Average rents fell nationally on an annual basis for the first time in more than three years in October, according to a report released Thursday.
Posted at 6:01 p.m.
Sammy Hudes
The Canadian Press
The report from Rentals.ca and Urbanation found that average rents in Canada stood at $2,152 in October, down 1.2% from the same month in 2023 – the first national decline since July 2021.
The decrease is primarily concentrated in Canada’s major urban centers, with cities like Toronto, Vancouver, Calgary and Montreal seeing rent declines.
Urbanation President Shaun Hildebrand said it’s rare for rents to decrease from year to year nationally.
“This is happening as the main drivers of rent growth in recent years – a strengthening economy, rapid population growth and declining homeownership affordability – are beginning to reverse,” said Mr. Hildebrand.
“As a result, we can likely expect this rent trend to continue in the near term, especially as apartment completions remain at record highs. »
British Columbia and Ontario recorded the largest annual rent declines among the provinces, with the former seeing the average asking rent for apartments fall 3.4% to $2,549 and the latter seeing a drop of 5 .7% to $2,350.
Rents rose 17.1 per cent in Saskatchewan, which remained the fastest-growing province in the country by asking price, after seeing annual growth of 23.5 per cent in September.
By city, Toronto saw the largest annual decline in apartment asking rents in October, at 9.2%, to an average of $2,642. Vancouver saw an 8.4% year-over-year decline to an average of $2,945, while apartment rents in Calgary fell 4.7% to $1,995.
In Montreal, average rents fell by 2.9% to $1,987. Apartment rents in Ottawa remained relatively stable with an annual increase of 0.4% to $2,207.
Edmonton was the leading Canadian market in terms of rent growth, increasing 8.4% annually to an average of $1,584.
According to the report, the average asking rent for a one-bedroom apartment in Canada was $1,923 in October, down 0.8% from the previous year. The average asking price for a two-bedroom apartment was $2,308, down 0.2%.
Overall, asking rents for purpose-built rental apartments increased 1.7% in October from a year earlier to an average of $2,100.
Meanwhile, condo rents, which averaged $2,265, fell 3.8 per cent.
