A squad of inspectors launched last summer to identify illegal tourist residences in three central districts of the metropolis has carried out more than 330 inspections in these sectors where Airbnb-type platforms are popular. However, she only issued 10 infraction notices, we learned The duty.
The head of housing on the executive committee, Benoit Dorais, must provide an update on Wednesday morning on the activities carried out since the end of July by this squad, made up of three inspectors and a coordinator. This team aims to compile files on illegal tourist residences located in the Sud-Ouest, Plateau-Mont-Royal and Ville-Marie boroughs in order to fine owners who violate municipal regulations and to transfer certain cases to Revenu Québec.
This squad was also announced in the wake of a fire which caused the death, on March 16, 2023, of seven people who were in a heritage building in Old Montreal which did not respect certain safety rules and where Accommodations were rented on Airbnb-type platforms without the required authorizations. As this building had not been the subject of any complaint to the City for illegal tourist accommodation, everything happened under the gaze of the authorities. “To catch the world in the act, that’s what’s complicated,” agreed a few days after this tragedy the mayor of Montreal, Valérie Plante, during a press briefing held at the scene of the tragedy.
However, since its launch, this squad, which has received 232 requests from residents through 311, has carried out 337 housing inspections in the three districts it monitors, but has only issued 10 infraction reports, has learned The duty. The fines handed out vary from $1,000 to $4,000 and generally concern “non-compliance with the regulations in force,” indicates the City by email. These fines can be imposed on both owners and tenants of tourist residences who have committed an infraction of municipal regulations.
The City was also unable to specify on Tuesday how many files had been transferred so far to Revenu Québec, which can impose fines of several tens of thousands of dollars on owners of illegal tourist residences.
An “unfortunate” outcome
Made aware of this assessment, the spokesperson for the Regroupement des committees logement et associations de tenants du Québec, Martin Blanchard, did not hide his disappointment. “I find it unfortunate, because, all the same, we had certain hopes after the announcement that was made last year, a few days after the fire in Old Montreal,” he said in an interview. . According to him, the few fines handed out by this squad demonstrate the lack of “determination” of the City to tackle the problem of illegal tourist residences.
“We are sending them the message that they can continue to circumvent the law, that there is no problem,” he says, referring to the owners of these homes who contribute to the housing crisis.
Mr. Blanchard recognizes, however, that the work of the inspectors in this squad is far from simple. Since last year, all Quebecers can occasionally rent their main residence on Airbnb-type platforms for a maximum period of 30 days, unless this practice is prohibited by municipal by-law. In Montreal, owners of tourist residences, whose vocation is de facto commercial, must obtain an occupancy permit from the City before being able to obtain a registration number from the Tourism Industry Corporation of Quebec. Several boroughs, including Ville-Marie, Sud-Ouest and Plateau-Mont-Royal, also limit the sectors where tourist residences are permitted.
However, it is difficult to prove that the owner of a tourist residence does not respect the rules in force, since he can easily assert that it is his main residence, notes Martin Blanchard. City inspectors must therefore try to find exactly where the targeted accommodation is located, then document the comings and goings of tourists entering and leaving them, underlines the RCLALQ spokesperson. “It’s a waste of time. »