Renting in Toronto continues to become a little bit more affordable, as average rent prices for both one and two bedrooms declined in May, according to a new national rental report.
Produced by Rentals.ca and Bullpen Research & Consulting, rental prices for a one-bedroom apartment or condo in Toronto dropped 1.1% to hit an average of $2,103, while rent for a two-bedroom apartment or condo fell 0.7% to $2,675. On an annual basis, one-bedrooms in Toronto declined 6.1%, while rent for two-bedrooms is down 4.1% year-over-year.
This marks the third month in a row that Toronto rents have declined, a turnaround from many months of increases, according to the listings data on Rentals.ca.
READ: Average Rental Rate for all Property Types in Toronto Fell 5% in April: Report
According to the report, the COVID pandemic continues to put downward pressure on the rental market nationally, with rent down 7.2% from its September 2019 peak of $1,954 per month. What's more, on a national level, the average rent for all properties hit $1,814 in May, down 1.4% from April and down 5.4% year-over-year.
Ben Myers, president of Bullpen Research and Consulting, has said a "sharp drop" in demand has resulted in landlords dropping their asking rents in most major markets across the country.
Matt Danison, CEO of Rentals.ca, said there was a "significant" increase in website traffic on Rentals.ca in May, indicating that "prospective tenants are doing their research to prepare for a move in the near future,” suggesting that landlords might start to increases prices now that the demand is back.
Toronto led all 34 cities on the list for average monthly rent in May, while nine areas of the Greater Toronto Area rounded out the top 10 for the most expensive rent for a one-bedroom home in Canada. And even though Toronto still ranks as the most expensive city to rent in the country, we'll take all of the price declines – no matter how small – that we can get.
A deeper look at Toronto's rental market shows in the Entertainment District, Cityplace, and King West, average monthly rents are down $118 to $2,630 in January to May year-over-year.
What's more, it's currently cheaper to rent apartments and condo apartments in downtown Toronto, as average monthly rent has dropped $449 to $2,580 in the first five months of this year versus $3,029 in January through May 2019.
Outside of downtown, prices are also declining, with Etobicoke rental prices on the listing sites dipping just 0.2 % to $1,984 for one-bedrooms but a full 4.9% t0 $2,350 for two-bedrooms, while rent for one-bedrooms in North York dropped 1.7% to $1,928 and 3.2% for two-bedrooms down to $2,299.
Meanwhile, in Richmond Hill, prices were actually up (1.2%) in May for one-bedrooms, averaging at $2,003 over April and a 12.5% increase year-over-year.
You can see how the 0ther cities performed below:
Rentals.ca
The National Rent Report charts and analyzes monthly, quarterly and annual rates and trends in the rental market on a national, provincial, and municipal level across all listings on Rentals.ca for Canada. This month's report charts rents for 34 cities across Canada.
