The latest National Rent Report indicates a continued easing of rental costs for Canadians. Average asking rents across the country have fallen for the 16th consecutive month, decreasing two percent year-over-year in January to $2,057. This marks the lowest level in 31 months, although rents remain nearly 13% higher than pre-pandemic levels of January 2020.
The report, compiled by Rentals. ca and Urbanation, suggests that increased rental supply is contributing to improved affordability. Shaun Hildebrand, President of Urbanation, stated that the data demonstrates "a meaningful improvement in affordability for renters in Canada, proving that more supply brings down costs". He anticipates this trend will attract more renters even with a slowing population growth. Smaller unit sizes are also contributing to the decline in average rents. The average rental listing size in January was 857 square feet, down from 885 square feet a year prior.
Regionally, the largest declines in average apartment rents were observed in British Columbia (4.7%), Alberta (4.3%), Ontario (3.3%), and Quebec (2.6%). Several major Canadian cities also experienced decreases, including Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto, Ottawa, Montreal, and Edmonton. Red Deer, Alberta, saw a slight decrease from December to January, with the total average rent decreasing to $1,529 per month.
While the overall trend points to decreasing rental costs, three-bedroom apartments were the only unit category to see growth, rising 1.1 percent to an average of $2,506. Despite the recent declines, the report highlights that rents remain significantly higher than before the pandemic, underscoring the ongoing challenges in the Canadian rental market.
