Rents in Canada Decline to Two-Year Low

Toronto – October 7, 2025 – The average asking rent for all residential properties in Canada declined 3.2% year-over-year in September to $2,123, marking the 12th consecutive month of annual rent decreases, according to the latest National Rent Report from Rentals.ca and Urbanation. This follows a 38-month stretch of rent increases between August 2021 and September 2024, and represents the first two-year decline in average asking rents since January 2022.

“Renters in many parts of Canada are experiencing the best levels of affordability in two years, with the most expensive markets in Vancouver and Toronto seeing rents at their lowest in nearly four years,” said Shaun Hildebrand, President of Urbanation. “This is the result of new rental supply outstripping demand, which is unlikely to persist for long as supply from secondary market sources such as condos tightens and demand drivers such as population growth and employment stabilize.”

Rents declined across all property types compared to a year ago, with purpose-built rentals down 2.1%, condo rentals falling 3.0%, and houses and townhomes declining 5.5%. Over two years, rents in the secondary market fell more sharply, with condos dropping 4.7% and houses/townhomes down 8.3%, while purpose-built rental rates increased 3.3% and 18.3% over three years. Among bedroom types, one-bedrooms posted the largest annual rent drop at 4.1% to $1,836, followed by two-bedrooms (-2.6%), studios (-2.4%), and three-bedrooms (-1.3%).

Three-bedroom apartment rents increased 0.9% annually to $2,755 for purpose-built units and 2.4% to $2,923 for condos. At the other end of the spectrum, studio condo rents fell 8.7% year-over-year to $1,708 — the largest decline across all unit types.

At the provincial level, apartment rents declined the most in B.C. and Alberta, both down 5.5% annually. Ontario followed with a 2.7% drop, while smaller declines were recorded in Nova Scotia (-2.2%), Quebec (-0.5%), and Saskatchewan (-0.3%). Manitoba was the only province to record rent growth, increasing 2.6% year-over-year. Over three years, apartment rents rose most significantly in the Prairie provinces, led by Manitoba (+27.1%), Saskatchewan (+26.5%), and Alberta (+20.5%).

All six of Canada’s largest cities posted annual rent declines in September. Vancouver led with an 8.2% decrease to $2,776, followed by Calgary (-7.4%), Toronto (-2.9%), Edmonton (-2.3%), Ottawa (-1.3%), and Montreal (-0.5%). Vancouver and Toronto rents were also down on a three-year basis, falling 10.5% and 8.6%, respectively. Edmonton, by contrast, saw the strongest three-year growth among major cities at 18.3%.

Among bedroom segments in major markets, the sharpest annual declines occurred in three-bedroom units in Calgary (-9.7%), two-bedroom units in Toronto (-7.0%), and one-bedroom units in Vancouver (-6.4%). Montreal and Edmonton recorded rent increases for three-bedroom units, rising 7.6% and 1.1%, respectively.

The average asking rent for shared accommodations across four provinces fell 6.6% annually in September to $943, returning to the same level as two years ago. Rents declined 7.4% in B.C., 7.1% in Alberta, 6.9% in Ontario, and 3.7% in Quebec. Vancouver saw the steepest annual drop at 14.7% to $1,268, while Ottawa posted the strongest growth at 16.2% to $1,108. Rents remained flat in Toronto and inched up 0.5% in Edmonton.