Average asking rents fall annually for eighth straight month to $2,129: report

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TORONTO — The national average asking rent in May was down 3.3 per cent from a year earlier at $2,129, marking the eighth consecutive month of year-over-year decreases.

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The monthly report from Rentals.ca and Urbanation said Monday asking rents held steady from April, with a 0.1 per cent month-over-month increase.

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Purpose-built apartment asking rents declined two per cent from a year ago to an average of $2,117, while asking rents for condominium apartments fell 3.6 per cent to $2,192.

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Rents for houses and townhomes declined seven per cent to $2,196.

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Urbanation president Shaun Hildebrand said rents have eased in part due to a surge in supply with new apartments being completed, a slowdown in population growth and a heightened level of economic uncertainty.

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“The easing in rents this year across most parts of the country is a positive for housing affordability in Canada following a period of extremely strong rent inflation lasting from 2022 to 2024,” Hildebrand said in a news release.

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The report said average asking rents in Canada are 5.7 per cent higher than they were two years ago and 12.6 per cent above levels from three years ago.

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Over the past five years, rents in Canada have increased by an average of 4.1 per cent annually, outpacing average wage growth of roughly three per cent, it added.

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Ontario recorded the largest rent decline in May, with asking rents falling 3.6 per cent year-over-year to an average of $2,335, followed by B.C.’s 2.6 per cent decrease to $2,462, Alberta’s 2.4 per cent decrease to $1,745 and Quebec’s 1.8 per cent decrease to $1,964.

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Saskatchewan led the way for year-over-year rent growth, at 3.9 per cent, to an average of $1,386, followed by Nova Scotia at 2.1 per cent to $2,284 and Manitoba at 0.1 per cent to $1,624.

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Apartment rents also fell in four of Canada’s six largest cities, with the other two recording less than one per cent annual growth.

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Calgary saw the largest drop at 7.9 per cent to $1,928, followed by a 6.8 per cent annual decrease in Toronto to $2,594 and a 5.9 per cent decline in Vancouver to $2,830.

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Montreal apartment rents were down 3.3 per cent to $1,970, while rents in Edmonton ticked up 0.7 per cent $1,561 and 0.4 per cent in Ottawa to $2,198.

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This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 9, 2025.

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