Montreal plex and income-property investment calculator
A free tool for comparing in-place and potential income, separating current operating costs from future expenses, and underwriting a Quebec income property with the financing, tax and TAL rules that actually apply here.
This calculator measures cash flow, cap rate, effective gross income, NOI, DSCR, IRR and NPV. Projected value for one-to-four-unit properties follows sold comparables; five-plus-unit value follows stabilized NOI and the exit cap rate. Current income and expenses remain separate from the potential scenario.
The calculator
What is different in Quebec
Most income-property calculators are American. They miss four rules that decide whether a Quebec plex works.
Welcome tax: Montreal is the only municipality permitted to exceed the 3% provincial ceiling, and its schedule reaches 4% on the portion above $3,113,000. Off the island, the provincial base schedule applies and costs materially less on the same price.
TAL rent fixing: the model uses 3.1% as the 2026 base component, then property-specific taxes, insurance and 5% of eligible work are additional. It is not a universal ceiling.
Financing: at five units a building stops being residential and becomes commercial. The loan is no longer set by your down payment but by the debt-service coverage the net operating income supports.
CCA: Canada uses declining-balance Class 1 depreciation at 4%, and everything claimed is recaptured on sale. It is a deferral, not a saving.
Cash flow, cap rate, EGI, NOI, DSCR, IRR and NPV
The current scenario starts with rent actually collected and known operating expenses. The potential scenario adds achievable market rent, planned work, future expenses and the expected turnover schedule without presenting those assumptions as current facts.
Effective gross income (EGI) subtracts vacancy from gross income, and net operating income (NOI) then subtracts operating expenses. Cap rate relates NOI to property value, debt-service coverage ratio (DSCR) tests mortgage capacity, and cash flow shows what remains after debt service.
Internal rate of return (IRR) and net present value (NPV) evaluate the full holding period, including capital work, refinancing and resale. Under five units, resale follows sold comparables; at five units and above, next year's stabilized NOI is capitalized at the exit cap rate.
How to use the calculator
Start with the area. Prices, rents and the municipal tax rate adjust to the borough or off-island city you pick, and the welcome-tax schedule switches automatically once you leave the Montreal agglomeration.
Then choose the property type. Unit mix, financing track and operating expenses reseed to that type's area medians.
Finally enter the real rent roll: in-place rents, market rents, unit sizes. The gap between what the leases collect today and what the units achieve on turnover is the heart of the calculation.
Limitations
Figures come from public sources dated July 2026 and are a starting point, not an appraisal. Municipal tax rates are estimated from price: replace them with the actual tax bill. MLI Select premiums are indicative; CMHC prices each file individually.
Area price indices are anchored to published figures for six areas; the rest are interpolated by relative standing, and the tool labels which is which.
This tool does not replace a mortgage broker, an accountant or an inspection.
Frequently asked questions
How much is the welcome tax in Montreal in 2026?
Montreal applies its own progressive schedule: 0.5% to $62,900, 1% to $315,000, 1.5% to $552,300, 2% to $1,104,700, 2.5% to $2,136,500, 3.5% to $3,113,000, and 4% above that. On a $900,000 triplex that is roughly $13,400. Outside the agglomeration the provincial base schedule tops out at 1.5% above $315,000, which costs considerably less on the same price.
What down payment do you need for a triplex in Montreal?
If you occupy one of the units, a triplex is insurable to 90% loan-to-value, so 10% down is the minimum. An owner-occupied duplex insures to 95%: 5% on the first $500,000 then 10% on the balance. If you do not occupy the building, mortgage loan insurance is unavailable and the minimum down payment is 20%.
Why does financing change at five units?
At five units and above the building is financed as a commercial asset. The lender no longer sizes the loan from your down payment but from net operating income: it takes the lesser of the loan-to-value cap and the amount the income supports at the target debt-service coverage ratio, typically 1.10 to 1.30. On a low-income building the coverage test binds, and the equity required can far exceed 25%.
How much can you raise the rent after buying?
The model uses 3.1% as its 2026 base component. The actual property calculation adds changes in municipal and school taxes, insurance and 5% of eligible work, so this is not a universal ceiling.
Is claiming capital cost allowance worth it?
Class 1 CCA reduces taxable income by 4% a year on the building portion, declining balance, with the half-year rule in year one. But everything claimed is recaptured on sale and taxed at your full marginal rate rather than the lower capital-gains rate. It is a tax deferral: useful if your marginal rate falls before you sell, costly if it does not.
