Before looking at a new semi-detached home near Westmount, many owners ask themselves a simpler question: wouldn't it make more sense to renovate the house they already live in? In Westmount, the answer depends less on budget than on the time, the paperwork and the energy a project takes in a heritage setting.

Should you renovate in Westmount or buy new? Both choices hold up. This article doesn't compare what houses are worth; it compares what each option asks of you, based on what the City of Westmount, Parks Canada and Statistics Canada publish.

A built heritage recognized nationally

Westmount has a character all its own. In 2016, Parks Canada unveiled a plaque at city hall recognizing its national historic significance as an exemplary Victorian and post-Victorian suburb, with a heritage that mainly reflects the years 1890 to 1930. The city is divided into 39 heritage sectors, each with its own distinctive features, and it publishes a list of buildings of heritage interest built before 1940.

Statistics Canada's 2021 Census puts that history into numbers:

65.4% of occupied dwellings date from 1960 or earlier;
22.5% were built between 1961 and 1980, bringing the share built before 1981 to 87.9%;
from 2016 to 2021, just 50 dwellings were built, or 0.6% of the total;
8.5% of dwellings needed major repairs, compared with 6.3% across Quebec.

In other words, almost every house in Westmount already has a long story behind it. That's a real asset, and it's also what shapes how a house can be changed.

Renovate in Westmount or buy new: first, what does the city require to renovate?

The general rule is posted on the city's website: if your project affects the outside of the property, it falls under By-law 1305 on the site planning and architectural integration program (PIIA) and must be approved by city council. Restoring original architectural components and replacing them with identical ones are exempt.

In practice, several steps come on top of the work itself:

The file: for doors and windows, the city asks for, among other things, the supplier's shop drawings, a quote and photos of every façade.
The committee's opinion: the planning advisory committee, which includes three architects, makes a recommendation to council on renovation, restoration and construction projects.
The timeline: for a substantial replacement of doors and windows, documents must be filed at least two weeks before the regular submission deadline; after council's decision, the city asks you to allow a week before the resolution is issued.

On a heritage building, the city adds, most changes to characteristic exterior features only allow them to be restored, or modified to bring them back to their original state. These rules protect what gives Westmount's streets their character; they simply call for planning ahead.

What renovating asks of you, beyond the work

The cost of a renovation isn't measured in dollars alone. To decide whether to renovate in Westmount or buy new, ask yourself a few honest questions:

Do you have the time to prepare a file and wait for the committee's recommendation and council's resolution?
Can you live in the house during the work, or will you need to stay somewhere else?
Does the project fix what really weighs on you: the stairs, the yard work, the lack of a room to work in?
Five or ten years from now, will the renovated house still fit the way you live?

If upkeep is what wears you down most, a renovation won't make it go away; our article on the maintenance-free home near Westmount explains what an all-inclusive maintenance program changes.

Staying in Westmount differently: the accessory unit

Renovating can also mean reorganizing. Under By-law 1657, the city allows an accessory dwelling unit inside, or attached to, a detached or semi-detached single-family house: up to 35% of the floor area, at least 550 sq ft, no change to the front façade, and no detached unit. For a family that wants to keep the house while creating a self-contained space in it, it's an option worth exploring with the city.

Buying new: what's settled in advance

A turnkey new home, on the other hand, spares you the work site. At BÉAcité, in Sainte-Julie, Maisons Pépin's semi-detached homes come with:

grading and full exterior landscaping, followed by an all-inclusive maintenance program;
a garage, with an outlet for plugging in an electric car;
central air conditioning and a central forced-air gas system;
a quartz kitchen counter, 9-foot ceilings and large windows in every room.

In Quebec, a new home sold by a contractor must also be covered by the mandatory guarantee plan for new residential buildings; the sales director will explain what it covers. Four homes are ready, at 405, 408, 423 and 435 Geoffrion Street; other, customizable ones can be ready in about four months.

Customizing instead of transforming

In a new home, the choices are made on paper, before the house is built. Several options are available: a 338 sq ft mezzanine on the Duo cottage, a rooftop terrace, a cathedral ceiling in the dining room and a range of interior finishes in the standard package. The mezzanine, for instance, can become the workspace so many houses lack; see our article on the house with a home office near Westmount.

Three models serve as a starting point: the single-level semi-detached bungalow, with 1,006 sq ft on the main floor; the Urbain model, with 1,622 sq ft of living space; and the Duo cottage, with 2,018 sq ft of living space, or 2,356 sq ft with the mezzanine.

Conclusion

Whether to renovate in Westmount or buy new comes down to choosing between two commitments. Renovating keeps your address and your house, at the cost of a file, waiting periods and a project governed by rules that protect a recognized heritage. Buying new, about forty minutes away on the South Shore, hands you a finished, maintained home. To compare for yourself, the simplest step is a visit: the sales office at 435 Geoffrion Street is open weekdays from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., and by appointment on evenings and weekends.

Renovate in Westmount or buy new: what each option asks of you