Toronto now has the highest average rent in Canada

Toronto skyline. (Shutterstock)

Rents for housing in Canada’s largest city have continued to soar. So much so, that now the Big Smoke has the highest rents in the country.

According to the Canadian rental property listing website Rentals.ca, Toronto’s asking rents for a one-bedroom unit averaged over $1,900 per month in September 2018, representing a 2.8% increase over the previous month.

Two-bedroom unit rents were $2,374, which is a 7.1% month-over-month increase.

Surprisingly, Vancouver did not come in at second place, as it was trumped by Richmond Hill, where one-bedroom units were listed for an average of $1,796 per month – up by 3.5% compared to August. Average rental rates for two-bedroom units in this municipality were $2,209, an increase of almost 15% month-over-month.

Meanwhile in Vancouver, average one-bedroom unit rates fell by 4.3% to $1,760 per month, but average two-bedroom unit rates saw an increase of 3.9% to $1,711.

Overall, rental rates in the Toronto region were about 20% higher than Metro Vancouver in September, but this is partially because of the lower average unit sizes in the Vancouver market.

Average rents in Greater Vancouver and Greater Toronto in September 2018. (Rentals.ca)

Cities in Ontario dominated the website’s top 10 list of the most expensive rents in the country, with Etobicoke, Mississauga, North York, Burlington, Brampton, and Ottawa beating both Montreal and Calgary.

In Montreal, average rents for a one-bedroom unit fell by 2.4% to $1,258 per month, and a two-bedroom unit decreased by 0.6% to $1,539 per month.

Calgary’s average rents for both one-bedroom and two-bedroom units fell by 1.9% ($1,224) and 2.2% ($1,442), respectively.

Researchers with the website say their data is based on a sample of about 9,000 active listings. Here is the full ranking of rents in cities across the country:

Average rents in Canadian cities in September 2018. (Rentals.ca)

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