What is a building's economic value?
It is the value the lender computes for itself to decide the financing on a 5+ unit building, and it differs from the market price. The bank substitutes its own standards for four expense lines (management, maintenance and repairs, janitorial, vacancy), divides the normalized net income by its debt coverage ratio, discounts that payment at a stress-tested qualification rate, and divides the resulting loan by the loan-to-value ratio. If that value comes in below your purchase price, the loan is capped by the bank's number and you cover the entire gap in cash: the real down payment becomes price minus maximum loan, not 20% of price. The normalized figures are not public and vary by institution, they generally draw on CMHC standards, and the value moves with qualification rates.
Are Montreal plexes profitable in 2026?
Gross yields generally run 4–5% and net yields 2.5–4% depending on the area. At 20% down and current rates, many Montreal plexes with rent-controlled leases do not produce positive cash flow in year one: the return comes from principal paydown, appreciation and resetting rents on turnover. Central boroughs show lower cap rates than peripheral ones.
Reference figures
- Welcome tax: Montreal (2026): 0.5% to $62,900 · 1% to $315,000 · 1.5% to $552,300 · 2% to $1,104,700 · 2.5% to $2,136,500 · 3.5% to $3,113,000 · 4% above, Ville de Montréal
- Welcome tax: Quebec base schedule (2026): 0.5% to $62,900 · 1% to $315,000 · 1.5% above. Municipalities outside Montreal may add up to 3% on the portion above $500,000., Gouvernement du Québec
- Minimum down payment: owner-occupied: 1–2 units: 5% on the first $500,000 then 10% · 3–4 units: 10% · Not owner-occupied: 20%, SCHL / CMHC
- Maximum insured loan-to-value: 95% for 1–2 units · 90% for 3–4 units · Maximum purchase price $1,500,000 · 25-year amortization, or 30 years for first-time buyers and new construction (since December 2024), SCHL / CMHC
- Mortgage loan insurance premium: 1–4 unit homeowner loans: 0.60% at 65% LTV · 1.70% at 75% · 2.40% at 80% · 2.80% at 85% · 3.10% at 90% · 4.00% at 95%. Multi-unit (5+) premiums moved to risk-based pricing on July 14, 2025 and rose in most files. The premium is capitalized into the loan, but Quebec's tax on insurance premiums (9%) is payable in cash at the notary. It is neither GST nor QST: insurance is a GST-exempt financial service and Quebec levies its own premium tax. The rate rises to 9.975% for premiums paid after 31 December 2026., SCHL / CMHC
- CMHC MLI Select: 5+ units: 50 / 70 / 100 points give a 10 / 20 / 30% premium discount, up to 95% LTV and 50-year amortization. Surcharge of 0.25% per 5-year increment beyond 25 years. Since risk-based pricing took effect on July 14, 2025, effective premiums rose in most files: budget the premium with your broker., SCHL / CMHC
- TAL base calculation component (2026): 3.1% as a base planning assumption. Property-specific tax and insurance changes plus 5% of eligible work are additional; this is not a universal ceiling., Tribunal administratif du logement
- Median prices: Montreal CMA (Q1 2026): Condo $425,000 · Duplex $710,000 · Triplex $900,000 · Quadruplex $1,100,000 · Single-family $639,000 · Plex (all) $865,000, APCIQ
- Rents: occupied stock vs. asking: An occupied 4½ (2-bedroom) averages $1,346 in Greater Montreal against roughly $1,826 asked on turnover. That spread is the value-add., SCHL : Enquête sur les logements locatifs
- Economic value: the lender's value (5+ units): Method: the lender normalizes four expense lines (management, maintenance and repairs, janitorial, vacancy), divides the normalized NOI by the debt coverage ratio (typically 1.10–1.30), discounts that payment at the qualification rate over the amortization, then divides the resulting loan by the loan-to-value ratio (often 75%). The normalized amounts are not public: each institution sets its own, generally drawing on CMHC standards. This calculator uses illustrative values (management 5% of revenue, maintenance $500/unit, janitorial $200/unit, vacancy floored at 3%), these are not any specific bank's schedule. When the economic value sits below the purchase price, the buyer covers the gap in cash., Méthode : Collège MREX
- Capital cost allowance (CCA): Class 1: 4% declining balance on the building portion. Half-year rule in year one. Land is not depreciable. CCA claimed is recaptured on sale and taxed at the marginal rate., Agence du revenu du Canada