Quebec is the second largest province of Canada, as it is only surpassed by Ontario in terms of population count. It is a truly beautiful province, so there is no surprise so many visitors come here each year. The development of tourism in Quebec made it a perfect place to start an Airbnb business. What makes the province even better is that there are enough cities to choose from, all having different market conditions.
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- TOP-10 cities for Airbnb in Ontario.
Best Cities in Quebec for an Airbnb Business Investment
Choosing the correct city to run an Airbnb business is one of the most vital parts of building a successful enterprise. Thankfully, Quebec has a number of cities with great potential. The conditions are different everywhere, so it is worth looking at the information related to the most notable cities in the province. In this section, the vital data for each city will be provided.
| City | Revenue, $ |
|---|---|
| Québec | $2,131 |
| Shawinigan | $2,014 |
| Montreal | $1,801 |
| Levis | $1,695 |
| Magog | $1,796 |
| Rimouski | $1,573 |
| Saint-Constant | $1,448 |
| Trois-Rivières | $1,388 |
| Brossard | $1,363 |
| Boucherville | $1,318 |
Quebec City
It is only logical to start reviewing the province from its capital, Quebec City. It is not the largest short-term rental market in the province, as it only holds second place. Much like all the other cities in the province, it is subject to a strong effect of seasonality: the vast majority of visitors come to the city in summer, whereas the demand in winter is not as high.
The situation with the competition in the city is rather ambiguous. In total, there are more than 2,000 active rentals here. Most of them are densely packing the downtown area, while some of the other neighborhoods have much fewer potential competitors hosting their businesses there. Most properties in the city are entire homes, as only fourteen percent of the listings are private rooms.
The annual Average Daily Rate in Quebec City is $136, which is slightly higher than the average for the province. The Occupancy Rates typically reach their peak in August, and their lowest point in January, averaging 71% throughout the year. With these parameters, the hosts in Quebec City make $2,131 worth of monthly Revenues throughout the year.
Shawinigan
Shawinigan has a dramatically different vacation rental market. It is located between Montreal and Quebec City, north to Trois-Rivieres city that is also going to be on this list. Expectedly, it is not as demanded by tourists as some other cities in the province. But the supply here is extremely low, making the market almost untapped, which might be an advantage for some entrepreneurs.
In total, Shawinigan is home to only 141 properties that are being actively rented out. Out of these properties, 64% are entire homes, and 36% are private rooms. Most of them are located in the city center, with some of them being placed around the Lac-a-la-Tortue and some more Airbnbs near the La Mauricie National Park. In none of these locations, the competition is intense.
The Average Daily Rate in Shawinigan is surprisingly high, as it averages $165 throughout the year. The Occupancy Rates are quite decent for such a remote city, as they average 61%. Combined, these factors result in an average monthly Revenue of $2,014, generated by local properties.
Montreal
Montreal is by far the largest vacation market in Quebec province. This fact generates both advantages and pitfalls of starting a short-term rental business there. On the one hand, the competition is extremely intense here. But on the other hand, it is the most stable market in the province, and some of the neighborhoods are not yet densely populated with rentals. Even though the rental market is stagnating here, the most determined entrepreneurs will get the opportunities they need here.
There are more than 9,000 Airbnb listings currently active in Montreal. The majority of them are entire homes, as private rooms make up for only eighteen percent of all listings. Expectedly, the city center and the areas around it are the most competitive ones, as most of the rentals are concentrated there. An average property in Montreal can host four guests.
Taking into account the unprecedented level of supply, there is no surprise the ADR in the city is relatively low: it averages $126 throughout the year. Such a low level of prices allows the hosts to benefit from the Occupancy Rates of 71%, which is rather decent for such a large city. The resulting average Revenue is $1,801 per month. It is lower than in many other cities in Quebec, but it is backed up by the largest amount of data.
Airbnb management service in Montreal.
Levis
The situation with Levis is quite interesting. The city is located on the opposite bank of the Saint Lawrence River from Quebec City. It would be reasonable to expect it to be almost as popular as the province’s capital, but the reality is rather surprising: the market here is almost untapped. On this list, there are many cities with small rental markets, but Levis arguably has the largest potential, as it benefits from being located right next to the capital.
There are only 220 properties rented out in Levis, which is an extremely small number, considering the large area of the city. Out of these properties, 164 are entire homes, while the remaining ones are private rooms. Similar to Quebec City, the vast majority of properties are located in the downtown area, while most other neighborhoods are almost free of competition.
The Average Daily Rate for a property in Levis is $121, while the Occupancy Rates average 71% throughout the year. Expectedly, the market is subject to a seasonal effect, as the demand reaches its peak in summer, while in other seasons, the number of visitors is significantly lower. Throughout the year, local hosts make an average monthly Revenue of $1,695.
