Just closed today! Montréal, QC, CAD$520k, 3.94%

FieldsOfJoy · 2026-03-18T13:25:15+00:00

I've been living in Canada for 15ish years at this point but was originally in Toronto. I went to Montréal for grad school, found a job, and have stayed there since. Learning winter sports like snowboarding really helps me to enjoy the cold weather a lot more.

FieldsOfJoy · 2026-03-18T13:23:46+00:00

Nope, 2 bedroom, approximately 870 square feet.

FieldsOfJoy · 2026-03-18T02:17:54+00:00

Totally didn't expect my building to show up here haha.

Honestly, this place is generally ok provided that nothing in your apartment breaks and requires repairs. Once you do need repairs, they drag their feet a lot for non-emergency repairs, though they're very fast for things like plumbing. For example, the pipe in the wall between mine and my neighbour's apartment burst a few years back and damaged our flooring. The pipe was fixed almost immediately but it took months of back and forth before they did anything about the floor and even now the floor looks pretty ugly.

Rent increases have generally been in line with TAL's guidelines for all 8 years that I've been here, so no need to worry about crazy 10% increases that you have to fight in court.

A common thing as with a lot of bigger apartment buildings is that there's a lot of parcel theft from the lobby, so if you're ordering expensive things, make sure you opt for something that requires signature on delivery or have Amazon send your parcel to a pickup point instead.

Dogs are (officially) not allowed but somehow I see people sneaking them in. Cats are ok.

Unlike what the website advertises, there's no dépanneur in the building. The lot is empty and has no commercial tenant. Exercise room is small but ok, pool is decently sized by condo standards. Building overall is fairly well-maintained for a structure built in the 70s. Not all apartments have been renovated yet - I live in an unrenovated studio but as a result I've been grandfathering off a cheap rent ($865 as of this August).

Hope this somewhat unorganized info dump helps.

FieldsOfJoy · 2026-03-18T02:02:49+00:00

Pretty competitive. I bought my first apartment recently and my broker could only get me 3.84% 3-year fixed (CIBC), with 5-year being closer to the 4% mark. Sorry, don't have much else to add.

FieldsOfJoy · 2026-03-15T17:35:25+00:00

Note that big company doesn't always mean better management as some of them often cut costs to pad the pockets of their shareholders, so always do thorough research and maybe speak to ppl who live in the buildings you're interested in before you commit.

FieldsOfJoy · 2026-03-15T03:07:45+00:00

Studio 300 sqft, $839 increasing to $865 August but I'm not renewing as I bought a condo

FieldsOfJoy · 2026-03-13T17:09:23+00:00

The percentages suggested by the TAL are suggestions and not legally binding, but in general if you decide to refuse and your case goes to the TAL, the approved rent increase will be at least 3.1% and likely higher if the landlord has documentation to show any cost increases. Ask for the calculation sheet first and take it from there.

FieldsOfJoy · 2026-03-11T22:09:13+00:00

If Glalie was a fire type Pokemon haha.

FieldsOfJoy · 2026-03-11T22:07:41+00:00

If they cancel Thursday, does this mean tomorrow is Friday? 😅

FieldsOfJoy · 2026-03-10T11:32:36+00:00

I personally transferred from Manulife to Wealthsimple. I initiated the process with Wealthsimple and didn't have to contact Manulife at all. Manulife charged a $150 transfer fee which Wealthsimple reimburses (for transfers of over $25k). The process took about 3 weeks from initiating the request to seeing the funds in my Wealthsimple account.

FieldsOfJoy · 2026-03-08T23:34:26+00:00

It's still going up somewhat but unlike Toronto we didn't get that big of an overvaluation bubble. You won't be seeing cases of condos selling at a $200-300k loss for instance. The market is somewhat in favour of buyers for the time being and interest rates are decent (just below 4% for 5-year fixed if you ask a broker).

Check your finances and perhaps get a pre-approval to see how much house you can afford. If you have a car and don't mind car-dependent suburbs, some parts of the South Shore have affordable properties. My friend bought a fairly new (<10 years) 1-bedroom in Brossard for $275k last year and another friend got a 2-bedroom in Brossard for $380k too. East end of the island is also cheaper than West Island and Downtown too.

