Average rent prices for unfurnished one-bedroom units across Metro Vancouver have spiked since July, just as students are about to return to school.
A report published by Liv.rent shows that average rent prices have jumped from $2,029 to $2,176 in August, an increase of $147. This comes after average rent prices actually dipped from June to July, by $27, but was still to be expected after the Bank of Canada announced increased interest rates last month.
This increase was seen across various regions. Richmond saw the highest increase, at a whopping 24.1%, making it the third-most expensive city in all of Canada for an unfurnished one-bedroom unit.
New Westminster and West Vancouver saw the next highest increases, at 12.7% and 11.1%.
Across Metro Vancouver, the only region that didn't see an increase in rent prices was North Vancouver, where average rent prices for an unfurnished one-bedroom unit dropped 3.8%. Furnished one-bedroom units saw a similar increase across most regions as well, with the notable exception of West Vancouver and North Vancouver, which saw a significant drop of 22.5% and 15.9% respectively. The average rent price for a furnished one-bedroom unit was $2,272.
By region, Langley's average of $1,716 made it the least-expensive area in Metro Vancouver for an unfurnished one-bedroom unit. Surrey was just slightly higher, while every other region saw an average of over $1,900. West Vancouver, which may surprise no one, was the most expensive place for an unfurnished one-bedroom unit, at $2,621.
When it comes to unfurnished two-bedroom units, however, both Vancouver and North Vancouver surpassed West Vancouver, at an average of $3,597 and $3,155. For an unfurnished three-bedroom unit? West Vancouver's average price of $5,713 was vastly higher than the next highest, which was that of North Vancouver, at $4,475.
By square footage, average rent prices in Metro Vancouver equated to about $2.70 psf. Vancouver's average was $3.60 psf and Burnaby was at $3.08, the only two regions over $3.00 psf. All other regions -- Langley, Richmond, North Vancouver, West Vancouver, Coquitlam, New Westminster, and Surrey -- had an average price of under $2.90 psf, with Surrey having the lowest, at $2.25.
Other interesting tidbits from the report include data on the average income-to-rent ratio and renter demographics.
Liv.rent found that the average percentage of people's income that was spent on rent was about 33.9%.
According to the report's demographic distribution data, a majority of renters (31%) in Metro Vancouver were between the ages of 25 and 34. Next highest was people who were under 25, which made up of about 26% of renters.
This means that rent prices are surging just as a significant amount of renters are returning to school. Unfortunately, there is no back-to-school discounts on housing.
