Laval Mortgage Rates.

The city of Laval’s housing market saw a decrease in sales activity in the 1st quarter of 2021, with the number of active listings falling 39% from the 1st quarter of 2020. All types of homes rose in price, with the following prices as of the 1st quarter of 2021:

Laval home prices continue to benefit from the close proximity to the Montreal core, along with the trend of moving to the suburbs for more space and lower prices. This trend should only continue, meaning the demand for homes in Laval will likely remain strong for the foreseeable future.

The number of housing units completed in Laval so far in 2021 is 836, which is 17.6% higher than in 2020. With home prices rising across the region and with a decline in listings, building new homes will be important in helping home buyers enter Laval’s competitive housing market. Even with more homes being complete, it will still be very important for prospective homebuyers to have a large down payment and a stable income source when searching for a new home.

When you are getting pre-approved for a mortgage and deciding on how much to spend on a home, planning for the cost of land transfer taxes in Laval will help you make a more informed decision. Land transfer taxes are paid at a marginal tax rate based on the cost of the home, with the following tax rates in 2021:

With these land transfer tax rates, a home buyer can expect to pay $5337 in land transfer tax on the average price of a single family home in Laval of $479,000. Aside from land transfer taxes, other home closing costs you may need to pay include:

All these costs that you will incur on your closing date can add up, meaning you should have ~2-3% of your purchase price to cover them all. For more information on the closing costs for a home, see WOWA’s closing cost calculator.

The city’s vacancy rate rose slightly in 2020 to 2%, up from 1.5% in 2019. Laval continued to especially see a very tight rental market for 2 bedroom and 3 bedroom apartments with vacancy rates of 1.7% and 0.9%. Although the overall vacancy rate rose, the average rent in the city also rose to $906 in 2020 from $831 in 2019, a 9% increase. As Laval continues to benefit from the trend of moving further from Montreal especially with older people, the vacancy rate will likely continue to remain at low levels into the future, even with new rental units being built. A low vacancy rate also means it's a competitive rental market, which may make renters more inclined to buy, especially with record-low interest rates. This will continue to raise the demand to purchase single family homes and condominium units in the city.

Located just a 30-minute drive from Montreal’s downtown core, Laval offers close proximity to Montreal while offering all the benefits of the suburbs. With a population of over 420,000 people in 2020, Laval is the 3rd largest city in Quebec and has continued to benefit from the growth in the population and economy of Montreal. The city has a very large proportion of residents being homeowners, with ~70% of the population of Laval owning their home as of 2016, much higher than 55.7% of the population owning their home in Montreal and ~60% in Quebec City. This higher trend of homeownership in Laval will mean that there is more competition for homes in the city with fewer people renting, meaning it's a good idea to get pre-approved on a mortgage before starting your house search.

Laval has a very diversified economy with a large technology sector, pharmaceutical sector, and industrial sector. This shows that Laval’s economy needs workers of all different skill levels and specialties, which makes it a very attractive city for all types of workers to move to. In 1995, Laval created a non-profit organization called the Laval Technopole, which welcomes and supports new and young businesses in the city, and seeks new investments. This organization and the skilled talent in the area have helped many start-ups and small & medium-sized businesses in the city continue to grow. As the city continues to attract new investments in many different sectors, Laval and neighbouring Montreal’s economy will continue to benefit, which will only increase the number of jobs in the area and the demand to live in Laval.

With high income tax rates in Quebec, the after tax income of someone living in laval is much lower than other major cities in Canada. With a median income of ~$67,000, this compares to ~$77,000 in Toronto and ~$80,000 in Ottawa. However, with a lower cost of living which includes subsidized child care, lower housing prices and rental rates, and cheaper electricity rates, your overall standard of living will likely still be higher in Laval.

The property tax rate in Laval for 2020 was 0.8955%. This was a decrease of 0.0566% from 2019 when the property tax rate was 0.9521%. The property tax rate in a city can directly affect how large of a mortgage you can afford, especially considering that property taxes are usually paid monthly along with your mortgage payments to your lender. With Laval having one of the lowest property tax rates in Quebec, it will mean you will likely be able to afford a larger mortgage here than you would in other cities in Quebec with the same down payment and income.