Average asking rent prices reach $2,193 in February, up 10.5% from 2023

A new report says the average asking price for a rental unit in Canada was $2,193 per month in February, marking a 10.5 per cent jump year-over-year and the fastest annual growth since September 2023.

The data released Monday by Rentals.ca and Urbanation, which analyzes monthly listings from the former’s network, shows the average monthly cost of a one-bedroom unit in February was $1,920, up 12.9 per cent from the same month in 2023. The average asking price for a two-bedroom was $2,293, up 11.3 per cent annually.

The report says asking rents in Canada have increased overall by a total of 21 per cent, or an average of $384 per month, from two years ago, just before the start of interest rate hikes by the Bank of Canada.

Alberta maintained its status as the province with the fastest-growing rents, with total average asking prices up 20 per cent annually last month to reach $1,708.

British Columbia and Ontario posted the slowest growth in February, with annual increases of 1.3 per cent and one per cent, respectively. But the provinces remain Canada’s most expensive for renters, with total average asking rents of $2,481 in B.C. and $2,431 in Ontario.

Traditional purpose-built rental apartments posted the fastest year-over-year price growth in February with a 14.4 per cent increase, as rents averaged $2,110. Condominium rentals, with an average rent of $2,372, and apartments in houses, at $2,347, had slower annual growth of five per cent and 5.3 per cent, respectively.