Where to buy in Greater Montreal: what the city actually changes on your bill

Under $500,000, the city you choose changes nothing about your welcome tax: the brackets are provincial and identical in 57 of the 59 municipalities of Greater Montreal. Above that threshold a municipality may set its own rates, and the gap is then measured in hundreds or thousands of dollars for the same house.

What the city does not change

Transfer duties, the "welcome tax", are set by a provincial statute. It imposes on every municipality a minimum bracket table, indexed each year. For 2026 the thresholds are $62,900 and $315,000, with rates of 0.5 %, 1 % and 1.5 %.

The practical consequence: for a house at $350,000 or at $450,000, the tax is exactly the same in Montreal, Laval, Longueuil, Terrebonne or Saint-Jérôme. Respectively $3,360.50 and $4,860.50. Someone who picks the north shore over the island expecting to save on that line saves nothing. "Where should I buy" is not decided on the welcome tax as long as you stay under half a million.

Where the city does change the bill

The statute lets a municipality set a higher rate on the portion of the price above $500,000, up to 3 %. Two cities in the region use it, in two very different ways.

Montreal applies its own upper brackets, which climb gradually. The gap with the provincial table only appears past roughly $600,000, then widens:

• at $550,000: no gap at all, $6,360.50, the same as everywhere else;
• at $650,000: $8,349 in Montreal against $7,860.50 elsewhere, $488.50 more;
• at $800,000: $11,349 against $10,110.50, $1,238.50 more.

Mascouche chose the legal maximum, 3 % on everything above $500,000. The effect is blunt and immediate:

• at $550,000: $7,110.50, which is $750 more than elsewhere;
• at $650,000: $10,110.50, $2,250 more;
• at $800,000: $14,610.50, $4,500 more.

At $800,000 the same house therefore costs $4,500 more in welcome tax in Mascouche than in Terrebonne, its immediate neighbour. That is a negotiating argument, not just a budget line: the amount is due in a single payment in the months after you take possession, and it cannot be added to the mortgage.

The three things that matter more

The welcome tax is paid once. Three other items are paid every year or every month, and they decide whether a sector is sustainable.

The municipal and school tax bill. Every city publishes its rate, expressed per $100 of assessment, and it varies noticeably from one municipality to the next. Two houses of identical value in neighbouring cities can carry tax bills that differ by several hundred dollars a year. That rate is on the city's own website, and it is the only reliable figure: do not trust a regional average.

Commuting. A longer daily round trip costs gas, wear and tolls where they exist, but above all time. Count the real cost of the commute over five years before concluding that a suburb is cheaper.

What is missing and will have to be added. A cheaper house is often cheaper for a reason: roof at the end of its life, original French drain, unfinished basement, heating system due for replacement. The purchase price is not the cost of ownership.

How to compare two cities in ten minutes

1. Take the same price in both cities and compute the welcome tax for each. Under $500,000, stop: it is identical.
2. Look up the current year's tax rate on each city's website and apply it to the municipal assessment, not to the asking price.
3. Add up the real monthly cost: mortgage, taxes, heating, insurance, maintenance. That figure, not the listed price, tells you what you can carry.
4. Check the base of the welcome tax calculation: it is not always the price paid, but the greater of the price and the municipal assessment multiplied by that year's comparative factor.

What to check before settling on an area

A city is judged on public documents, not on an impression. Before narrowing your search to one municipality, look at its transfer duties by-law in force, its tax rate for the year, and, if a sector interests you, the flood zone map and the urban plan. Those four documents are free and public, and they answer more questions than any neighbourhood ranking.

One last point of honesty: the median prices per neighbourhood published by broker associations change every quarter and say nothing about the house you are looking at. You cannot buy a median. What you buy is one specific house, with its assessment, its tax bill, its year of construction and its defects. Compare that one.

FAQ

Is the welcome tax higher in Montreal than in the suburbs?

Only above roughly $600,000. Below that the provincial table applies the same way everywhere and the amount is identical in Montreal, Laval or Terrebonne. At $800,000 the gap reaches $1,238.50 in the suburbs' favour, except in Mascouche where it runs the other way.

Which city in Greater Montreal has the highest welcome tax?

Mascouche, for any house above $500,000. It applies the legal maximum, 3 % on the excess, which is $4,500 more than elsewhere on an $800,000 house. Montreal comes next, with its own upper brackets, which climb more gradually.

Can I add the welcome tax to my mortgage?

No. It is a cash amount, billed by the municipality in the months after you take possession, usually between three and six months later. It sits alongside notary and inspection fees in the money you need on hand on top of the down payment.

Is the tax computed on the price paid or on the municipal assessment?

On the greater of the two, with the municipal assessment first multiplied by the comparative factor the city publishes for the year. A house bought below the indexed assessment is therefore taxed on that assessment, not on the price actually paid.

Is it worth picking a city for its taxes alone?

No. The welcome tax is paid once, while the municipal and school tax bill comes back every year and the commute comes back every day. Compare the real monthly cost over five years before deciding. Municipalities can also amend their by-law between one purchase and the next, so confirm the rate in force on the city's own site and the final amount with your notary before signing.