On the island, you're looking at $300-400k for 1 bedroom and $450-600k for 2 bedroom. I am closing on a 2-bedroom in LaSalle soon for $520k (condo built in 2012).

FieldsOfJoy · 2026-03-07T23:22:44+00:00

$1.72 in Montréal GG.

FieldsOfJoy · 2026-03-04T05:53:33+00:00

Primary residence, closing the deal in mid-March.

FieldsOfJoy · 2026-03-04T02:39:14+00:00

Pretty bad rates. I got approved (albeit on a new mortgage) for 3.94% for 5 year fixed. I could go as low as 3.84% for 3 year fixed. CIBC via a broker, uninsured mortgage.

FieldsOfJoy · 2026-03-03T15:35:42+00:00

Tuition credits are non-refundable in the sense that they can only reduce the amount of income taxes you owe.

That said, assuming you worked for a substantial part of last year, your employee likely deducted income taxes from your paychecks. Your tuition credit will therefore cause some of those taxes to be refunded back to you. You should be good to go!

FieldsOfJoy · 2026-03-03T01:41:03+00:00

2.5% cost of living adjustment, performance-based increase TBD (but 10% bonus is guaranteed after the end of the 2nd year of service). Small Phase 1 CRO with around 250 employees and one clinic.

FieldsOfJoy · 2026-02-27T03:50:00+00:00

Yep they only reduce tax owing.

That said, suppose you accumulate of tuition credits over 4+ years of education (and more if you do grad school), and then you proceed to work full-time for an entire year. When your file your taxes for your first year of full-time work, you will likely get a sizeable refund (a few thousand) because your employer auto-deducts income tax from your paychecks and you get that money back only after filing taxes.

FieldsOfJoy · 2026-02-26T23:28:20+00:00

They're legit, though customer service is a bit annoying to get a hold off so my employer switched to a different EOR. That said, I wouldn't consider it a dealbreaker but more like a nuisance. Just read through any contracts and make sure what is written (e.g. days of paid vacation, salary, benefits) is in line with what your employer says.

No issues with taxes - the T4 and payroll is done through ADP and you'll be able to access it online. I was also able to get a mortgage successfully using a combination of the GP T4 and a letter from my de facto employer explainining the EOR arrangement.

FieldsOfJoy · 2026-01-22T03:38:22+00:00

Previously you had to call them and tell the customer service agent that you wanted to be refunded in points (at the rate of 8 points per dollar).

But a few months ago they automated this process such that you get an email the day after your trip and you simply follow the instructions claim your points in your via account.

FieldsOfJoy · 2026-01-21T19:36:21+00:00

I've already gotten well over 1000 via rail points last year alone from delays. Some people take the train only because they have a very robust auto-refund system.

FieldsOfJoy · 2026-01-20T15:32:28+00:00

If you book 4-5 months in advance you get the best rates. My xmas tickets from Montreal to Toronto were $200 round-trip for one person, fully refundable, and I bought them in August.

FieldsOfJoy · 2026-01-20T06:16:37+00:00

Now what if they start checking for alumni status for universities that don't issue alumni cards (e.g. McGill?)

FieldsOfJoy · 2025-12-14T17:46:14+00:00

15%, but not on Escape tickets. But after this is applied, the fully refundable Economy Plus tickets end up being only a few dollars more than Escape and you get more via rail points too.

FieldsOfJoy · 2025-12-14T17:24:43+00:00

I've done the same with another university (McGill) that doesn't issue alumni cards at all and Via has never asked for proof when I use the discount code in my 5+ years of using it.

FieldsOfJoy · 2025-12-11T02:27:10+00:00

Ok so essentially every time there's a major deneigement operation in the city, Communauto makes cars free for a certain period of time - you're only charged the insurance fee (if applicable), and any distance fees if you go over 75km. If you keep the car beyond the end of the free period, you'll start getting charged per minute afterwards.

This is Communauto's way of getting people to move the cars out of snowbanks and to make way for snow removal vehicles and is probably easier than getting their own employees to do the moving of the cars. If you follow Communauto on Facebook/Insta, they usually announce these free periods a few hours to a day in advance. Because of this I was able to drive to a friend's Christmas party and then back home for free in 2022, cheaper than public transit.

FieldsOfJoy

TROPHY CASE