Record number of rental units built in Montreal in 2025

A rental sign outside an apartment in Montreal on Wednesday, July 2, 2025. (Christopher Katsarov/The Canadian Press)

The housing crisis is causing imbalances in the construction of new homes, the consequences of which will undoubtedly be felt in the long term in the Greater Montreal area.

Data released by the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) on Wednesday show that a record number of rental units were built in 2025, while condominium construction remained at a historic low.

The spring 2026 edition of CMHC’s Housing Supply Report says that rental units accounted for 80 per cent of the units started last year in the Montreal census metropolitan area (CMA), which is a record in itself.

Missing link housing

One-third of the housing units built fell into the category that CMHC calls “missing link housing.”

This category refers to housing units with private entrances and includes, for example, multiplexes, townhouses, stacked townhouses and apartments in low-rise buildings.

The designation “missing link housing” comes from the fact that this type of development—which is often more suitable for families than other types of housing—has long been underrepresented in the supply of new housing, hence the name “missing link.”

However, on a national scale, after growing by five per cent per year from 2018 to 2023, they jumped by 44 per cent from 2023 to 2024.

CMHC also notes that in the Montreal CMA, “low-rise apartment building construction has expanded on both the North and South Shores. In these areas, we are seeing neighbourhoods becoming slightly denser thanks to favourable policies and available space.”

Potential shortage of condos

In its documentation, CMHC points out that “market conditions in Montreal appear to be relaxed in the short term” due to slower population growth and macroeconomic uncertainty, which have weakened demand. However, it predicts that “these conditions will not continue, so imbalances could emerge. (...) Demand should increase as macroeconomic uncertainty subsides. Thus, current conditions overestimate the abundance of supply.”

This overestimation will eventually have consequences for owner-occupied housing, namely, condos. The current situation shows that there are many unsold condominiums, partly because supply is too abundant and partly because they are mostly expensive, high-end properties, while existing condos, which are much more affordable and just as abundant, are more attractive.

“As a result, residential building projects (for owner-occupiers) are being delayed, cancelled or converted into rental housing, which threatens the future supply of owner-occupied housing.

“This supply could be insufficient when economic conditions improve and the market regains momentum.”

It stands to reason that if supply does indeed become insufficient during a possible market recovery, prices will once again come under upward pressure.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published in French on March 11, 2026.