Snapshot of housing in Greater Montreal paints dim picture

Whether it’s a walk-up in Villeray, a townhouse in Vaudreuil, or an ancestral home in Varennes, who lives where and why in the Montreal region is a personal decision typically based on a range of factors, from affordability to convenience to the stage of life people find themselves at.

“Who am I to tell a young family: ‘Given that densification is the fashion, go live in a 12-storey tower,” Bonnardel quipped in remarks first reported in La Presse.

In one sense, Bonnardel is right. This isn’t the Soviet Union, where housing was generally state-owned and citizens were essentially told where to live, with each household allotted so many square feet per person. But that doesn’t mean policy-makers at every level of government don’t have an essential role to play in shaping sustainable and affordable housing policy

Bonnardel’s comments negated the importance of denser housing options, ignored the pressure individual choices put on municipalities, and needlessly heaped judgment on city dwellers, many of whom are quite happy in their dense, vibrant neighbourhoods.

As if on cue, the CMM has released a detailed snapshot of who lives where in greater Montreal. It offers an in-depth look at housing at a time when both buyers and renters, urbanites and suburbanites — young people, families and seniors, alike — are struggling with access and affordability.

Montreal is already the second-densest city in North America. But much of its housing stock is low-rise residential — walk-ups and plexes — rather than the skyscrapers Bonnardel referenced. All five sectors of the CMM are also in the process of densifying; 87 per cent of new construction in the region over the last five years was condos and/or rental units and 41 per cent between 2011 and 2016 was oriented around transit

Montreal has both the lowest percentage of families with children in the CMM and the highest proportion of people who live alone. Families accounted for only 19 per cent of households in Montreal in 2016, compared with 33 per cent in the South Shore municipalities and 31 per cent on the North Shore.

When Valérie Plante first ran for mayor of Montreal in 2017, attracting families to the city and keeping them here were two of her priorities. Despite providing a rebate on the welcome tax for households with children and cutting public transit fares for youth, the exodus continues.

Population growth in Montreal is largely driven by international immigration and an influx of young people.

Between 2011 and 2016, 63 per cent of those who left the Island of Montreal were between the ages of 25 and 44, 42 per cent were couples with children and 70 per cent were homeowners. During the same period, 56 per cent of those who came to Montreal were in the 15-to-34 age bracket, 39 per cent were people living alone, 22 per cent were couples with children who emigrate from abroad, and 86 per cent rented their housing.

Nearly 40 per cent of Montrealers live alone, a demographic that skews young. Montreal has the highest proportion of post-secondary students in the CMM, at 13.7 per cent, for instance. It also has the largest percentage of 25- to 34-year-olds at 17.4 per cent of households. Off-island municipalities in the CMM are greying at a faster rate than Montreal.

People aren’t just leaving Montreal, however, they’re also departing the CMM for exurbs just beyond in search of affordable housing.

“Of the population that left the CMM between 2015 and 2020 to live in the zones surrounding the metropolitan region, 59.6 per cent came more specifically from the extremities of the CMM,” the study noted. “The population that leaves the CMM is relatively young (63.7 per cent were under age 45, including 16 per cent who were less than 15 years old).”

If the trend continues, municipalities beyond the boundaries of the Greater Montreal Area could grow by 56,000 households and 129,000 people by 2041, with the bulk migrating from within the CMM.

It may seem paradoxical that the need for more housing comes as municipalities in the region are taking a firmer stand on where and what kind of development is appropriate. But these policy goals need not be at odds.

Whether in urban neighbourhoods, suburbs or small towns, new development needs to be focused around transit, easily accessible to amenities and in harmony with nature.

Densification is essential — and it’s about much more than building downtown highrises.