OPPORTUNITY

 

Greater Montreal

Montreal is the second largest city in Canada and the largest city in the province of Quebec. The 2007 Canadian census showed that 1,620,693 people live in the city of Montreal proper and 3,635,561 people in the greater Montreal area. Montreal is ranked as the 15th largest metropolitan area in North America and 74th largest in the world.

 

Map of Metropolitain Montreal

 

Municipal Structure – Island of Montreal

A new municipal structure came into effect on January 1st 2006. The Island of Montreal is now made up of 19 boroughs and 15 reconstituted cities (as listed below). As a result, a new political entity, the agglomeration council, has been created.

List of Montreal Boroughs	List of Reconstituted Cities
Ahuntsic-Cartierville Anjou Côte des Neiges- Notre-Dame de Grâce Lachine LaSalle Le Plateau-Mont-Royal Le Sud-Ouest L’Île Bizard-Sainte-Geneviève Mercier-Hochelaga-Maisonneuve Montréal-Nord Outremont Pierrefonds-Roxboro Rivière-des-Prairies- Pointe-aux-Trembles Rosemont- La Petite-Patrie Saint-Laurent Saint-Léonard Verdun Ville-Marie Villeray-Saint-Michel-Parc-Extension	Beaconsfield Baie –d’Urfé Côte St-Luc Hampstead Dollard-des-Ormeaux Dorval Kirkland L’Île Dorval Montréal-Est Montréal-Ouest Mont-Royal Pointe-Claire Sainte-Anne-de-Bellevue Senneville Westmount

 

Economic Overview

The Montreal Region is a major center for aerospace, biotech, e-commerce, pharmaceuticals, forest products, multi-media and information technology. The Montreal region ranks fourth in North America for high-tech employment. In addition, the film and cinema industry’s presence has been steadily growing. Government incentive programs, which favor research and development, motivate companies to locate their business in Greater Montreal.

Canada’s economy has been much less affected than the U.S. due to a healthier housing market, strong government finances and a healthy banking system.

Outlook & Trends for Investment Real Estate

• Foreign investors and Canadian REIT’s actively acquired, properties in the Montreal Region until mid 2007.
• The dislocation of the global credit markets has reduced real estate investment in Montreal from investors located outside of the Montreal region.
• Market conditions will create acquisition opportunities for developers / investors who are liquid;
• Experienced developers with a strong track record and relationships with lenders will flourish;
• Developers / investors who are not liquid or who have not already received financing will be forced to either scale-back or put on hold existing projects;
• Sources of mortgage lending are greatly reduced with the collapse of commercial mortgage – backed securities market (conduit lenders) and the current unwillingness of a number of traditional financial institutions (like insurance companies, certain banks and commercial finance companies) to extend credit;
• Where available, mortgage lending is limited to prime location and top-quality real estate with a diverse and credit worthy tenant base;
• Loan to value ratios have dropped and the instance of non recourse finance has decreased;
• While showing signs of slowness, the Canadian and regional economies are fundamentally sound. Canadian banks and home-owners are not in crisis like their U.S. counterparts.