The majority of Montreal's Airbnb listings are deemed illegal
Updated: May 22, 2023
Following an unfortunate fire that killed 5 people in an Airbnb in Old Montréal on March 16th 2023, a bombshell report came out with one flagrant statistic : 80% of airbnb listings in Quebec are illegal.
Airbnb has responded to the tragedy and the report by cutting 50% of its Montreal listings, and has made it mandatory for hosts to enter their license numbers on the platform (a number that most hosts do not have)
Even before the recent removal of listings, foreigners faced challenges finding long-term accommodations on Airbnb due to limited availability. This recent deletion is gonna make finding student apartments even harder.
At the very least, Airbnb offered a guarantee that you won't fall prey to fraudulent schemes when you reserve lodgings online without physically inspecting them beforehand. However, it's very probable now that those housing units will wind up on unofficial and uninsured platforms like Facebook Marketplace, Kijiji, Craiglist, and others.
If you're planning to book an apartment from abroad through these uninsured platforms, it's important to be cautious and exercise due diligence. Ensure that you thoroughly research the property and verify the credentials of the host before making any payments, we can help you verify your apartments by clicking here.
