Rental prices in Canada reached a new high with the average asking price of $2,149 per month, according to a new report compiled by a Canadian rental listings website.
According to Rentals.ca and real estate research firm Urbanation, the Canadian market continued its upward trajectory with data suggesting a monthly increase of 1.5 per cent from August, and an annual surge of 11.1 per cent.
Experiencing double-digit year-over-year growth, the annual rate of rent inflation surged to its highest point in nine months, stated the report.
The report’s metrics are based on new listings, not what existing tenants are paying per month.
In terms of rental types, one-bedroom units recorded the fastest annual growth in asking rents, soaring by 15.5 per cent, reaching an average of $1,905.
Two-bedroom apartments averaged $2,268, marking a 13.1 per cent increase year-over-year, while three-bedroom units were up by 11.4 per cent, averaging $2,514.
Studios, representing the most economical choice, had the lowest year-over-year growth with an increase of 11.3 per cent, averaging $1,511 in rental prices.
Asking rents for purpose-built and condominium apartments averaged a record high of $2,078 in September, increasing 1.6 per cent month-over-month and 13.3 per cent year-over-year.
NOVA SCOTIA AND ALBERTA LEAD RENT GROWTH
Breaking down the data by region, Nova Scotia and Alberta led the provinces in rent growth for both purpose-built and condominium apartments in September, with rates of 15.4 per cent and 15.3 per cent, respectively.
Nova Scotia surpassed Alberta with the average asking rents for apartments by reaching $2,088, while Alberta rose to $1,663.
Quebec had the third fastest annual growth with a rate of 13 per cent, followed closely by British Columbia with 12.3 per cent.
Despite having one of the highest growth rates year-over-year, Quebec’s asking rents remained below the national average with $1,970, while B.C. had the highest average of all provinces at $2,656.
In Ontario, the annual rate growth slowed from 9.9 per cent in August to 6.6 per cent in September. Asking rents in the province also declined by 0.4 per cent month-over-month. Yet, despite this glimpse of financial hope, Ontario still has the second highest rent average by province at $2,486.
The Prairie provinces remained the most financially friendly locations as Saskatchewan and Manitboa both had the slowest annual rent growth in September at 3.8 per cent and 3.1 per cent, respectively.
Saskatchewan’s asking rents averaged $1,115 and $1,431 for Manitoba.
TORONTO RENTAL MARKET SLOWS, VANCOUVER GROWS
While most major markets across Canada witnessed robust rent increases, there was a noticeable slow down in Toronto compared to August. The rent growth in Canada’s most populated city slowed from 8.7 per cent to 2.3 per cent, making it the slowest annual rate increase in two years.
Although month-over-month average rent prices in Toronto did not change significantly, this city still has the second-highest asking rate at $2,902. Right behind Vancouver at an average of $3,339, which is a 7.7 per cent increase year-over-year.
Among Canada’s largest markets, Calgary maintained its annual growth lead as asking rent prices reached an average of $2,091, or a 14.3 per cent increase in September.
Montreal also had a rent increase in the double-digits at 10.2 per cent, raising the average asking rent price to $2,030.
When it comes to the country’s medium and smaller markets, there was also a significant annual rent growth for purpose-built and condominium rental apartments in September.
Richmond, B.C., which is part of Greater Vancouver, had the strongest growth at 28.9 per cent, followed by Cote-Saint-Luc, Que., part of Greater Montreal, at 27.5 per cent and Red Deer, Alta at 21.8 per cent.
In Ontario, Oakville had the fastest annual growth of 19.4 per cent.
Within smaller provinces, Halifax and Regina had one of the highest increases at 15.5 per cent and 13.4 per cent, respectively.
In terms of prices, four of the five most expensive mid-sized markets in Canada are located in Greater Vancouver, according to the report’s data. North Vancouver average asking rent is $3,481, followed by Burnaby at $3,062, Coquitlam at $2,976 and Richmond at $2,940.
Outside of Toronto, Ontario’s most expensive markets include Oakville, averaging $2,960, Brampton ($2,704), Vaughan ($2,697), Mississauga ($2,687), Etobicoke ($2,634), and North York ($2,629).
ROOMMATE RENTALS CONTINUE TO SURGE
According to the rental report, roommate rentals have become more popular. Over the last three months, there was a 27 per cent increase compared to last year.
This trend has been particularly pronounced in B.C. and within Ontario, as shared accommodation listings increased by 40 and 78 per cent, respectively.
Average asking rents for shared accommodations rose by 18 per cent year-over-year in September, reaching $944 per month. Vancouver had the highest average asking rent at $1,590, while Toronto had $1,308.
OTTAWA – The New Democrats confirmed Thursday they won’t help Pierre Poilievre’s Conservatives topple the government next week, and intend to join the Bloc Québécois in blocking the Tories’ non-confidence motion.
The planned votes from the Bloc and the New Democrats eliminate the possibility of a snap election, buying the Liberals more time to govern after a raucous start to the fall sitting of Parliament.
Poilievre issued a challenge to NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh earlier this week when he announced he will put forward a motion that simply states that the House has no confidence in the government or the prime minister.
If it were to pass, it would likely mean Canadians would be heading to the polls, but Singh said Thursday he’s not going to let Poilievre tell him what to do.
