Nuns' Island, Montreal: prices, rent, and living guide
An island in the St Lawrence that reads as a leafy suburb and sits five minutes from downtown on the REM. Three Mies van der Rohe towers, a riverfront trail all the way around, and a development pipeline residents are actively arguing about.
FamiliesYoung professionalsLuxury
Typical house
$1.45M
Typical condo
$620K
One bedroom rent
$1,850/mo
Walk Score
55
Transit 62 · Bike 74
Known for: Riverfront trails, Mies van der Rohe apartment towers, and a genuinely suburban feel in the city. A green island suburb, five minutes from downtown and nothing like it.
Prices and rent in Nuns' Island
A typical Nuns' Island house costs about $1,450,000 and a typical condo about $620,000.
Estimated price by unit size
| Condo | Estimate | House | Estimate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Studio | $446,000 | 2 bed | $1,189,000 |
| 1 bed | $620,000 | 3 bed | $1,450,000 |
| 2 bed | $843,000 | 4 bed | $1,784,000 |
| 3 bed | $1,104,000 | 5+ bed | $2,175,000 |
Estimated monthly rent
| Unit | Monthly rent |
|---|---|
| Bachelor | $1,440 |
| 1 bedroom | $1,850 |
| 2 bedroom | $2,370 |
| 3 bedroom | $3,160 |
Unit-size prices and rents are scaled from one benchmark per neighbourhood and are estimates, not appraisals. Compare Nuns' Island with the rest of Montreal in the best neighbourhoods in Montreal guide.
Who Nuns' Island suits
Families and professionals who want space, quiet and river frontage with a five-minute drive or a REM ride to downtown, and who do not mind that the island runs on cars.
Who it is wrong for
Anyone who wants walkable street life — residents themselves describe it as not particularly walkable — and buyers who want character housing.
Pros
- The REM light rail station puts downtown at about five minutes, transforming the commute
- Riverfront trails, mature landscaping and one of the greenest residential settings on the island
- Three Mies van der Rohe buildings, the only ones he designed in Canada, sit here
Cons
- Residents describe it as not particularly walkable, with retail concentrated in one commercial centre
- Ongoing large-scale development, including the Cité de l'Île project, has residents worried about capacity
- Effectively a single-access island, so any bridge or REM disruption is felt immediately
Living in Nuns' Island
Getting around
Île-des-Soeurs REM station, five minutes to Gare Centrale. Walk Score 55, Transit Score 62, Bike Score 74.
Safety
Very safe and quiet, with low reported crime and a settled residential population. Being effectively a single-access island is the practical vulnerability rather than crime.
Restaurants
Concentrated at Place du Commerce, with a limited range. Verdun's Wellington Street is a short drive for anything more.
Shopping
IGA and Metro at Place du Commerce cover daily needs; larger shopping means Verdun or downtown.
Within a short walk or transit hop
- Parks
- Parc de la Merci, the riverfront trail circling the island, Parc West Vancouver
- Library
- Bibliothèque de L'Île-des-Soeurs, Montreal public library network
- Recreation
- Île-des-Soeurs golf, the riverfront cycling loop, YMCA nearby in Verdun
- Groceries
- IGA and Metro at Place du Commerce, the Verdun grocers a short drive
- Schools
- École Île-des-Soeurs, Collège Sainte-Anne, Verdun secondary catchments
Safety text is a qualitative description of the area, not crime statistics. Scores are approximate and vary within the neighbourhood.
Renting in Nuns' Island
A one bedroom runs about $1,850 a month, and a two bedroom about $2,370.
Mostly newer condo rentals plus the mid-century apartment towers, including the Mies van der Rohe buildings. Family-sized units are available and rents run above Verdun for the space and quiet.
Where Nuns' Island is
Nuns' Island: frequently asked questions
Is Nuns' Island a good place to live?
For space, quiet, green and river frontage five minutes from downtown, it is unmatched on the island. Residents are blunt that it is not particularly walkable and that a commute anywhere other than downtown means driving.
How many people live on Nuns' Island?
Around 20,000, in a mix of mid-century towers, newer condos and detached houses. It is part of the Verdun borough despite feeling entirely separate from it.
Is there a metro on Nuns' Island?
Not a metro, but the REM light rail has a station at Île-des-Soeurs that reaches Gare Centrale in about five minutes. It transformed the commute and is the single biggest change to the island in decades.
What is being built on Nuns' Island?
Cité de l'Île, a large project with hundreds of condos, seniors' residences, a hotel and commercial space. Residents have publicly questioned whether the island's infrastructure can sustain it, and the debate is ongoing.
Why are there Mies van der Rohe buildings on Nuns' Island?
Three of them — an Esso station and two apartment towers — were built in the late 1960s as part of the original masterplan for the island. They are the only Mies buildings in Canada and the station has been restored as a community centre.
Nearby Montreal neighbourhoods
Verdun
River beach, Wellington Street, and the best value near downtown
House $780K · Condo $445K· Walk 88
1.8 km from Nuns' Island
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Pointe-Saint-Charles
Working class roots, canal access, and the last central bargain
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Saint-Henri
Canal-side lofts, Notre-Dame Street antiques, and rapid change
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3.7 km from Nuns' Island
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Griffintown
New condo towers on former industrial land beside the canal
House $900K · Condo $510K· Walk 91
3.9 km from Nuns' Island
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