Magog
Magog is located in the south-eastern part of the province, and it is another remote city on the list. The largest city next to Magog is Sherbrooke, but most visitors come to this place to have a nice vacation on the beautiful shores of the local lake and visit the city’s national park. The main benefit Magog offers to aspiring entrepreneurs is the city’s potential: the quarterly growth of its rental market is 7%.
While Magog is increasing its popularity among tourists, the competition is clearly not keeping up, creating an opportunity for new players. At the time of writing, there are only 168 Airbnbs in the city, 88% of which are entire homes that can host up to five guests. Most properties are packing the areas around the lake, but the competition there is still very mild.
At the same time, the ADR in Magog is $132. The Occupancy Rates average 60% throughout the year here, reaching their peak in summer. These factors grant the local hosts $1,796 worth of monthly Revenue, on average. The metrics are quite impressive already, and they were continuously improving over the past several years.
Rimouski
Rimouski is yet another city on the shores of the Saint Lawrence River, and its rental market is actually very similar to the one of Magog. Here, the competition is almost absent, and the number of visitors allows for the local businesses to generate profits. The only negative sign is that the market’s size has been facing a quarterly decline of 15%.
Nevertheless, there are still 135 different properties rented out in Rimouski. The majority of them are entire homes that are located on the shore of the river. The percentage of private room listings is a bit higher here than in some other cities of Quebec, as it reaches 32% in Rimouski. This should be taken into account when analyzing the financial metrics, as they are slightly dragged down by private room listings.
The Average Daily Rate among all properties in Rimouski is $110, while the annual average Occupancy Rates are 68%. This results in a Revenue of $1,573, generated by an average rental in the city every month. Of course, the performance of rentals is better in summer and reaches its lowest point in winter.
Saint-Constant
Saint-Constant is a city located right next to Montreal, which is already a benefit. As examples in many other regions show, cities located next to metropolises have more prosperous short-term rental markets than remote cities. The rental market of Saint-Constant is in its very early stages of development, so it is a perfect investment opportunity for risk-taking entrepreneurs.
At the time of writing, there are only ten active listings in the city: eight entire homes and two private rooms. It implies that a new business in the city would have almost no competition no matter which area it launches in. Even the city center has a lot of room for new rentals to open.
Of course, the amount of data is not sufficient enough to have a proper analysis of the metrics, but it is still important to acknowledge them. The ADR in Saint-Constant is $161. Because of the low number of properties, it managed to reach $210 in February but went back to $112 in July. The Occupancy Rates are also rather unstable, but they average 53% throughout the year. The average monthly Revenue here is $1,448.
Trois-Rivieres
Trois-Rivieres is another city with a relatively small rental market. The benefits it offers to aspiring entrepreneurs are similar to most locations reviewed on this list: the competition in Trois-Rivieres is very mild, whereas the numbers of visitors allow local Airbnbs to thrive.
In total, there are around 210 properties that are being actively rented out in Trois-Rivieres. Out of them, 60% are entire homes, while the remaining listings are private rooms. Most listings are densely packing the city center, but there is still room for more properties. As for the other areas of Trois-Rivieres, there is almost no competition there.
The ADR of properties in this city is only $100, which allows them to have a stable level of Occupancy Rates: they average 66% here. This results in an average Revenue of $1,388, generated by local hosts every month.
Brossard
Brossard is another city located right next to Montreal. What makes it different from Saint-Constant is that Brossard is a lot closer to the metropolis and is directly connected to it with a bridge. Its own area is also rather large, and it has all the infrastructure required for comfortable living. In terms of attracting visitors who could either go to Montreal, Brossard is much more likely to do it than Saint-Constant.
The competition in Brossard is surprisingly mild. Taking into account there are 9,000 rentals in Montreal, it becomes almost unbelievable that there are only 171 Airbnbs in Brossard that is only a 15-minute drive away from the metropolis. The listings are scattered around the city, so there will be almost no competition in any chosen location.
The metrics are also rather decent in Brossard. The ADR here is $138, while the Occupancy Rates average 52%. The market faces a quarterly growth of 6%, and the average monthly Revenues here are $1,363.
Boucherville
The last city on our list has almost exactly the same situation as Saint-Constant. Firstly, Boucherville is also located near Montreal: it is a 23-minute drive. Secondly, its short-term rental market is also extremely small. As the city of Montreal continues to grow, Boucherville is yet another location to benefit from it.
At the time of writing, there are only twelve properties actively operating in Boucherville: eleven entire home listings and only a single private room. The majority of them are located near the road that leads to Montreal, but there are some listings in other parts of the city as well.
The data for Boucherville is also not so reliable, as the number of properties forming it is too small. Thus, the Average Daily Rate here is $73, but it managed to reach $515 in March. The Occupancy Rates average 78%, jumping from 19% in March to 98% in June. The same goes for monthly Revenues: they average $1,318, but the variance is huge. It is difficult to predict the performance of a new business with this data, but the potential Boucherville offers to new Airbnb investors is still very clear.
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