Rent prices continued to rise in August with the national average asking price reaching a new record high of $2,117, up nearly 10% from last year.

This also represented a 1.8% monthly increase since July, according to Rentals.ca’s Rent Report. Over the past three months, asking rents are up roughly $103, or 5.1%, the report notes.

One-bedroom rent prices were up the most in Brampton, ON, which saw a staggering 29% year-over-year increase. In the past month alone, the average rent price was up 3.3% to $2,274.

Other cities that saw out-sized annual increases in one-bedroom rents were Calgary, AB (+21.6%) and Laval, Quebec (+20.1%).

Rental construction not keeping up with demand

The report noted that rental apartment completions in Canada over the past 12 months are nearing their highest levels since the the 1970s.

“Unlike in the U.S., rent inflation in Canada has failed to cool down despite rental completions having reached their highest level in decades” Shaun Hildebrand, president of Toronto real estate research firm Urbanation, said in a release. “This is illustrative of the severe rental housing shortage across the country and the magnitude of the impact on rental demand as the population expands by a record pace.”

As of the second quarter, Canada’s population has grown by more than 1.2 million people in the preceding 12 months, according to the latest data from Statistics Canada. The population grew by more than 290,000 in Q1 alone, including over 145,400 new immigrants—the highest rate of growth in the first quarter since comparable data became available in 1972.

Alberta continues to lead the provinces in rent price growth

For the fourth straight month, Alberta posted the fastest year-over-year increase in rent prices, which were up 16% to $1,634. On a monthly basis, rent prices were up 3.5% from July.

Quebec saw the second-fastest annual pace of growth with a rise of 14% to $1,932, followed by British Columbia, where rents were up 11% to $2,675.

The slowest annual increases were seen in Manitoba (+8.3%) and Saskatchewan (+2.7%).

Calgary overtakes Montreal with rents exceeding $2,000

Of Canada’s largest rental markets, Calgary continued to lead rent price growth, which was up 17.3% year-over-year to $2,068 a month. Montreal was a close second, where prices were up 16.4%, rising above $2,000 for the first time.

The country’s two most expensive markets—Vancouver and Toronto—saw annual rent increases of 8.7% and 7.3%, respectively.

Here’s a look at the year-over-year rent increases in some of the country’s key markets:

• • Calgary, AB: +17.3% ($2,068)
  • Montreal, QC: +16.4% ($2,001)
  • Ottawa, ON: +11.9% ($2,226)
  • Regina, SK: +10.9% ($1,199)
  • Toronto, ON: +8.7% ($2,898)
  • Winnipeg, MB: +8.3% ($1,465)
  • Halifax, NS: +7.9% ($2,124)
  • Vancouver, B.C.: +7.3% ($3,316)

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Last modified: September 26, 2023