time on market: 92 days on average between the signing of the brokerage contract and the sale in Ville-Marie, against 48 in the Plateau.

What APCIQ says. Its third-quarter barometer treats Ville-Marie (sector 11) and the Plateau-Mont-Royal (sector 12) separately. For condos, over 12 months, it classifies Ville-Marie as favourable to buyers in every price range from $230,000 up, with 14.0 to 24.2 months of inventory. In the Plateau, every range from $290,000 up is favourable to sellers, at 4.3 to 6.1 months. A balanced market lies between 8 and 10 months. In its October 14 press release, APCIQ writes that the downtown Montreal area is already in surplus for condos. Finally, over five years, the barometer’s five-year column shows +2% for the condo median price in Ville-Marie, against +18% in the Plateau.

Plexes and houses in the Plateau-Mont-Royal

Source: Centris real estate statistics for Montréal (Le Plateau-Mont-Royal), Montréal (Ville-Marie) and Montréal (Island), third quarter of 2026, July to September.

The Plateau’s plex median price, $1,200,000, is the highest of the nine territories on the island for which Centris publishes one this quarter; Rosemont-La Petite-Patrie follows at $950,000. Plex sales fell 24% over the quarter, but rose 5% over four quarters, to 175. In Ville-Marie, there were 12 sales: too few for a published price.

Source: Centris real estate statistics for Montréal (Le Plateau-Mont-Royal), Montréal (Ville-Marie) and Montréal (Island), total of the last 4 quarters to the third quarter of 2026.

Single-family homes are marginal here: 16 sales in the Plateau and 10 in Ville-Marie during the quarter, too few for Centris to publish a quarterly median price. Hence the four-quarter total.

What changed in a year

Ville-Marie is selling less, without more inventory. Sales fell 19% and sales volume 27%, while listed inventory did not move. For condos, the median price is stable and time on market grew by 8 days.

The Plateau is selling almost as much, and its supply is swelling. Sales fell only 6%, but active listings rose 25%: +30% for condos and +18% for plexes.

Reading a median price. The median describes the properties sold during the quarter, not the value of yours: if more small units sell, it falls without any home having lost value.

The context. Across the metropolitan area, APCIQ counted 9,265 sales in the third quarter, 12% fewer than a year earlier, and 17% more listed properties. The Bank of Canada’s policy rate remains at 2.25% as of October 20, 2026; the next announcement is scheduled for October 28.

What is moving in central Montreal

The assessment roll rose less in the centre. The 2026-2027-2028 assessment roll reflects the market as of July 1, 2024. The average increase is 12.6% for the City of Montreal, but 5.8% in Ville-Marie, the lowest of the 19 boroughs, mainly because of a 10.8% decrease for office buildings. Its 36,252 condos gain only 3.5%, the smallest condo increase of any borough. In the Plateau, buildings of 2 to 5 units gain 4.0%, the smallest increase for that category in the city. According to the 2026 budget, from 2025 to 2026, property tax burdens change on average by 1.0% for Ville-Marie condos and by 1.8% for Plateau multiplexes, against 3.4% and 3.5% for the city as a whole. These are averages: according to the same budget, a building’s tax burden depends on the gap between the increase in its value and the average increase.

In the Plateau, a plex stays a plex. The borough’s urban planning by-law (Règlement d’urbanisme) prohibits reducing the number of dwellings (section 134.2), merging or subdividing a dwelling (section 135.2) and enlarging a single-family dwelling beyond 200 m² (section 134.1). Converting a rental building into divided co-ownership is prohibited throughout the agglomeration unless the council grants an exemption (section 51 of the Act respecting the Tribunal administratif du logement, Quebec’s rental board), and the Plateau grants none. Turning a triplex into a house is therefore ruled out, and so is dividing it into condos, except where the law provides an exception. That leaves undivided co-ownership, which has its own rules: see undivided co-ownership in Montreal, then have the building’s situation confirmed at the borough’s permit counter before making an offer.

Downtown, new construction is mostly rental. In CMHC’s “Centre-ville de Montréal/Île-des-Soeurs” zone, which does not follow the borough’s boundaries, 412 housing units were started from January to September 2026: 20 condos and 392 rental units, against 833, all rental, a year earlier. On September 1, 2026, the borough council approved a residential building of 5 to 18 storeys at 810 rue Saint-Antoine Est, with a contribution of about 52 non-market housing units. And until December 31, 2026, converting offices into housing downtown is exempt from the By-law for a Diverse Metropolis (Règlement pour une métropole mixte).

Vacant units. In October 2025, the most recent survey published, CMHC measured a 6.4% vacancy rate in that zone, the highest of the island zones for which it publishes one, and 4.2% in the Plateau, a figure the agency says to use with caution. The metropolitan area stood at 2.9%.

Selling or buying in the heart of Montreal: what the figures change

Selling a condo in Ville-Marie. Your unit joins 2,203 listed condos, in price ranges APCIQ considers favourable to buyers from $230,000 up. The price is defended with recent sales of similar units, ideally in the same tower, not with the borough median. Gather the syndicate’s documents early: the Bill 16 obligations list them.

Selling in the Plateau. According to APCIQ, condo price ranges are favourable to sellers from $290,000 up, but 30% more units are listed than a year ago, each one a point of comparison for buyers. A plex sells on its rents, its leases and its condition, since the buyer will not be able to reduce its number of dwellings.

Buying. In Ville-Marie, the choice is wide: in the third quarter, a condo took 92 days on average to sell. No public source puts a number on the room for negotiation: it shows up in the comparable sales of the building you are considering. In the Plateau, plan for Montreal’s transfer duties (welcome tax): 2% on the portion from $552,300 to $1,104,700, then 2.5% up to $2,136,500. The median price of a Plateau condo crosses the first threshold, and that of a plex the second. Run the numbers with the welcome tax calculator before setting your budget.

Investing. Outside a principal residence, tourist rentals are allowed in Ville-Marie only on rue Sainte-Catherine, between Saint-Mathieu and Atateken, as a conditional use and at least 150 metres from another tourist residence. In the Plateau, the property must be in a commercial sector and have its main entrance on boulevard Saint-Laurent, between Sherbrooke and avenue du Mont-Royal, or on rue Saint-Denis, between Sherbrooke Est and Gilford. The rest is in the short term rental rules.

Frequently asked questions

Are condo prices falling in downtown Montreal? Not Ville-Marie’s median price in the third quarter of 2026: $442,500, stable over one year according to Centris. Over four quarters, it is down 2%, to $458,662. What is mainly changing is the number of sales and the time on market.

Is Ville-Marie a buyer’s market? For condos, yes according to APCIQ, in every price range from $230,000 up, over 12 months. Its barometer publishes no price ranges for single-family homes or plexes in the borough.

Can a Plateau triplex be turned into a single-family home? The Plateau-Mont-Royal urban planning by-law prohibits reducing the number of dwellings (section 134.2). Have the building’s situation confirmed at the permit counter before signing a promesse d’achat (promise to purchase).

Are new condos being added downtown? Few, according to CMHC: 20 condos started from January to September 2026 in its “Centre-ville de Montréal/Île-des-Soeurs” zone, against 392 rental units.

To go further, read the Montreal real estate market, borough by borough, list price and sold price in Montreal and contesting your municipal assessment. The Montreal page brings together the rest.

Selling or buying in Ville-Marie or the Plateau-Mont-Royal? Write to me. I prepare a comparative market analysis at no charge, based on recent sales of the same type of property in your area.

Georges Matar

Residential Real Estate Broker · RE/MAX DU CARTIER INC.

Contact Georges