Voting against the Conservative motion doesn’t mean the NDP support the Liberals, said Singh, who pulled out of his political pact with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau a few weeks ago.
“I stand by my words, Trudeau has let you down,” Singh said in the foyer outside of the House of Commons Thursday.
“Trudeau has let you down and does not deserve another chance.”
Canadians will have to make that choice at the ballot box, Singh said, but he will make a decision about whether to help trigger that election on a vote-by-vote basis in the House.
The Conservatives mocked the NDP during Question Period for saying they had “ripped up” the deal to support the Liberals, despite plans to vote to keep them in power.
Poilievre accused Singh of pretending to pull out of the deal to sway voters in a federal byelection in Winnipeg, where the NDP was defending its long-held seat against the Conservatives.
“Once the votes were counted, he betrayed them again. He’s a fake, a phoney and fraud. How can anyone ever believe what the sellout NDP leader says in the future?” Poilievre said during Question Period Thursday afternoon.
At some point after those comments, Singh stepped out from behind his desk in the House and a two-minute shouting match ensued between the two leaders and their MPs before the Speaker intervened.
Outside the House, Poilievre said he plans to put forward another non-confidence motion at the next opportunity.
“We want a carbon-tax election as soon as possible, so that we can axe Trudeau’s tax before he quadruples it to 61 cents a litre,” he said.
Liberal House leader Karina Gould says there is much work the government still needs to do, and that Singh has realized the consequences of potentially bringing down the government. She refused to take questions about whether her government will negotiate with opposition parties to ensure their support in future confidence motions.
Bloc Québécois Leader Yves-François Blanchet hasn’t ruled out voting no-confidence in the government the next time a motion is tabled.
“I never support Liberals. Help me God, I go against the Conservatives on a vote that is only about Pierre Poilievre and his huge ambition for himself,” Blanchet said Thursday.
“I support the interests of Quebecers, if those interests are also good for Canadians.”
A Bloc bill to increase pension cheques for seniors aged 65 to 74 is now at “the very centre of the survival of this government,” he said.
The Bloc needs a recommendation from a government minister to OK the cost and get the bill through the House.
The Bloc also wants to see more protections for supply management in the food sector in Canada and Quebec.
If the Liberals can’t deliver on those two things, they will fall, Blanchet said.
“This is what we call power,” he said.
Treasury Board President Anita Anand wouldn’t say whether the government would be willing to swallow the financial implications of the Bloc’s demands.
“We are focused at Treasury Board on ensuring prudent fiscal management,” she said Thursday.
“And at this time, our immediate focus is implementing the measures in budget 2024 that were announced earlier this year.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 19, 2024.
OTTAWA – Treasury Board President Anita Anand has been sworn in as federal transport minister at a ceremony at Rideau Hall, taking over a portfolio left vacant after Pablo Rodriguez resigned from cabinet and the Liberal caucus on Thursday.
Anand thanked Rodriguez for his contributions to the government and the country, saying she’s grateful for his guidance and friendship.
She sidestepped a question about the message it sends to have him leave the federal Liberal fold.
“That is a decision that he made independently, and I wish him well,” she said.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was not present for the swearing-in ceremony, nor were any other members of the Liberal government.
The shakeup in cabinet comes just days after the Liberals lost a key seat in a Montreal byelection to the Bloc Québécois and amid renewed calls for Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to step down and make way for a new leader.
Anand said she is not actively seeking leadership of the party, saying she is focused on her roles as minister and as MP.
“My view is that we are a team, and we are a team that has to keep delivering for our country,” she said.
The minority Liberal government is in a more challenging position in the House of Commons after the NDP ended a supply-and-confidence deal that provided parliamentary stability for more than two years.
Non-confidence votes are guaranteed to come from the Opposition Conservatives, who are eager to bring the government down.
On Thursday morning, Rodriguez made a symbolic walk over the Alexandra Bridge from Parliament Hill to Gatineau, Que., where he formally announced his plans to run for the Quebec Liberal party leadership.
He said he will now sit as an Independent member of Parliament, which will allow him to focus on his own priorities.
“I was defending the priorities of the government, and I did it in a very loyal way,” he said.
“It’s normal and it’s what I had to do. But now it’s more about my vision, the vision of the team that I’m building.”
Rodriguez said he will stay on as an MP until the Quebec Liberal leadership campaign officially launches in January.
He said that will “avoid a costly byelection a few weeks, or months, before a general election.”
The next federal election must be held by October 2025.
Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre said he will try to topple the government sooner than that, beginning with a non-confidence motion that is set to be debated Sept. 24 and voted on Sept. 25.
Poilievre has called on the NDP and the Bloc Québécois to support him, but both Jagmeet Singh and Yves-François Blanchet have said they will not support the Conservatives.
Rodriguez said he doesn’t want a federal election right away and will vote against the non-confidence motion.
As for how he would vote on other matters before the House of Commons, “it would depend on the votes.”
Public Services and Procurement Minister Jean-Yves Duclos will become the government’s new Quebec lieutenant, a non-cabinet role Rodriguez held since 2019.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 19, 2024.
— With files from Nojoud Al Mallees and Dylan Robertson
