Canadian rents struck a new high in June, climbing to $2,042 and besting the previous record set in November 2022 by $18. This is according to a new national rent report, supplied by Rentals.ca and Urbanation.
The report lays out some sitting trends, as well as some emerging ones.
In a similar fashion to the month prior, the average asking rent in Canada increased year over year (+7.5%), month over month (+1.4%), and 20% over the past two years in June. The rise observed between May and June in particular marks the fastest month-over-month increase of the year so far.
Urbanation Inc, rentals.ca network
Gains across the board are attributed to the population expanding at a record pace, unemployment remaining at a near-record low, and consumers shying away from their home-buying plans amid elevated interest rates.
This month’s report also zeros in on trends surrounding unit size. More specifically, it shows that the strongest month-over-month rent growth was observed amongst “the smallest and least expensive unit types,” with rents for studios and one-bedrooms up 2.6% and 2%, respectively.
Urbanation Inc, rentals.ca network
Unique to this month’s report is data on “roommate accommodations.” Across BC, Alberta, Ontario, and Quebec, asking rents for shared accommodations averaged $963 in June, up 15% from a year ago.
Provincially, roommate rents appreciated the most in BC, growing close to 21% year over year to an average of $1,157. In Ontario, Quebec, and Alberta, roommate rents were on average lower, but all provinces still posted annual gains of 6%, 21%, and 13%, respectively.
Urbanation Inc, rentals.ca network
By city, average roommate rents were highest in Vancouver at $1,454, where the year-over-year gain came in at close to 60%. In Toronto, the increase was 9%, bringing the average rate to $1,288.
Urbanation Inc, rentals.ca network
Although this is the first time roommate-related trends are examined in this particular report, Matt Danison, CEO of the Rentals.ca Network, spoke to the trend briefly last month, saying that “Gen Z could become the 'Boomerang Generation' moving back in with the parents or the 'Roommate Generation' splitting rent as it's unaffordable for many Canadians to pay rent on their own."
