Canada’s Average Rent Falls by $100 Annually as Declines Extend Into 19th Month

Toronto – May 7, 2026 – The average asking rent for all residential properties in Canada declined 4.7% year-over-year in April to $2,027, marking the 19th consecutive month of annual rent decreases, according to the latest National Rent Report from Rentals.ca and Urbanation. Average rents were down approximately $100 from a year ago and 7.4% lower than two years earlier, while remaining 1.2% higher than three years ago.

"Rents in Canada are basically back to their level from three years ago,” said Shaun Hildebrand, President of Urbanation. “ This improvement in affordability should help bring renters into the market who were priced out in recent years."

At the provincial level, annual apartment rent declines were concentrated in Canada’s largest provinces. British Columbia led with a 5.9% decrease, followed by Ontario (-5.2%) and Alberta (-3.4%). Meanwhile, apartment rents increased in Nova Scotia (+3.3%), Saskatchewan (+2.2%), Newfoundland and Labrador (+1.6%), and Manitoba (+1.3%). Saskatchewan continued to post the strongest three-year rent growth nationally, with apartment rents increasing 25.9% since April 2023.

Among Canada’s six largest rental markets, apartment rents declined across all cities in April, led by Vancouver (-5.3%), while Edmonton recorded the smallest decrease (-1.2%). Vancouver experienced the steepest declines across several unit types, including one-bedroom and three-bedroom apartments. Montreal stood out as the only major market to record annual rent growth for both one-bedroom (+3.4%) and two-bedroom (+3.0%) apartments, while three-bedroom rents increased in both Montreal (+0.8%) and Toronto (+2.3%).

Purpose-built rentals remained the most stable segment of the market, with average asking rents declining 3.7% annually to $2,027. Condo apartment rents fell 5.6% year-over-year to $2,087, while rents for houses and townhomes declined 7.8% to $1,998. Across all property types, one-bedroom rents posted the largest annual decline, falling 4.3% to an average of $1,778, while three-bedroom rents declined a comparatively modest 2.9% to $2,490.

Average asking rents per square foot declined 0.8% annually to $2.54, while the average unit size for available listings decreased to 827 square feet, continuing the longer-term trend toward smaller rental units. Compared to two years ago, average unit sizes have declined by 4.4%.

Suburban markets surrounding Canada’s largest cities continued to experience some of the sharpest rent corrections nationally. Double-digit apartment rent declines were recorded in Brossard (-14.4%), Richmond (-13.1%), Côte Saint-Luc (-12.0%), Markham (-12.0%), Oakville (-11.1%), Coquitlam (-11.1%), Longueil (-10.9%), and Burnaby (-10.2%).