Canada’s rent growth slows as international student enrolment drops

Average asking rents for all property types across the country just saw their slowest rate of growth since October 2021 — largely due to falling international student enrolment, a new report says.

Last month, rents across Canada reached an average of $2,193 per month, according to Rentals.ca and Urbanation’s latest National Rent Report.

The report pointed to falling numbers of international student enrolments as being behind the trends.

“Rents in Canada are increasing at their slowest pace in nearly three years, largely the result of foreign student enrolments dropping by roughly a half from their record highs, with the impact felt most in B.C. and Ontario,” said Shaun Hildebrand, president of Urbanation.

“Meanwhile, smaller, more affordable markets continue to see strong upward pressure on rents as demand shifts to less expensive parts of the country,” Hildebrand said.

Despite the slowdown in price growth, rents are 13.4-per cent higher than two years ago and 25.2-per cent higher than three years ago.

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Condominium rents across Canada declined by 1.7 per cent, averaging $2,296 in September. Condos in Vancouver saw a drop in average rent of 13.6 per cent to $3,232 while those in Toronto dropped by 7.7 per cent to $2,745. In Calgary, condo rents dropped by 3.4 per cent to $2,060.

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On the other hand, purpose-built apartments saw a 5.4-per cent annual rent increase, reaching an average of $2,138, with studio units showing the strongest growth at 11.1 per cent, the report said.

Ontario and British Columbia recorded the most significant annual rent declines, with average asking rents for purpose-built and condominium apartments down 4.3 per cent in Ontario to $2,380 and down 3.2 per cent in B.C. to $2,570.

Meanwhile, rents surged in Saskatchewan by 23.5 per cent, making it the fastest-growing increase of any province in the country.

Rents for apartments fell in some of Canada’s largest cities. Vancouver saw the 10th consecutive month of rent declines, down 9.5 per cent compared to this time last year, averaging $3,023. Toronto saw an 8.1-per cent decrease, bringing the average down to $2,668.

Calgary and Montreal both posted two per cent annual rent declines.

Among the major cities, Ottawa experienced a slight increase of 0.8 per cent to $2,220.

Rooms in shared residences also got more expensive across Canada as shared accommodation rents went up by 6.9 per cent annually, averaging $1,009 in September.