Having 8th highest average rent in Canada ‘unacceptable’ says Guelph, Ont. mayor

Guelph, Ont., may be one of the best Canadian cities to live in, but it is also one of the more expensive.

A list released by Rentals.ca shows the Royal City with the eighth-highest average rental price in the country.

The average monthly price for a one-bedroom apartment in Guelph is $2,085, which is up 22.4 per cent compared to the same time last year. For a two-bedroom apartment, the average rent is $2,353 a month, up 11.1 per cent from the same period last year.

“That is unacceptable,” Guelph Mayor Cam Guthrie told CJOY and Global News. “We need to figure out how we can help in the lane that we’re in.”

There were many who replied to a tweet from Guthrie who believe the city has the ability to control rental prices.

“We don’t have the jurisdiction over that,” Guthrie said. “But we are in a position of supporting more housing units in the city. That not only includes one-bedroom apartments but larger ones as well.”

He goes on to say that council and city staff need to work together to do what they can to increase the housing supply in the city.

Guthrie also dismissed the notion that much of the available housing in Guelph is being taken up by those attending the University of Guelph. He cites the approval of two student housing projects by the previous council that has made more units available.

“It will start to pull some of those students away from homes that are being rented as they move into purpose-built student dwellings,” said Guthrie. “That frees up some of the rentals being used by students that can be transferred as an opportunity back to families.”

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Rentals.ca says rent inflation continues to accelerate in Canada with the average listed rent jumping 12.4 per cent to a record high $2,024 compared to last year. They add there are no signs of slowing down.

Vancouver has the highest average monthly rent at $2,633 for a one-bedroom apartment, while Toronto is second at $2,532, and the Vancouver suburb of Burnaby is third at $2,304. Kitchener was 14th at $1,949.

And it is not just rent, the cost of owning a home in Canada has also gone up.

In a news release, the Ontario Real Estate Association says nearly two-thirds of Ontarians are spending more than 30 per cent of their household budget on housing according to an Abacus Data poll that was conducted on behalf of OREA. The same survey showed that more than 70 per cent of those currently renting have indicated that they would like to own a home one day.

“At a time when homeownership rates are on the decline, the desire to own a home is still growing,” said OREA President Stacey Evoy.