Quebec’s new flood map sparks concerns for real estate market

The lack of clarity from lenders and insurers has stalled some transactions.

A newly designated provincial flood zone in Quebec has sparked concerns and anger across the real estate industry.

The Quebec Professional Association of Real Estate Brokers (QPAREB) says the new zone affects 77,000 properties potentially impacting property values, complicating insurance coverage and destabilizing the market.

“We applaud the government for seeking to implement long-term solutions to counter the very real impacts of climate change,” says Nathalie Begin, president of QPAREB’s Brokerage Practices Committee.

“However, it is crucial that mitigation and supportive measures be developed to support homeowners affected by the new mapping and to preserve property market stability. The government can continue to count on our complete cooperation in this regard.”

Begin notes the expansion of the map is causing frustration. “A lot of people in the province are pissed off because we had a map before but they’ve added a lot more properties on the new map,” she explains

“Most of the people now in the flood zone it’s their only asset in life,” she said. “A lot of people have been living (in their homes) for a long time. For now, the problem is, because the map is already out, all the insurance companies, (and) the lenders will decide if they want to put some insurance or accept a mortgage on a house, they are looking at this map.

According to Begin, the lack of clarity from lenders and insurers has stalled some transactions. “We don’t have any news about what the lenders are going to do, what the insurers are going to do and we don’t have any programs by the government that’s going to help those people.”

In Sainte-Marthe-sur-le-Lac, Begin notes “almost all the properties are now in the flood zone. People over there are crying because they don’t know what they’re going to do.”